What is 3D Printing? – Explained.

What is 3D Printing? – Explained.

3D printing is the process of converting any digital file into a real 3D object. It is also known as desktop fabrication or additive manufacturing because it creates an object layer by layer. The end result is an actual, physical, usable object that has been built from a three-dimensional blueprint.

The technique for stereolithography fabrication (a form of 3D printing used for creating models, prototypes, patterns, and production parts) was introduced by Chuck Hall of 3D Systems Corporation in the year 1984. It was a process in which the layers were added by curing photopolymers (a large molecule composed of many subunits that change its properties when exposed to light) with ultraviolet light lasers.

And that’s how the world got its first 3D model created from a picture.

                                                          A three-Dimensional Printer

The technique being around for many years became popular only in the mid-1990s when it was applied to produce fully-functional human organs. The first 3D printed organ created using synthetic scaffold coated cells from the patients’ body were successfully transplanted in several young patients being treated for urinary bladder augmentation. This was a milestone that proved that raw materials used for 3D printing were not just limited to plastic, but could also come from human cells and more. Another example of the 3D printer is when doctors used it for a kidney transplant to save a three-year-old boy. 

The technology has been widely used in many industries. Even Mercedes prints the internal smaller parts for its cars.

3D printing enables people like you and me to easily manufacture complex objects from the comfort of our homes. Unlike the big machines in factories, desktop 3D printers are small, cheap and easy enough to install and operate. The technology is quite mature and the build quality of the fabricated items is constantly improving. It’s not hard to imagine every house in the world to have its own 3D printer installed. Lots of people around the world have already installed one.

A 3D selfie in 1:20 scale