Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
The three episodes of 3D printing
We started this topic by looking at the evolution of additive manufacturing
technology as a series of milestones that mark human progress in gaining
control over physical matter. The irst episode of this journey that's maturing
today involves gaining unprecedented control over the
shape
of objects. 3D
printers of today can already fabricate objects of almost any material—from
nylon to glass, from chocolate to titanium, and from cement to live cells.
The ability to create arbitrary shapes is already having profound implica-
tions beyond engineering design. Mass manufacturing is becoming mass cus-
tomization. In the future, as 3D printing technologies improve, everyone will
gain the ability to design and make complex products. Barriers of resources
and skill that are associated with traditional manufacturing will ease, democ-
ratizing innovation and unleashing the long tail of human creativity.
The second episode of the journey is just beginning: control over the compo-
sition of matter—going beyond shaping just external geometry to shaping the
internal structure of new meta-materials with unprecedented idelity.
Someday we will be able to make materials within materials. When 3D
printers can blend raw materials in new ways we will witness the emergence of
entirely new classes of materials. Materials manufacturing processes will shed
traditional limitations which dictate that each part be made of a single material
and then later assembled. With multi-material printing, multiple entangled
components could be co-fabricated simultaneously, already pre-assembled.
At a smaller scale, we will begin to embed and weave multiple materials into
complex microstructures speciied with micron-scale precision.
With such possibilities, you'll be able to print a custom tennis racket that
cleverly ampliies your unique backhand or a replacement spinal disc implant
tailored for your aching back (yet both will likely be unauthorized in pro-
fessional sports). Although the possibilities are vast, few material scientists
can predict properties of these new materials, and few designers can exploit
the new design space. New design tools will be needed to augment human
creativity.
The third episode of this journey, of which we are beginning to see early
signs, is the control over behavior. In this episode we will go beyond control-
ling just the shape of matter as in episode one. We will move past controlling
composition, as in episode two. In episode three, we will gain the ability to
program materials to function in desired ways. We will move from printing
