The University of Connecticut -- Antique Musical Instruments.

Researchers at the UConn are using 3D printing medical technology to bring new life into some old antique musical instruments. This kind of technology could help the study of delicate vintage musical instrument restoration.

They have developed an exciting new process: they first make images of an antique musical instrument using CT scanning technology and then create 3D copies of parts using 3D printing.

Before this technology was available, in order to produce a handmade copy of a part from one of these antique, vintage musical instruments you would first have to measure it with calipers and other instruments, which tended to leave marks.

Then you would have to painstakingly translate all those measurements into tooling. Needless to say, it was a very time-consuming and costly process.