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Hardware

3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

By Lyndsey Gilpin July 15, 2014, 1:31 PM PDT

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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

San Francisco

Image: Daniel Terdiman/CNET

San Francisco

This model of San Francisco took two months to make and cost around $20,000. It was primarily built to help a real estate developer showcase buildings and to help with city planning. It was presented by Autodesk earlier this year.

Image: Daniel Terdiman/CNET
screen-shot-2014-07-14-at-9-53-34-pm.png
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Geography

Image: Society for Printable Geography

Geography

This terrain map of Louisville, Kentucky was designed using the Society for Printable Geography. Simply go to the site, type in your location, and it will generate a printable geographic map using the size of the iPhone as parameters. It takes about a minute to generate, and then you can order the prints through Shapeways or Sculpteo.

Image: Society for Printable Geography
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Maps for the visually impaired

Image: Shapeways

Maps for the visually impaired

HaptoRender is a company that wants to use 3D printing to create tactile maps for the blind and visually impaired. The company will use Openstreetmap data to make the maps of cities and use braille for descriptions, allowing people to have a better understanding of the lay of the land.

Image: Shapeways
london-subwaymap.jpg
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

London subway

Image: Chillsy/Shapeways

London subway

This iPhone case is a map of the London subway. On Shapeways, almost any public rail system is available — from Barcelona to Tokyo. This is available for less than $30 on Shapeways.

Image: Chillsy/Shapeways
manhattan-full-color-3d-print-install-web.jpg
manhattan-full-color-3d-print-install-web.jpg
3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Manhattan

Image: 3D Print Board

Manhattan

This giant 3D printed model of Manhattan was made to hang in a corporate space for Vick Art Advisors, and was designed by Sparks 3D Design and Quickparts. It was printed in 28 sections, and is 24 feet long.

Image: 3D Print Board
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Mt. Rainier and other terrain

Image: Shapeways

Mt. Rainier and other terrain

This topographic map of Mount Rainier is available for purchase on Shapeways. It shows the mountain peak along with the glaciers and valleys surrounding it. There are many maps of mountains available for download or purchase on the site.

Image: Shapeways
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Your journey

Image: Instructables

Your journey

Use Instructables, the open source instructions site for 3D printing, to print your trek, whether it’s on a bike, on feet, or in a car. All you have to do is download the elevation data to print after tracking your trip with a GPS device. This one was made by a user who went to Nepal and mapped his journey.

Image: Instructables
winterfell.jpg
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3D printed maps: 10 eye-catching examples

Winterfell

Image: damm301/Thingiverse

Winterfell

This model of Winterfell was built from scratch, using screen grabs from Game of Thrones. The file is available for download on Thingiverse for free. This version was made with a MakerBot Replicator 2.

Image: damm301/Thingiverse
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By Lyndsey Gilpin
Lyndsey Gilpin is a former Staff Writer for TechRepublic, covering sustainability and entrepreneurship. She's co-author of the book Follow the Geeks.
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