Consider 3D Printing As an Advanced Form of Photography

Also referred to as desktop fabrication, 3D printing can use any material that can be obtained in powder form to create anything but before an object can be formed; a digital 3D model will be required. The process of printing a 3D object is similar to that of ink-jet printers.

3D printing is involved with the process of making or manufacturing solid objects in three dimensions from a digital file. Also known as additive manufacturing, the process of creating a 3D printed object can only be achieved through the use of additive processes.
It is referred to as additive manufacturing because the printing process involves the laying of layering materials in a successive manner until the desired material is wholly created. Afterward, these layers will make up the eventual object as a horizontal cross section that has been thinly sliced.
Before a 3D printing work can be obtained, there is need to firstly produce a virtual design of the proposed 3D object. The virtual design must be created with a 3D modeling program in a CAD (computer Aided Design) so as to create an entirely new object. However, a 3D scanner can also be used to copy an object that has already been created thereby creating a duplicate 3D digital copy of the object.

Several 3D models such as structured / modulated light, time-of-flight, volumetric scanning etc. can be generated through different technologies with 3D scanners. Just recently, the 3D scanning feature was enabled on the hardware of giant IT companies like Google and Microsoft – one of which is Microsoft’s Kinect. This projects a strong signal that 3D scanners will be integrated into future hand-held devices in few years to come.
With time, the act of getting real objects digitized into 3D models will become as simple and facile as the very act of taking pictures. 3D scanners come in different prices ranging from high cost professional industrial devices to simple DIY devices that can be used by anyone at home.
Although the term “3D printing” had been in existence for decades, it is, however amazing to discover that quite a good number of people are yet to understand it. 3D printers have been in vogue for a long time as they have been used by manufacturers for the process of designing and creating prototypes for enhancing traditional manufacturing. However, the production and sales of the equipment have been slow and expensive until the last few years.

Although 3D printing technology came has been in existence since 1986, it was not until 1990 that it gained significant importance. And even at that time, its importance hovered around the world of architecture, manufacturing, and engineering. Thanks to the technology of 3D printing, doctors can now create parts of a patient’s body (in mockups) that may need to be operated upon.