An Overview of 3D Printing

3D printing is a process that engineers and other related professions use in order to create three-dimensional objects based off a CAD drawing. 3D printing allows professionals such as engineers or architects, to gain a better understanding of a drawing in either pieces or a finished product. This allows the customer or designer get a better idea of the the finished product. Growing up with a dad who works as a mechanical engineer I have had the opportunity to use a 3D printer on numerous occasions and will detail in this article its uses, how it works, and why anyone would want a 3D printer.

What is a 3D printer?

According to www.dimensionprinting.com , a 3D printer creates an onsite perfect working model directly from your CAD, made of tough ABS plastic that can be sanded, milled, even painted. CAD is short for computer aided design, which allows architects, engineers, and drafters to create pieces of a final product with accurate dimensions and calculations. 3D printers take CAD drawings and create and accurate representation via ABS plastic and laser precision tools.

Why would I want a 3D printer for my business?

If you are in a field such as engineering or architecture, you know how time consuming creating a model of a CAD drawing you created is. The 3D printer eliminates the hassle of creating a model by hand, which gets increasingly harder when you take into account all the complicated measurements. 3D printers are very accurate and used in many medium-large engineering and architecture firms. From my personal experience, sending the drawing to the printer and having a completed ABS plastic model takes about 24 hours.

What experience have you had using a 3D printer?

When I was in high school, I was assigned a project in my physics class that required me to create a model of a common object with calculated drawings and measurements. I decided to do my project on a common hammer. I made the drawing using CAD and sent the drawing to the 3D printer, and within 24 hours, I had a polished, laser cut, ABS plastic model to my exact measurements. Admittedly, the project turned out very easy for me, but that does not take away from the benefits of the 3D printer. My dad uses the 3D printer when creating drawings in order to look for weak points, and to show the customer what the finished product will look like. My dad was in the printing press industry and helped build the current NY Times printing press, of which was created on the 3D printer before going to production.

How does a 3D printer work?

3D printers build the model one layer at a time with ABS plastic and lasers. According to dimension printing, the ABS plastic is heated to a semi-liquid state and is deposited in thin layers to form the finished model. Due to the process, the finished model will have many fine lines, which show where each layer was played upon the other. The finished ABS plastic model can be sanded and painted, therefore, the fine lines are hidden with a little work.

Sources:

Personal experience using a 3D printer

http://www.dimensionprinting.com/3d-printers/3d-printing-faq.aspx

http://www.dimensionprinting.com/