Humans are very good in using both hands and eyes for tactile pattern recognition: The german verb for
understanding, "begreifen" literally means "getting a (tactile) grip on a matter". This proven and time honoured
concept has been in use since prehistoric times.
While the amount of scientific data continues to grow, researchers still need all the support to help them visualize
the data content before their inner eye. Immersive data-visualisations are helpful, yet fail to provide tactile
feedback as provided from tangible objects. The need for tangible representations of geospatial information to
solve real world problems eventually led to the advent of 3d-globes by M. Behaim in the 15th century and has
continued since.
The production of a tangible representation of a scientific data set with some fidelity is just the final step of an arc,
leading from the physical world into scientific reasoning and back: The process starts with a physical observation,
or a model, by a sensor which produces a data stream which is turned into a geo-referenced data set. This data is
turned into a volume representation which is converted into command sequences for the printing device, leading
to the creation of a 3d-printout. Finally, the new specimen has to be linked to its metadata to ensure its scientific
meaning and context.
On the technical side, the production of a tangible data-print has been realized as a pilot workflow based on the
Free and Open Source Geoinformatics tools GRASS GIS and Paraview to convert scientific data volume into
stereolithography datasets (stl) for printing on a RepRap printer.
The initial motivation to use tangible representations of complex data was the task of quality assessments on
tsunami simulation data sets in the FP7 TRIDEC project (www.tridec-online.eu). For this, 3d-prints of space time
cubes of tsunami wave spreading patterns were produced. This was followed by print-outs of volume data derived
from radar sounders (MARSIS, SHARAD) imaging the north polar cap of Mars.
While these first pilot applications have demonstrated the feasibility of the approach, further research is required
to explore both the methodology and application scenarios.
Tangible 3D printouts of scientific data volumes with FOSS - an emerging field for researchEGU 2013 [ESSI Poster #1544]
1. Tangible 3D printouts of scientific data volumes with
FOSS - an emerging field for research
Peter Löwe¹, Jens Klump¹, Jens Wickert², Marcel Ludwig², and Alessandro Frigeri³
¹ Centre for Geoinformation Technology, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam, Germany
² GPS/Galileo Earth Observation, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam, Germany
³ INAF-Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica · Institute for Space Astrophysics and Planetology IAPS, Rome, Italy
Contact: ploewe@gfz-potsdam.de
3D printed Handpieces for Science Communication
Researchers need to communicate their findings both within Academia and towards the general
public. This requires the interpretation of scientific data to reach the intended audiences. Since the
rise of Geoinformatics, this task is often accomplished using computer based visualisations, ranging
from animated movies to immersive virtual reality environments.
3D printing enables the creation of tangible representations of scientifc data, adding
haptic perception as a channel for science communication, based on a rapid and
affordable production process.
Figure 2: A 3D print of the north polar cap of Mars (left) was
produced based on a volume model produced by the italian
Free and Open Source GIS for Scientific 3D Printing National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) based on ground
penetrating radar from the SHARAD and MARSIS sensors
Figure 1: 3D print of a landscape surface (right)[Frigeri 2012].
derived from a Laserscan Digital Elevation A novel workflow based on the Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) tools GRASS GIS and
Model. Paraview to convert scientific data volume into printable data formats has been developed by GFZ
Potsdam. An extrusion deposition printer (RapMan) is used to create tangible scientific data
printouts.
Towards a Scientific 3D Application Fields
Printing Process
Tangible 3D printouts are used in several applications in Geography, Geology, Planetology and
The production of a tangible representation from a Tsunami Simulation:
scientific data set is the final step of a larger The initial motivation was quality assessment on tsunami simulation data sets in the FP7 TRIDEC
process, linking the physical world and scientific project (www.tridec-online.eu). For this, 3D printouts of space time cubes of tsunami wave
reasoning: The process starts with an observation spreading patterns were produced. Other applications involve high resolution land surfaces (Figure
resulting in a geo-referenced data set. This data is 1), geologic layers (Figure 4) and ice deposits (Figure 2). Additional application fields are currently
turned into a volume representation for the printing investigated.
device, leading to the creation of a 3D printout.
Figure 3: The 3D printing process for science data: Starting
Finally, the new 3D specimen has to be linked to its
with a scientific data set, a printable representation is derived,
metadata to ensure its scientific meaning and
resulting in the 3D printout. This printout must be connected to
context (Figure 2).
the metadata of the original data and the printing workflow.
Figure 4: 3D printed stack of the
underlying geology of the eastern german
basin. The 3D prints depict permocarbon
volcanics (red), Rotliegend sandstones
(brown), permian Zechstein (blue),
triassic Buntsandstein (purple), upper
cretacious (green), and quaternary
deposits (yellow).
www.gfz-potsdam.de