Purps the penguin walks again with a 3D-printed boot.

Children from Mystic Middle School in Connecticut recently teamed up with a local aquarium and 3D printing firm to create a boot that has helped an injured penguin walk again.The penguin, called Yellow Purple or 'Purps' for short, tore a tendon in her left leg following an altercation with a fellow bird at Mystic Aquarium in 2011. She has been unable to walk properly since.The project not only helped a member of an endangered species, but the students a hands-on understanding of the 3D-printing process. African penguins were classed as endangered in 2010. They are around 60cm tall and typically weight between two to five kilograms as adults. As the name suggests, the species is mainly found along the south African coast, and their braying call has also led to them being known as Jackass penguins As part of a project run by 3D Systems, with ACT Group, the school children modelled a hand-moulded cast of the penguin's foot and then used 3D printing technology to create a perfectly-formed cast to support Purps leg and help her walk once more. The original hand-moulded cast was too heavy for the penguin so ACT Group used 3D Systems' ProJet MJP 5500x to print a lightweight orthotic boot instead. . See