3D Printing (also called additive manufacturing) refers to a number of techniques and processes used to create a three-dimensional object.

1. 3D PRINTING: THE FUTURE OF TECHNOLOGY
3D Printing (also called additive manufacturing) refers to a number
of techniques and processes used to create a three-dimensional
object.
These objects can be of a huge range of shapes, sizes and geometry
types, and are controlled by a computer that is fed 3D object data in
what is termed as an AMF or Additive Manufacturing File.
Unlike the traditional machining processes where material is
removed from a stock, 3D printing or AM builds a three-dimensional
object layer by layer using the information fed to it via a computer-
aided design (CAD) or AMF file.
Originally, the process known as 3D printing involved depositing a
binder material layer by layer onto a powder bed using inkjet
printer heads. It was associated with polymer or plastic
technologies, whereas additive manufacturing or AM was used for
metalwork and other such production contexts.

2. ‘Additive manufacturing' emerged as an umbrella term in the early
2000s, while '3D printing' gained traction among the masses due to
its use by consumer-oriented producers.
Lower-end machines (either in terms of capability or price) have
been historically associated with it, and AM is the preferred term in
formal or industrial manufacture, due to the basic nature of the
process: sequential layer addition to create a 3D object under
computer control.
The earliest additive manufacturing technologies, materials, and
equipment were developed in Japan in 1981.
Hideo Kodama invented a method for fabricating three-dimensional
models using a light and temperature-sensitive polymer with the
area of exposure being controlled by a mask pattern to give the
object proper shape.

3. In 1986, Chuck Hull of 3D Systems in the USA patented his process
of stereo lithography, which is a type of 3D printing technology that
uses light-sensitive (photopolymerisation).
His technology is used even today for digital slicing of CAD models
and infill strategies to construct the physical object.
He is also the mastermind behind the STL (Stereolithography) file
format in printers that use the photopolymerisation technique.
In 1988, S. Scott Crump of Stratasys developed the plastic extrusion
technique of fused deposition modelling (FDM), and the first
machine to employ this method was available for sale in 1992.
3D printing in the sense of powder beds being shaped by polymers
was first invented at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in
the USA and commercialised by the products of Z Corporation in
1993.

4. In the same year, Solidscape introduced a high-precision polymer
jet fabrication system with a 'dot-on-dot' system of soluble support
structures for the model being printed.
In this period, AM for metal structures was done through
automation, but using (as they came to be called in recent times)
subtractive or non-additive methods such as sintering, casting,
fabrication, melting.
These were known by their own names, such as direct metal laser
sintering, or selective laser melting).
The concept of a tool head moving to generate a shape layer as per
one's desire was associated in the metalwork industry with
processes that removed metal rather than used it.
By the mid 1990s, this was being challenged through developments
at educational institutes in the USA such as Stanford University and

5. Carnegie Mellon University where engineering techniques like micro
casting and spraying were being developed.
Sacrificial or support materials were also becoming more common,
thereby enabling the design of new, complex kinds of geometry.
However, it was in the 2010s that such metal casting was done. Car
parts like engine brackets and large nuts were created though
additive manufacturing rather than being machined from stock, and
major manufacturers like the Swedish company Koenigsegg have
used 3D printed parts in their cars (notably the Koenigsegg One:1, a
supercar).
3D printing is also used extensively in the medical field for
producing custom casts and prosthetics.
3D models for printing may be made using computer aided design,
or by 3D scanning.
The advantage that CAD has is that the modeller has complete
control over the output and models can be made with a very high
degree of accuracy.

6. Further, if there are any errors of intersection, face normal, or noise
shells causing problems when the models is sliced for printing, they
can be easily adjusted.
On the other hand, 3D scanning collects digital data on the shape of
an existing object and renders a digital model based on that data.
As 3D scanning is dependent on point-to-point data collected by the
camera, these errors are more likely to occur when reconstructed in
a digital geometry.
After the model is complete, the data is converted to the STL file
format, and then digitally sliced the model into ultra-thin layers in a
G-code file, using which the printer does its work.
Printers are available in different resolutions, and this factor defines
printing ability and price of the machine.
Typical layer thickness is around 100µm (around 250 dots per inch),
with some printers capable of printing 16µm (about 1600 dots per
inch). XY resolution is comparable to that of laser printers, with an
average range of 100-300 DPI.
In three dimensions, the 3D particles of the objects are typically 50-
100µm (510-250 dots per inch) in diameter.
Construction of a model can take anywhere between a few minutes
to several days, depending on the size and complexity of the object
being printed, the type of machine used, and the number of models
being printed simultaneously.
The most significant advantage that additive manufacturing holds
over traditional engineering methods like injection moulding is the
reduction in the time taken to produce a finished product.
Recently, MAAC Chowringhee, Kankurgachi, Rashbehari had
organized a seminar for students on 3D printing.

7. It was an interesting and educational experience, and the students
got to see a small model of (?) being printed during the session.
An FDM type printer was used, and the speaker explained that these
are more common due to the versatility of thermopolymers, which
is the material used in most lower and mid-range printers: they can

8. be shaped easily through the use of heat and the printer head can
produce models of great precision and complexity.
The students were also shown other models that the speaker's
company had made, along with a presentation highlighting the
different applications of 3D printing.
In addition to engineering, scientific and medical applications, they
are also used for previewing conceptual prototypes before actual
production, as it is less expensive than producing a product directly.
The bottom line: 3D printing is the future of design, and there great
potential for development.
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