How 3D Printing Could Change the World

3D printing (sometimes called additive printing) is where objects are created from a 3D digital model. There are lots of different process used depending on what is being made, but generally it is a plastic or metal that is added together bit by bit or layer by layer to make the whole object.

Wikipedia has a good summary of the history, background, and principles of 3D printing

3D printing is already here and used by lots of industries and lots of people. However, so far its use is mostly for prototyping and specialty applications. For large scale manufacture, and for complicated and multi material items, 3D printing is still not really applicable.

However, one day, once the technology advances enough, we could have a 3D printer in every home. It could be used to print nearly any object you need or want, using multiple different materials. The designs of these items would be downloaded from the internet, and the user would just tell their printer to print whatever they need. They could be used to make replacement parts for their appliances, toys, household items, potentially even advanced electronics one day.

If most or all people had good home 3D printers, there would be immense savings in transport of manufactured goods, less need for large manufacturing areas, and much quicker supply of many of the goods you needed.

However, we are a long way from that yet.

There are lots of consumer level 3D printers available for people to buy and use at home or in businesses. These are generally still only used for hobby type printing such as figurines and small replacement parts, or for making prototypes during design. They are generally only able to use one material at a time, generally limiting the application to simple objects.

However, the industry is continually developing and improving. Multi-material 3D printing is under development, as is research in using metals and other materials other than plastics.

Currently, the main benefits of using 3D printing is for prototyping, small batch manufacturing, and hobby use. It is generally more expensive and more energy intensive per unit than more traditional manufacturing types.

Some of the areas where 3D printing is already in use include:

What other benefits or problems do you think may come from advanced 3D printers?