An 83-year-old Enumclaw inventor has been named the winner of an international desktop fabrication competition sponsored by the Kauffman Foundation, Maker Education Initiative and Inventables.
Hugh Lyman won $40,000, a 3D printer and a computerized milling machine for his invention of a device that will likely greatly lower the cost of 3D automated printing.
Lyman’s Filament Extruder II converts plastic pellets into filaments for use in low-cost 3D printers. The extruder is open-sourced and can be made for less than $250.
“While the price of 3D printers has dropped dramatically in the last few years, the plastic filament used by …