Facts and Facets about 3D Printing: the all new tech trend

3D printing is a form of printing technology, by which three dimensional objects are created by adding successive layers of material. It is an additive manufacturing technology where printing is comparatively faster, more cost effective and easier. 3D printers give flexibility to users and product developers; so that they can print parts and assemblies made of layers of materials of different properties and compile them in a single build process. 3D printers have the versatility to produce accurate and durable products in three dimensional forms without machining or tooling. It can transform 3D CAD files into functional prototypes, manufacturing tools and parts. You can pursue various design iterations using the 3D prototyping and then functionally test each one.

3D Printing

Advantage of 3D Printing

Earlier, if you needed some prototyping work to be done for a design or a product, you needed to put in hours of hard work and manual designing, to come up with a finished product. Miniature parts of your designs, spare parts and coming up with the final structure, was a painstaking procedure. But now, with the advent of 3D printing, the tedious prototyping tasks are made quick and easy and you come up with even more accurate designs than with manual work. 3D printing is a revolutionary method of creating 3D models with the use of inkjet technology

How does 3D Printing Work?

3D printing uses inkjet technology to render the image fed to it by exclusive graphic software tools. A 3D model is then created on the 3D image by using fine powder such as plaster, resin and cornstarch layer by layer, by building cross-sections of the image. These layers are stuck together by adhesives or UV light is used to cure the adhesive resins. Some printers make use of laser to fuse the powder together.

3D printing is useful in various industries such as architecture, construction, engineering, medical and dental industries, jewelry, footwear, automotive, aerospace, drug research, biotechnology and the like.

Methods of 3D Printing:

There are various methods of 3D printing based on the way layers are built to create the design. While some methods use melting or softening material to build layers, others lay cured liquid materials. Some others cut thin layers into shape and then join them together.

The common methods of 3 D printing are;

• Selective laser sintering
• Fused deposition modeling
• Laminated object manufacturing
• Inkjet 3D printing
• Digital light processing
• Stereo lithography

Resolution is measured in dpi or dots per inch on the X-Y resolution. It is also measured in layer thickness, with a classical layer thickness being around 0.1mm (micrometers). The 3D dots or particles are around 0.5-1mm (micrometers) in diameter.

3D Printing in Industries:

Objet, Stratasys, Geometries, Z-Corp and 3D Systems are some of the leading companies offering 3D printers. A 3D printer is approximately priced at 10,000 Euros or more.

Of late, 3D printing is being evaluated for desk top use. RepRap is one such project that aims to introduce FOSS compatible 3D printing in the open source platform. The MarketBot 3D printer is one such printer.

Applications of 3D Printing:

3D printing has been found of great value in a wide range of areas which include CAD metal casting, design visualization, healthcare diagnostics, architecture and prototyping. This is also helpful in replicating important finds in archaeology and paleontology. Forensic pathology makes use of 3D printing to recreate scenarios that may lead to valuable evidence and solving crimes. Biotechnology is now turning to 3D printing for its branches such as tissue engineering, organ printing and stem cell research.

In a Nutshell

3D printing is definitely a step ahead in technology that will have an indelible impact on the way the world works in almost every field that uses it. It gives clearer and three dimensional pictures of everything and that too at affordable rates. Most of the industries are likely to make the most of this amazingly brilliant facet of technology to achieve better results. . Many engineers have labeled 3D printing as the process of creating something out of nothing. 3D printing is on its way to becoming the nucleus of printing technology in the near future.