3D printing

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Three-dimensional printing (3D printing) is a low-end version of solid freeform fabrication.

One variation consists of an inkjet printing system. Layers of a fine powder (either cornstarch or plaster) are selectively bonded by "printing" a water-based adhesive from the inkjet printhead in the shape of each cross-section as determined by a CAD (computer aided design) file.

Alternately, these machines feed liquids, such as photopolymer, into individual jets that deposit tiny droplets as they are scanned to form a layer of the model. The liquid hardens after being deposited. Materials available for spraying include glue, wax, and photopolymer. Photopolymer Phase machines employ an ultraviolet (UV) flood lamp mounted in the print head to cure each layer as it is deposited.

Generally, 3D printing technologies remain the fastest and most cost-effective additive systems available. Subsequent developments of the technologies have seen them being adapted to produce multi-colored models, and various polymer resins have been introduced to enhance the mechanical properties of 3D printed parts.

Unlike "traditional" additive systems such as stereolithography and fused deposition modeling, 3D printing is optimised primarily for speed and low-cost, making it suitable for visualising during the conceptual stages of engineering design when dimensional accuracy and mechanical strength of prototypes are not important.

Some people [1] call their 3D printer a "Santa Claus machine".