3D PRINTING

TECHNOLOGY
 What Is 3D Printing?
As their name suggests, 3D Printers can build three-
dimensional objects, out of a variety of materials. At its
most basic, 3D printing is a manufacturing process in
which material is laid down, layer by layer, to form a
three-dimensional object. (This is deemed an additive
process because the object is built from scratch, as
opposed to subtractive processes in which material is cut,
drilled, milled, or machined off.) Although 3D printers
employ a variety of materials (such as plastic or metal)
and techniques, they share the ability to turn digital files
containing three-dimensional data—whether created on a
computer-aided design (CAD) or computer-aided
manufacturing (CAM) program, or from a 3D scanner—
into physical objects.
 First 3D Printer

In 1986, Charles “Chuck” Hull invented the

first form of 3D printing –
Stereolithography
The first Stereolithographic Apparatus (SLA) is made by 3D Systems
 How Does 3D Printing Work?

Much like traditional printers, 3D printers use

a variety of technologies. The most commonly
known is fused deposition modeling (FDM), also
known as fused filament fabrication (FFF). In it, a
filament—composed of acrylonitrile butadiene
styrene (ABS), polylactic acid (PLA), or
another thermoplastic —is melted and deposited
through a heated extrusion nozzle in layers. The
first 3D printers to come to market, made in the
mid 1990s by Stratasys with help from IBM, used
FDM (a term trademarked by Stratasys), as do
most 3D printers geared to consumers, hobbyists,
and schools.
 How Does 3D Printing Work?

Another technology used in 3D

printing is stereolithography. In it, a
UV laser is shined into a vat of
ultraviolet-sensitive photopolymer,
tracing the object to be created on its
surface. The polymer solidifies
wherever the beam touches it, and
the beam "prints" the object layer by
layer per the instructions in the CAD
or CAM file it's working from.
 How Does 3D Printing Work?

In a variation on that, you

also have digital light
projector (DLP)
3D printing. This method
exposes a liquid polymer to
light from a digital light
processing projector. This
hardens the polymer layer
by layer until the object is
built, and the remaining
liquid polymer is drained
off.
 What Are the Benefits of 3D Printing?

With 3D printing, designers have the ability to quickly

turn concepts into 3D models or prototypes ("rapid
prototyping"), and implement rapid design changes. It lets
manufacturers produce products on demand rather than in
large runs, improving inventory management and reducing
warehouse space. People in remote locations can fabricate
objects that would otherwise be inaccessible to them.

From a practical standpoint, 3D printing can

save money and material versus subtractive
techniques, as very little raw material is wasted.
And it promises to change the nature of
manufacturing, eventually letting consumers
download files for printing even complex 3D
objects—including, for example, electronics
devices—in their own homes.
What Can 3D Printers Make?

Designers use 3D printers to quickly create product

models and prototypes, but they're increasingly being
used to make final products, as well.
Among the items made with 3D printers are shoe
designs, furniture, wax castings for making jewelry,
tools, tripods, gift and novelty items, and toys.
The automotive and aviation industries use 3D
printers to make parts. Artists can create sculptures,
and architects can fabricate models of their projects.
Archaeologists are using 3D printers to
reconstruct models of fragile artifacts, including some
of the antiquities that in recent years have been
destroyed by ISIS. Likewise, paleontologists and their
students can duplicate dinosaur skeletons and other
fossils.
 What Can 3D Printers Make?

Physicians and medical technicians can use 3D printing to make prosthetics, hearing
aids, artificial teeth, and bone grafts, as well as replicate models of organs, tumors, and
other internal bodily structures from CT scans in preparation for surgery.
A good example is Project Daniel, which 3D-prints prosthetic arms and hands for victims
of the violence in Sudan. Also, 3D printers being developed that can lay down layers of
cells to create artificial organs (such as kidneys and blood vessels) are already in the R&D
phase. There's even a place for 3D printing in forensics, for example to replicate a bullet
lodged inside a victim.