What is a 3D printer?

3D printer is unlike of the common printers. On a 3D printer the object is

printed by three dimension. A 3D model is built up layer by layer. Therefore the
whole process is called rapid prototyping, or 3D printing.
A common process of rapid prototyping is to apply a fine powder (plaster,
bioplastic, polyurethane, polyester, epoxy, metal, etc.) in such a 3D inkjet printers.
Printer print out the layer of powder on a bed and form a fixed object. The design is
defined by a CAD file.
Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is another method in which molten polymer
is sprayed on a support layer and the model is built layer by layer.
Another way is to use liquids, such as photopolymer, by the same inkjet-type
head which is also printed each layer by layer.
Following, an ultraviolet light is used to activate the print head so that the
liquid layer become a solid layer. This process is also well-known as
stereolithography.
The 3D printing process starts from a number of projects from MIT in 2000.
This is an extension of the rapid prototyping process where the basic concern was in
a short time a prototype model to make.
The first practical application were in production from metallic material.
The resolution of the current printers are among the 328 x 328 x 606 DPI
(xyz) at 656 x 656 x 800 DPI (xyz) in ultra-HD resolution. The accuracy is 0.025 mm
- 0.05 mm per inch. The model size is up to 737 mm x 1257 mm x 1504 mm.
Nowadays, 3D printer is mainly used in business enterprises and concepts
which demand time-saving. These include medicine, architecture but also the
entertainment industry such as game and film industry. Even artists use a 3D
printer for their creations in a comparatively short time in a solid shape to print.
Today there are more and more companies that specialise in the printing of
3D models and supply services for business and individuals.
The biggest drawback for the individual home user is still the high cost of 3D
printer. Another drawback is that it takes hours or even days to print a 3D model
(depending on the complexity and resolution of the model). Besides above, the
professional 3D software and 3D model design is also in a high cost range.
Alternatively there are already simplified 3D printers for hobbyist which are
much cheaper. And the materials it uses is also less expensive. These 3D printers
for home use are not as accurate as commercial 3D printer.

Who make 3D printers?

Industrial 3D printers
Company
name

Company introduction

Main products

Object Geometries is one of

the innovation leader in 3D
printing for rapid prototyping
and additive manufacturing

the Connex family of multimaterial 3D printers, Eden 3D

Printing Systems and Objet
Desktop Printers

Offices in USA,
Mexico, Europe,
Japan, China and
Hong Kong

Z
1994
Corporation

Z Corporation (commonly
abbreviated Z Corp. )
develops, manufactures 3D
high-definition printers
capable for multicolored
parts. They also provide 3D
scanners and rapid
prototyping machines that
build plastic prototypes.

3D Printers: ZPrinter
150/250/350/450/650 Rapid
Prototyping Machines:
ZBuilder Ultra 3D Scanners:
ZScanner 600/700/700
CX/800

Headquartered in
Burlington, MA,
USA, offices in
Denmark and Japan

Stratasys

1988

Stratasys, Inc. , Minneapolis Dimension 3D Printers

manufactures 3D printers
and Fortus 3D Production
and 3D Production Systems Systems
for direct digital
manufacturing markets.

Sales and service

organizations in
North America,
South America,
Europe, Asia and
Australia

3DSystems

1986

Provider of 3-D Printing,

Rapid Prototyping and
Manufacturing parts

headquartered in
Rock Hill, SC, USA

Objet
Geometries

Founded
1998

V-Flash Personal 3D Printer,

ProJet 3D Professional and
Production 3D Printing
System.

Location

Home 3D printers
Company
name
Makerbot
Industries

Founded
2009

Company introduction

Main products

Location

The company was founded on hardcore

open source principles, and their 3D
machines are engineered to be hacked
straight out of the box.

Thing-O-Matic

USA

Ultimaker

Ultimaker is a free/open source hardware

design of a high-performance 3D printer.

Ultimaker kits

Netherlands

Botmill

Acquired by 3D Systems, BotMill

manufactures desktop 3D printers, kits,
materials and accessories.

Axis 2.1 (DIY Kit), Glider USA

3.0 (Plug-N-Print)

Fab@Home

Fab@Home is a an open source personal

injection printer developed at Cornell
University, designed for printing food and
many other materials

Fab@Home V1.0 - Kit

USA
for One Syringe System,
Two syringe Fab@Home
Kit

What is 3D printing?

In the press today the 3D printing topic is HOT!

The 3D printing technology made its way to the technological world in the
year 1986, but not gain importance until 1990. It was not that popular outside the
world of engineering, architecture and manufacturing.
3D printing is also known as desktop fabrication, it can form any material that
can be obtained as a powder. For creating an object you need a digital 3D-model.
You can scan a set of 3D images, or draw it using computer-assisted design or CAD
software. You can also download them from internet. The digital 3D-model is usually
saved in STL format and then sent to the printer. The process of "printing" a threedimensional object layer-by-layer with equipment, which is quite similar with ink-jet
printers.
One of the most important applications of 3D printing is in the medical
industry. With 3D printing, surgeons can produce mockups of parts of their patient's
body which needs to be operated upon.
3D printing make it possible to make a part from scratch in just hours. It
allows designers and developers to go from flat screen to exact part.
Nowadays almost everything from aerospace components to toys are getting
built with the help of 3D printers.
3D printing can provide great savings on assembly costs because it can print
already assembled products. With 3D printing, companies can now experiment with
new ideas and numerous design iterations with no extensive time or tooling
expense. They can decide if product concepts are worth to allocate additional
resources. 3D printing could even challenge mass production method in the future.
3D printing is going to impact so many industries, such as automotive,
medical, business & industrial equipment, education, architecture, and consumerproduct industries.