Sex Toys Debut with 3D Printing at CES 2020

Las Vegas is already known as Sin City, in part for the gambling and sex work that takes place there (though it turns out that, while legal in Nevada, prostitution is actually illegal in Vegas), and for its history of ties to the mafia. But it was only in 2020 that sex toys were allowed at CES, the largest consumer electronics show in the world.

After a ban was lifted this year, a swarm of devices designed for sexual health and wellness are descending on the CES showroom floor, including the 3D-printed variety. But why were sex toys banned and why are they not banned anymore?

The Osé. Image courtesy of Lora DiCarlo.

The sexual liberation of CES can be attributed to Lora Haddock DiCarlo and her firm’s uniquely designed vibrator, the Osé. Developed with the help of engineers from the robotics lab at Oregon State University, the Osé uses micro-robotics to mimic human movements and stimulate the g-spot and clitoris simultaneously. While its users might welcome the technology, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), which hosts CES, did not.

Her startup was given a CES innovation award for a prototype of the Osé, but, two months before CES 2019, had the award revoked. Whereas, a CTA spokesperson told one outlet that the device “didn’t fit into any existing product categories,” Haddock claims the CTA deemed the product to be “immoral, obscene, indecent, profane or not in keeping with CTA’s image.”

This came despite the fact that sex toy maker OhMiBod has been at CES every year since 2011 and pornography producers Naughty America demoed virtual reality products at the event in 2019. Haddock suggested that the revocation of the award reflected a gender bias in the tech industry, while Lynn Comella, an associate professor of gender and sexuality studies at the University of Las Vegas, argued that the trade show was out of touch with the technological evolution of the (female-led) sex toy industry. Given the presence of “booth babes” at CES and the general gender (and race) biases in tech overall, neither argument would be too surprising.

Regardless of the reason why Haddock’s award was revoked, it has since been reinstated and her firm pre-sold over 10,000 Osé units in December. CES is using 2020 as a trial run for sexual health and wellness products. In addition to the Osé, Haddock’s firm will be showcasing two new products alongside numerous other companies that will be presenting vibrators, lube and solutions for premature ejaculation, among other things.

The lifting of the ban will also be impacting the 3D printing firms exhibiting at CES, which will include Formlabs, whose partner, Dame Products, will be showing visitors how it used 3D printing to speed up time-to-market. Dame’s flagship product, Eva, is a hands-free vibrator meant to provide clitoral stimulation, with or without a partner.

A 3D-printed prototype of the original Eva. Image courtesy of Dame Products.

Eva was prototyped with 3D printing and launched on Indiegogo, allowing the Brooklyn startup to get off the ground without traditional overhead expenses. It also made it possible for Dame to quickly iterate product designs, thus speeding up delivery to market. As a result, Dame is already on the second generation of Eva and has released a number of other items for sexual health and wellness.

Janet Lieberman-Lu, co-founder and CTO of Dame Products, said of her firm’s presence at CES, “We’re excited to be joining Formlabs at our first CES while the CTA is considering whether to keep sextech as a category. Vibrators are consumer electronics – they’re personal care items like electric toothbrushes and razors – so they deserve to be showcased in the same venues.”

The post Sex Toys Debut with 3D Printing at CES 2020 appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

3D printing at CES 2019, XYZprinting, Shining 3D, Nexa3D and Polaroid

For years the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) has been a landmark platform for companies launching their latest technologies, including 3D printers and scanners. In 2017, Boston 3D printer provider Markforged used the show as a launchpad for its Metal X 3D printer, and Shanghai’s INTAMSYS brought PEEK 3D printing to the desktop in its Funmat HT […]

Formlabs Showcases New 3D Printing Resins and More at CES 2019

Elastic Resin

CES 2019 kicks off today, running from January 8th to 11th in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s the biggest technology show of the year, and it covers a broad range of applications in the tech industry, but 3D printing is more closely tied to more of those applications than most people realize.

“Of the more than 4,000 CES exhibitors, 3D printing was likely part of the ideation, development or manufacturing for more than 90% of them,” said Max Lobovsky, Co-Founder and CEO of Formlabs. “3D printing continues to be one of the most important tools for anyone making anything. Time and time again we hear about the importance of seeing a product or project physically vs. digitally, which is why this year we’re showing workflows from end-to-end. Whether you’re creating a creature, or introducing personalization to your product line, it helps to bring that process to life for an audience at CES.”

Formlabs releases new 3D printing materials on a regular basis, and kicked off 2018 by introducing two new resins at CES 2018. Last year also saw the introduction of a ceramic resin, a castable wax resin and a reformulated high temperature resin. Now the company is starting 2019 in the same way – by showcasing three new 3D printing resins at CES.

Elastic Resin is Formlabs’ softest Engineering Resin, with a 50A Shore durometer. It is designed for the prototyping of silicone parts that need to bend, stretch, compress and withstand repeated cycling without tearing. The other new resins are called the Digital Dentures resins and consist of Denture Base Resin and Denture Teeth Resin, both developed for the direct 3D printing of dental prosthetics.

Formlabs will have a lot more than new materials to showcase at its CES booth this year. There will be live demos from creature designers such as Jared Krichevsky, who uses Formlabs’ Form 2 3D printer in his work.

“When you hold a print in your hand, you are looking at it, you are feeling the weight with your hands, you can feel the texture with your fingertips, the light is coming from the world, and it is all real,” Krichevsky said in an interview with Formlabs. “There is something magical that happens when you are really holding a print and you get to examine it from all angles. Even prints that you’ve already printed out, you’ll want to pick up again and hold them again and again because you’re like, I made this.”

Formlabs will also be presenting its recent partnership with Gillette, in which the two companies worked together to develop Razor Maker, a platform that allows customers to create their own personalized 3D printed razors. Finally, CES attendees who stop by Formlabs’ booth will also get to see a print farm in action. More than 40 Form 2 3D printers will be set up and printing. If you’ll be attending CES, you can stop by and visit Formlabs at LVCC, South Hall, Upper Level, Booth #31517.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

 

Formlabs launch resins for rapid prototyping and dental prosthetics at CES

Formlabs, a Boston-based manufacturer of SLA 3D printers, has introduced two new resin materials at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), in Las Vegas, which commenced today. The first of the new resins, Elastic Resin, is designed for prototyping silicone parts and is said to be the softest of Formlabs’ Engineering Resins. The second, Digital Denture, […]

Neutrogena to launch personalised 3D printed face masks

Neutrogena, the American skincare brand of the multinational healthcare company, Johnson & Johnson, has introduced its customizable 3D printed face mask. Known as the MaskiD, this beauty venture uses photographs from a smartphone to micro 3D print a face mask suited to the consumer’s skin type and desired treatment. Speaking to Condé Nast beauty publication […]

ParaMatters Introduces CogniCAD 2.0 Topology Optimizer at CES 2019

It’s almost time again for CES, the biggest tech show of the year where companies from all corners of the technology sector will be bringing out their latest products. For ParaMatters, that means the first time the company will be showcasing its CogniCAD 2.0 Topology Optimization software in North America. ParaMatters, which manufactures autonomous topology optimization, parts consolidation and lightweighting software, introduced the original CogniCAD software at CES last year, and now it will be showcasing the second generation.

“We are thrilled to announce the first North American showcase of CogniCAD 2.0 at CES,” said ParaMatters Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer Dr. Michael Bogomolny. “After over a year of working with industry leaders to fine tune this second-generation technology, we are now able to provide the most powerful agnostic CAD-to-CAD generative design and lightweighting tool available on the market today.”

CogniCAD 2.0 builds on their cloud-based, cognitive design computational platform. The software is capable of automatically generating ready-to-3D-print, high-performance, lightweight structures for automotive, aerospace and other mission-critical applications.

“We are transforming the entire design-to-manufacturing process by making it possible for our cloud service to autonomously generate high-quality, CAD-agnostic and ready-to-manufacture, optimized lightweighted designs in minutes to a few hours,” said Dr. Bogomolny. “Our proprietary generative engine automatically delivers high performance and quality designs with minimal user input. As a result, the entire design cycle is compressed from weeks to hours and raises the quality of generative designs compared to what can be achieved manually.”

The new software speeds up development and features new, advanced algorithms to enhance overall digital thread and additive manufacturing capabilities, including a new cloud-based, generative design platform that automatically compiles lightweight and metamaterial lattice structures on demand, based on specifications entered by designers and engineers. These include size, weight, cost, strength, style and materials.

The software also offers as a design service meso-structural capabilities that deliver biomimicry design for optimal structural infills that are mission-critical for certain additive manufacturing processes.

“We are taking full advantage of the convergence of advanced topology optimization techniques, computational geometry, artificial intelligence and infinite cloud computing power to deliver the most powerful, affordable and impactful tool that unleashes the full potential of design for additive manufacturing,” said Avi Reichental, ParaMatters Co-Founder and Executive Chairman.

CogniCAD 2.0 is available through ParaMatters’ website as a cloud-based, pay-per-design service. Several subscription and enterprise-based models are available. The software works by first importing CAD files into the platform, then defining loading and design criteria. Users can obtain generative designs within minutes, verified by built-in Finite-Element Analysis and ready for 3D printing in both STL and STEP formats. All ParaMatters-generated designs can be directly 3D printed.

ParaMatters will be at CES 2019 at the Techniplas booth, LVCC, North Hall – 9320. Interested attendees can stop by and learn more about what’s new in CogniCAD 2.0.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.