Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
destroy) the cuneiform. One of the beneits of CT scanning and 3D printing
a replica of a cuneiform is that you can cheerfully smash the printed replica
to pieces to read what's written on the inside.
The ten principles of 3D printing
Predicting the future is a crapshoot. When we were writing this topic and
interviewing people about 3D printing, we discovered that a few underlying
“rules” kept coming up. People from a broad and diverse array of industries and
backgrounds and levels of expertise described similar ways that 3D printing
helped them get past key cost, time and complexity barriers.
We have summarized what we learned. Here are ten principles of 3D print-
ing we hope will help people and businesses take full advantage of 3D printing
technologies.
Principle one: Manufacturing complexity is free
. In traditional manufactur-
ing, the more complicated an object's shape, the more it costs to make. On
a 3D printer, complexity costs the same as simplicity. Fabricating an ornate
and complicated shape does not require more time, skill, or cost than printing
a simple block. Free complexity will disrupt traditional pricing models and
change how we calculate the cost of manufacturing things.
Printing functional objects. These 3D-printed scissors work “out of the box”—no
assembly or sharpening required.
