3-D Printing Technologies and Microfabrication
A Revolution in Prototyping and Desktop Manufacturing
Sep 7, 2009
Several companies are now offering machines capable of printing three-dimensional objects, and at increasingly accessible prices. Naturally, this technology raises new questions and possibilities for product developers, architects, industrial designers, and any business where a prototype or model is important.
Even surgeons at Walter Reed Army Medical Center have taken notice, according to a 2008 BusinessWeek article, using a 3-D printer to make models of prosthetics and complicated surgery scenarios.
3-D Printing Technologies
Several different technologies can be used in three-dimensional printers, which are sometimes referred to as "rapid prototypers".
A common system involves feeding a liquid polymer or fine powder, such as plaster or resin, through an inkjet-type printhead. The printer lays down layer after layer of material to form the model. Currently, this technology is considered the fastest method and is also the only one capable of three-dimensional
color printing.
Another method is called 3-D microfabrication, whereby a focused laser cuts the model or part out of a block of gel.
How Much Does a 3-D Printer Cost?
3-D printers, especially efficient high-end models, can sometimes cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Recently, however, a slew of companies have turned to producing 3-D printers for individual and small business customers.
Z. Corp is one such company and a leader in 3-D printers and software. It's printers can cost as much as $40,000, but cheaper models exist around $20,000. Dimension Printing recently launched the uPrint Personal 3D Printer, considered affordable at "only 14,900 USD".
But 3-D printers can be found for even less. Desktop Factory has put out a model for $4,995. Billed as the "same size as early laser printers" and weighing in at 90 pounds this machine has caught the attention of BusinessWeek, Popular Science, Wired.com, The New York Times, and CNN. It uses the inkjet-type printing method and uses a composite plastic powder that purportedly costs $1 per cubic inch.
Interestingly, Desktop Factory recently found itself with the difficult choice of closing down or selling itself. Demand for its $4,995 printer was not apparently strong enough to keep the company afloat, raising questions about the commercial viability for 3-D printers. A note posted on the company's website indicates that interested parties have been approached and that the company's sale is pending. So maybe there is a future for Desktop Factory and the affordable 3-D printer.
Small-Scale Manufacturing
August 11, 2009 Wired.com ran a story titled "3-D Printers Make Manufacturing Accessible" that profiled the Makerbot. The basic kit ships for $750, including three motors, an electronic motherboard, and the nuts and bolts required to build the machine at home. For $950, one can also purchase the power supply and important tools. The printers accept two kinds of plastic: ABS, the same material Lego toys are made of, or HDPE, what milk jugs are made of. These prices nominally bring three-dimensional printing into the hands of anyone able to afford a laptop computer.
Someone able to afford a laptop computer and harboring entrepreneurial ambitions even launched a small business using the Makerbot. Makerbot Cupcake CNC now sells items such as monogrammed iPod docks - 30 minutes manufacturing time and costing $32 - on Etsy, an online sales site.
For other enterprising souls, a project run out of Bath University in England, RepRap, provides yet another outlet. RepRap, short for Replicating Rapid-prototyper, has big ambitions that go beyond 3-D printing: nothing less than creating a bona fide "self-replicating machine".
Released under the GNU General Public License, the project provides blueprints for cobbling together a machine able to print plastic parts and now even electronic circuits - even if they are "blobby" and the "soldering isn't perfect", according to the RepRap: Blog. As it is, RepRap claims its machine can make about 60% of its own parts. Once the circuitry printing is perfected, they may be quite close to fulfilling their goal.
The Trend in 3-D Printing
Either way, it is clear that over time these 3-D printers are becoming evermore affordable. And more efficient. Where once it might have taken days to print a part or prototype, now it might only mean hours.
This will go a long way in opening the market for these devices beyond big name architecture and consumer product companies to small-scale industrial design firms and at-home manufacturers. Soon, even the neighbor's house might become a factory for all manner of plastic and electronic gadgetry.
References:
"Printing in 3D Gets Practical." BusinessWeek. October 6, 2008.
Microtrends: Printing in 3D. Times Online. May 26, 2007.
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