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Commercial 3-D Printers Are Now Being Created For Home Use

By Ping Henninger


The relatively new technology of using 3D printers is having an impact on the world of manufacturing. It could not have been imagined prior to 1984. Every field of industry is and will continue to be affected. It is getting to the point that it will cost no more per item to produce one than it does to produce a thousand or more.

There are ways to apply a three dimensional image to a two dimensional surface. This technique is called pad printing. Other methods, lenticular printing and holography, print 2D parallax stereograms that appear to be 3D to the eye. This is attributable to perception.

What the 3D printing process does is make a 3D object using a digital model. This additive process takes layers of material laid on one on top of the other, successively, and uses them to make different shapes. In 1984 this digital technology was invented. The sales of these industrial printing machines has grown significantly since the year 2000.

Many fields of endeavor can make use of this technology including construction, architecture, engineering and aerospace. It is becoming a mass marketing item. Purchases will be made for consumers at a lower price, which is always an advantage.

In an inkjet 3D printing system, the printer spreads a layer of powder in the process. Layers are repeated until the 3D effect is achieved. Full color prototypes are produced. When the bonded powders must be made stronger, wax is added to strengthen and enhance them.

Lamination is used producing thin plastic or sheet metals. Photopolymerization produces solids from a liquid. Digital light processing is another method as is multiphoton polymerization which uses a block of gel and produces ultra-small objects.

An introductory article such as this is insufficient to fully explain these complicated processes. What is important for the in home user to know is that an ever more affordable model is being developed with a nominal cost of less than a thousand dollars.

The category of 3D printers that can be considered suitable and affordable for domestic uses, is being customized. They are going down in price and up in adaptability. They are capable of high-speed printing while achieving high definition.

The industrial models take a longer time to perform the printing. While the home version is not as fast as the standard home printer, it is much faster than the industrial model. These 3D printers will continue to affect all types of manufacturing in industrial fields. The impact of this technology is expected to continue to increase.




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