3D Printing What is it?

Autodesk plays a huge rule in the world of 3D printing. Here we mention Netfabb, Within Medical, Fusion 360, 3ds Max, Tinkercad.

 

3D printing has found its way into our lives, more than we can even begin to imagine. Some of you are quite familiar with it, some others may have just scratched the surface and are left with jaws dropped to the floor, and yet others simply don’t know anything about it.

Either way, this is a fascinating breakthrough in the world of technology which makes the unimaginable possible.

Sometimes also referred to as additive manufacturing, 3D printing is actually a whole family of processes that involves the production of different objects by means of adding material in layers. These are added in close correspondence to all the successive cross-sections of a 3D model.

In most cases, 3D printing involves the use of metal alloys and various plastics, but keep in mind that countless other materials can be used as well. Did you know that houses can be printed out of concrete? Living tissue can also be used in 3D printers. The only limit is your imagination.

Why Additive Manufacturing?

Even though 3D printing is a more widely known term, additive manufacturing would be more correct, if not more descriptive. A more traditional way of production, referred to as subtractive manufacturing, involves creation of a product by cutting away portions of a block of material.

This is a far less sophisticated process with obvious limitations. On the other hand, additive manufacturing utilizes machine equipment that reads CAD files from 3D printing software and makes a 3D object out of them. This process virtually has no limits when customization is concerned and delivers the most amazing objects in the development of cars, dental implants, and even airplanes.

As the very name suggests, the manufacturing process consists of adding layer upon layer until the final product is printed out.

A Short History Lesson

3D printing may seem like something that came straight out of the future or perhaps a sci-fi movie, but in reality it is almost forty years old!

It all started in 1981, when Hideo Kodama of the Nagoya Municipal Industrial Research Institute debuted the world’s first functional rapid prototyping system which used photopolymers to print the first 3D models.

Even back then, the process involved additive manufacturing, using layers to create a solid object, each of which corresponded to a cross-sectional slice in CAD-based software.

Only three years later, the ball started rolling when Charles Hull invented another process called stereolithography.

This process involves the creation of 3D models derived from digital data. It’s all based on a material derived from acrylic, commonly referred to as photopolymer. When a portion of a liquid photopolymer is exposed to a UV laser beam, it instantly turns into a solid piece of plastic molded into the exact shape of the 3D-model from the CAD=based software.

3D modeling in general is a huge breakthrough in the world of inventions and prototypes, as it provides designers and engineers with endless possibilities in testing and development. This is highly important as it cuts down manufacturing costs at the conclusion of product development.

Imagine how great this news was back in the eighties, when it still sounds amazing in the present day.

A few years later, the next step in the development involved the use of selective laser sintering machines, which shot laser into powder instead of liquid photopolymers. Also, Charlie Hull started a company and created the first stereolithographic apparatus.

The first steps are the hardest in all technological developments, and these first years surely involved imperfections. Home inventors couldn’t use the machines as they were extremely expensive to purchase and the materials were susceptible to warping during the hardening stage.

Medical Use

Even though it was far from perfect, 3D printing looked promising back then and it showed the world that the future ahead of us is definitely exciting.

The first major breakthrough came after Y2K, when the scientists at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine implanted a 3D-printed organ into a living, breathing human body.

This involved implanting synthetic scaffolds of a human bladder which was coated with living human cells. As the coating included living tissues, the chances of the immune system rejecting the implant were close to none.

Riding on the waves of success, scientists started going even further by developing 3D-printed prosthetic legs with numerous complex component parts, functional miniature kidneys, and even bioprinted blood vessels!

Open Source is the Key

Some thirteen years ago, we saw the process of 3D printing becoming available to a large number of people, and also the development of Darwin, the first 3D printer which was capable of replicating itself.

Nowadays, 3D printers are much improved and they are available to a larger number of people.

The Software Power

Autodesk has been one of the leading innovators in the field of software solutions since 1982. The world renowned AutoCAD is the flagship CAD (computer aided design) software and it’s been like that ever since its inception.

Autodesk-developed software is used the world over in the engineering of everything, not just cutting-edge technology products. It provided everyday consumers with tools such as Pixlr and Sketchbook and made the lives of people everywhere around the world much easier and much more creative.

It goes without saying that Autodesk plays a huge rule in the world of 3D printing. If you plan to dive deep into the world of 3D printing, let’s get you well acquainted with some of the best software tools available out there.

• Netfabb

Netfabb is Autodesk’s premium 3D printing software which comes jam-packed with numerous features for a streamlined additive manufacturing process.

By using Netfabb, you can import, analyze, and repair almost any CAD format, modify the models, configure build supports, and optimize your additive manufacturing process in any way you want. 

It can be integrated with the most popular additive manufacturing machines, and it will provide you with fast and predictive simulation, along with the possibility of hybrid manufacturing.

• Within Medical

Within Medical is the industry’s leading tool for medical 3D printing and the creation of orthopedic implants. It’s fully optimized specifically for the additive manufacture of 3D medical implants.

Among its main features are porous random latticing, rough surface latticing, solid interfacing between lattices, and the possibility to vary the thicknesses and spatial arrangements of the lattices.

These make it possible to create cranial flap implants, among other great developments.

• Fusion 360

The world’s first 3D CAD, CAM and CAE tool is the ultimate platform for all sorts of product development processes. It’s based on a single cloud and it can be run on both Mac and PC.

You can design a model in Fusion 360 and you can test the model using the very same tool. Later on, you can also fabricate it. This can’t be done in any other software known to man.

Multiple devices are supported, so you can control the progress from your desktop computer, laptop, iPad, and even your smartphone.

The cloud-based platform makes for an easy and simple communication between all project participants.

• 3ds Max

In the world of 3D rendering, animation, and modeling, 3ds Max is king. Virtual reality experiences, design visualizations, video game worlds, and much more can easily be created with this powerful tool.

It also works with other Autodesk software products.

• Tinkercad

Last but not least, Tinkercad is probably the simplest 3D printing and design app known to man. It’s online, it’s free, and it can be used by hobbyists, designers, educators, and even kids.

Whether you want to make home décor, jewelry, toys, or prototypes, it will give you hours of endless fun, where only your imagination is the limit to the tinkering possibilities.

The future is right under your fingertips, thanks to simple, clever, and effective software solutions for 3D printing. Whatever your dreams are, Autodesk can actually make them come to life.

 

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