Hapless penguin with a broken beak gets given new lease of life thanks to new 3D printed bill

• Penguin broke its beak in fight or fall at Warsaw Zoo, Poland, a month ago
• Its chances of survival were slim as it could no longer preen or feed itself
• But now, scientists plan to use a 3D printer to scan dead penguin's beak
• They then hope to create new bill for penguin out of high-tech eco-plastic
• Believed to be second time 3D printer has been used to make bird's beak
• In 2012, bald eagle in America became first ever recipient of prosthetic bill

By Sophie Jane Evans

PUBLISHED: 1 21 Mar 2014

After breaking its beak in either a fight or fall one month ago, one penguin's chances of survival were slim.  But now, the hapless creature may be given a new lease of life - thanks to a 3D printer.  Scientists are hoping to use the Omni3D printer to scan a dead penguin's beak in order to determine the shape and dimensions needed.

New hope: A penguin with a broken beak may be given a new lease of life - thanks to a 3D printer (file picture)

They then plan to produce a new, printed bill for the bird - made out of high-tech eco-plastic. The penguin, which is living at Warsaw Zoo in Poland, is believed to have lost its lower beak in a fight or fall one month ago.

Keepers say that, in its current state, the animals' chances of survival are slim - as it can neither preen nor feed itself. But the new bill, funded by Polish firm MTT Polska, could see the penguin restored to its former health.

Home: Scientists are planning to use the Omni3D printer to scan a dead penguin's beak to determine the shape and dimensions needs, before producing a new bill for the bird, which is living at Warsaw Zoo (above), Poland

'We had gone to the zoo to see if they could use any of our 3D technology, and didn’t know anything about the bird at first,' Bartek Jarkiewicz, of MTT Polska, who is leading the project, told The Telegraph. 'Then they said they had a penguin with a problem and asked if we could come up with a new beak.'

Mr Jarkiewicz said the Omni3D scientists were hoping to create the new beak next week - but are planning to make a number of bills in case the first one falls off or the eco-plastic proves unsuitable.

It is believed to be only the second time in the world that a 3D printer has been used to construct a bird's beak. In 2012, a bald eagle in the U.S. became the first ever recipient of a prosthetic, three-dimensional bill.

Advanced technology: 3D printers create three-dimensional, useable objects by building them from thin layers of plastic or metal. Objects to have been created so far include trainers, bones and even food (file picture)

3D printers, which have increasingly hit the headlines in recent years, create three-dimensional, useable objects by building them from thin layers of plastic or metal.
Last week, it was revealed that a severely injured motorcyclist has his face rebuilt using titanium plates produced by a 3D printer.

Other objects to have been created include trainers, phone cases, toy cars, human bones and even food.

Previously, an American bald eagle that had a prosthetic 3D beak fitted

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