What is the use of a 3d printer

25 (Unexpected) 3D Printing Use Cases

For years, hype around 3D printing captured audiences in the mainstream press. With visions of a future including a 3D printer in every home, these predictions were light on details and ultimately most did not come to fruition. However, the possibilities of 3D printing were undeniable, despite the youth of the technology and the relatively low number of use cases that were viable in the past.

The initial hype masked legitimate and growing business applications for 3D printing. With a proliferation of high-performance desktop and benchtop machines being introduced into the market, we are now seeing a broader variety of businesses expanding their product offerings and delivering better results to customers.

What can you do with a 3D printer? Read on to discover 25 (often unexpected) 3D printing use cases that show the broad scope of possible applications for the technology.

Report

A new industry report that compares how recent and early adopters are using 3D printing for their business, and explores future trends of the technology.

3D printing can add enormous value to supply chains, unlocking a broad spectrum of production applications. The technology is growing more workable and affordable, with companies able to bring additive manufacturing in-house to support processes on the factory floor. New, resilient 3D printing materials are opening opportunities for the production of high precision, functional 3D prints that can stand in for final parts, offering customization opportunities that help designers radically push the boundaries of high-performance cars. Industrial design studio Vital Auto has put all of this technology to work creating high-fidelity prototypes and concept cars, rapidly working through iterations using a variety of advanced tools, including a large fleet of in-house 3D printers.

“We've used 3D printing from day one. We wanted to introduce it to our manufacturing processes, not only to reduce costs, but to give the customer more diversity with their designs and their ideas,” said Design Engineer Anthony Barnicott.

The automotive industry has seen the value additive manufacturing can add to multiple touch points in the creation of automobiles. This means going well beyond rapid prototyping to include:

Creating custom, complex, and high-performance parts
Producing tooling and manufacturing aids
Manufacturing replacement parts and spare parts on demand
Cutting costs and lead times by up to 90% compared to outsourcing

See How Concept Cars Are Created

Recent advancements in 3D printing technology have started to fundamentally change the audio industry, meaning that digital printing of custom fit ear devices for the audiology, noise protection, and consumer audiology industries has never been so affordable. In recent years, 3D printing manufacturers have brought skin-safe biocompatible materials to market, allowing for in-house production of ear models and headphone tips.

Custom fit offers a unique individual listening experience built around the earphone fitting exactly in the customers ear. This gives a secure fit that removes any possibility of earphones falling out of the ear, in addition to improved comfort and noise isolation.

“We are very excited about the concept of custom fit to deliver a custom experience to further enhance immersive listening. Formlabs shares Sennheiser’s drive for innovation – and improving the customer experience through this prototype is a testament to that mindset.”
Sennheiser Director AMBEO Immersive Audio, Veronique Larcher

The challenges that come with customized manufacturing can be overcome through the combination of Formlabs' disruptive printing technology and mobile scanning coupled with machine learning. This means customers can have easy access to custom fit earphones, with lead times reduced from four days to next day delivery or even same day.

Learn More About 3D Printing in Audiology

restor3D tools being printed, along side their final form.

Ten years ago, few people were talking about the huge impact 3D printing would have on the medical industry, from helping create advanced medical devices to patient-specific surgical guides. One company no one saw coming was restor3d, who leverages 3D printing capabilities to drastically improve surgical care by printing procedure-specific polymer instrumentation tailored to cervical spine implants.

With a fleet of over 25 Formlabs 3D printers in its production line, restor3D is already printing the next generation of surgical tools. For surgeons using these tools, this procedure-specific, single packed sterile instrumentation system results in:

Replacement of large, expensive surgical trays.
Ability to iterate designs and quickly introduce new tools or features based on surgeon preferences.
Dramatic reduction of supply chain and sterilization costs for hospitals.

Read How restor3d Is Creating Next Generation Tools

As much as 3D printing technology has developed in the past few years, there are even more high-impact, use cases currently in development. 3D printed organs is one of them.

Being able to easily create new organs has for decades been a dream for scientists working in regenerative medicine. While it remains in its early stages, the use of the 3D workflow to produce organic tissue eligible for transplant is bearing early fruit.

Dr. Sam Pashneh-Tala from the University of Sheffield is leading the way. His research uses high-precision desktop stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing to enable the production of tissue-engineered blood vessels with a variety of geometries. This will allow for patient-specific vascular graft designs, improved surgical options, and provides a unique testing platform for new vascular medical devices for those suffering from cardiovascular disease—which is currently the number one cause of death worldwide.

“My differentiator is that I’m able to create blood vessels with geometries that are more closely matched to those found in the body. This offers the potential for improved surgical options and even patient-matched blood vessel designs. Without access to high-precision, affordable 3D printing, creating these shapes would not be possible, ” said Dr. Pashneh-Tal.

Read About Tissue Engineering

The reconstruction of the three cities in the two different time periods consisted of over 650 segments, which were printed using Formlabs White Resin, each measuring 12x12cm.

As an industry already based on geometric design, prototyping, and modeling, architecture stands to gain enormously from advances in 3D printing technology.

On top of saving time during model production, the 3D printed models allow architects to anticipate the effects of certain design features with much greater certainty, e.g., by seeing a model produced with a fuller complement of materials, an architect can measure aspects such a light flow through the structure with higher precision.

But 3D printing’s use case goes beyond a single model: some firms are recreating entire towns. Institute of Architecture at the Hochschule Mainz - University of Applied Sciences. The result is an extraordinary exhibition that showcases six large-scale models of the cities, in the years 800 and 1250 AD. The models consist of over 650 parts, all of which were created using SLA 3D printing technology.

Learn About the Reconstruction of Medieval German Cities

The 990S TripleCell and the FuelCell Echo Triple.

The sport-footwear industry has long relied on technology to optimize the performance of their products, and with the digital workflow they have more options than ever in customization.

Large brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Nike, having recognized the power of additive manufacture, intend to mass produce custom midsoles made from 3D printed materials. As in other industries, the digital workflow will augment traditional methods of manufacture here—critical, highly-customized components of each product will be entrusted to the 3D printing, and the rest left to traditional means.

Given the unique properties required for footwear, New Balance worked with Formlabs to create a custom printing material which could resist the daily wear and tear faced by an athletic shoe. Shoe materials experience a variety of environments, with the additional need to withstand various levels of pressure thousands of times per day. Designed to create springy, resilient lattice structures, Rebound Resin has a much higher energy return, tear strength, and elongation than any other Formlabs material. Rebound Resin is strong enough to be used in gaskets, seals, and automotive interiors, but light and flexible enough for the sole of a shoe.

“One of the things that’s really exciting for us is that it provides a very different experience for the runner.”
Katherine Petrecca, General Manager of Footwear at the Innovation Design Studio, New Balance

See the 3D Printed New Balance Shoe

3D printing has already been integrated into the production of Hollywood films and is widely used for practical visual effects and costuming.

Whereas the creation of film's most fantastic creatures once required meticulous handcraft, the increased deadline pressure and time demands of modern moviemaking have made a quicker method of creating practical effects vital. Effects studios like Aaron Sims Creative now use a hybridized approach, practical effect-making enhanced by the digital workflow, to create new opportunities for collaboration and cut lead times on bringing ideas to life.

“The Demogorgon was one of the first prints that we did using our Formlabs 3D printers, and we were amazed. Before that, we had always outsourced printing. So to be able to grow it in-house, and see a design that we helped create from the very beginning printed right in front of us, was kind of an amazing thing. It was like going back to the days when we used to sculpt with clay,” said Aaron Sims.

Read About How Aaron Sims Creative Builds Their Worlds

3D printing's artistic potential is not limited to physical artwork. It also has the power to bring entirely new dimensions to forms like dance and music. Given the design freedom inherent in 3D printing, even the most complex or unique instruments can be modified or created from scratch, at a fraction of the price of traditionally made instruments.

Having been around for centuries and barely changing, the violin’s form is recognizable to all. Violin music has evolved to such a high level that the instrument has attained an almost legendary status in our culture. But Formlabs engineer Brian Chan challenged himself to create a fully-functional acoustic violin, using a 3D printer and Formlabs White Resin.

Get an Inside Look at Design Process

3D scanning, CAD, and 3D printing have been used to restore the works of some of history's most famous artists, returning works by the likes of Michelangelo and da Vinci to their former glory.

Art restoration projects can be enhanced by combining 3D printing and 3D scanning, two powerful technologies that allow builders to take physical objects, turn them into three dimensional shapes, make changes or restorations, and re-print the parts.

Mattia Mercante uses 3D replication to replace lost pieces of sculptures and fine artworks at the world-renowned Opificio institute in Florence, allowing museum visitors to experience the art as the artists intended.

For one 17th-century reliquary, Mercante scanned intricate frame details from elsewhere on the piece using an HP 3D Structured Light Scanner, and then replicated the missing pieces on a Formlabs 3D printer. The prints were painted to appear identical to the original decorations. Best of all, the restoration required minimum CAD modeling, and was fast and affordable compared to hand craft.

Learn More About Art Restoration

3D printing has as much potential utility in reconstruction as it does in production. The work of a forensic artist is often made difficult by incomplete evidence. Digital technologies can be of tremendous use in legal investigations and can augment the abilities of forensic artists to reconstruct accurate models of persons of interest or victims.

The digital workflow here involves turning CT scans into 3D prints to aid in identification. For instance, when investigators find just part of a skull as evidence, a printer can model and replicate the complete sample.

Reconstructions of the appearance of crime victims have already played a key role in attaining justice, proving once again the utility of 3D printing beyond considerations of design and productive efficiency.

Just like 3D printing can be used for preoperative planning, CT scans of crime victims can help detectives get up-close to bones. Digital CT scan and X-ray data of remains can be used to produce 3D-printed replicas of various body parts. Then, the pathologist can determine the full circumstances of a crime, from the number of participants to the nature of the weapon used.

Learn More About Solving Crime

3D printing's impact is not limited to improving workflows or enabling rapid prototyping. It can also change lives directly. With 30 million people worldwide in need of artificial limbs and braces, there is hope that 3D printing can provide new solutions where cost and specification have traditionally been hurdles.

3D printing can provide an affordable alternative that, like many related advances in medicine, can provide therapy that is much more closely tailored to a patient's needs. The affordability and customizability of 3D printing techniques can profoundly alter the quality of life for the better for those suffering from injury or disability, as we saw in this story of a father and son.

We saw this type of innovation first hand with Matej’s and Mateja’s son Nik, who was suffering from cerebral palsy. Matej set out with a simple goal: to enable Nik to walk. Months of research and development followed, resulting in a custom-made, 3D printed orthosis that provides support and correction exactly where Nik needs them, which finally helped him take his first steps independently. Watch the full video above and read their story.

Beyond prosthetics which return lost function to a user’s body, it is possible to 3D print devices which are, in some ways, even better than the limbs they are replacing. With 3D printing, this is no longer a future possibility about bionetic, robo-cop like body parts, but part of the latest in cutting-edge prosthetic production. Some firms, such as Psyonic, are already delivering advanced prosthetics.

Arm Wrestling With A Bionic Hand

Maybe people think of 3D printing as producing smaller items which you can hold. In recent years, firms have been exploring manufacture-scale additive workflows that can produce much larger functional components. In the last few years, various initiatives have gotten underway to create houses and larger structures that are entirely the product of 3D printing, opening new frontiers in sustainable living and construction.

3D printing technique gives freedom of form to architects, even with previously less malleable building materials like concrete. More broadly speaking, it allows fully sustainable and energy-efficient homes to be built that also meet modern comfort standards. Construction by this means could be entirely waste-free, as well as less expensive and environmentally costly as traditional methods.

While you will not be moving into a 3D printed house on the near horizon, you can experience 3D printed construction projects today. The MX3D Bridge in Amsterdam is currently open to foot traffic. According to dezzen.com, the “structure used 4,500 kilograms of stainless steel, which was 3D-printed by robots in a factory over a period of six months before being craned into position over the canal this year.”

Source: www.dezeen.com

Read More About Masten Space Systems

Origin Labs, within the Innovation Hub, will have a space dedicated to 3D printing for students and the broader community.

Most institutions of higher education are focused on preparing their students for the workforce of the future. The Pennsylvania State University is focused on the current workforce as well and has recently invested millions of dollars into building the Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub, which serves the public as well as the University community.

The Appalachian mountain range in western and central Pennsylvania has historically been the center of the nation’s coal mining industry, and enjoyed a solid and prosperous economy in the first half of the twentieth century because of it. As global and domestic economies shifted away from coal, the Appalachian region suffered, with a higher rate of joblessness and one of the lowest household income rates in the country, as reported by the Appalachian Regional Commission.

Over the last two decades, leadership at the local and state levels have sought to change that through investments in manufacturing, education, and technology. The Appalachian Regional Commission offers $1 million grants to “support educational opportunities and institutions, especially by connecting skill development and workforce training with local and regional business interests and opportunities.”

As additive manufacturing rapidly expands in a wide range of businesses (as seen in this blog post!), hiring managers are looking for employees trained in working in digital spaces and fluent in CAD. Universities are looking to address this market lead by creating large and well funded innovation hubs.

See the Investment the Pennsylvania State University is Making

Besides training tomorrow’s workforce in CAD and 3D printing, universities are starting to see the benefits of deploying 3D printers across a wide range of educational disciplines.

At UMass Lowell, that meant modernizing its sculpting and 3D design courses for the 21st century. Enter Yuko Oda, who joined the university in 2017 and got started by ordering a multitude of 3D printers, including a Formlabs SLA machine.

Yuko is able to take her passion for art and technology into the classroom, currently teaching sculpture, 3D modeling and animation, and interactive media. Most students know that they’re required to understand 3D animation and 3D modeling for future careers in various fields, including sculpture design for cinema. For studio artists, 3D modeling has become an essential skill.

“Students sculpt a 3D model, import it into Zbrush, then print in various resins, including Clear Resin. The ability for Formlabs machines to show intricacies that were modified in Zbrush is unparalleled when compared to other printers in the lab.”
Yuko Oda

One of the most promising new developments in sculpture is the integration of 3D printing and Virtual Reality (VR). This is especially salient for students intimidated by 3D design. VR is rapidly reducing barriers for 3D design, allowing artists and students to create with their hands in programs such as Oculus Medium. Yuko has taught 8th graders how to create a 3D object in 30 minutes in VR, and then print the artwork on a 3D printer. Even for seasoned sculptors, VR reduces the time it takes to go from an idea to a physical object, potentially opening up new areas of experimental art.

Learn How How UMass Lowell Integrates Art and Technology

While caretakers at ZooTampa were performing a routine check-up on a 25-year-old great hornbill, they found a lesion at the base of the bird’s casque, the yellow helmet-like growth on top of the head. Further examination determined that the bird, named Crescent, was suffering from life-threatening cancer.

The cancer, located near the bird's skull, couldn't be removed because it housed part of the bird's sinuses. The team wanted to know if they could remove the casque, and replace it with a 3D printed replica designed specifically for this bird. Patient-specific prosthetics and devices have been used before in human procedures, but never for a great hornbill. Would it be possible, and if so, which materials would be safe for the bird?

ZooTampa says the successful 3D-printed “replacement beak,” was created using BioMed White Resin. This material is an opaque white material for biocompatible applications requiring long-term skin contact or short-term mucosal contact. Special among Formlabs SLA 3D printing materials, this medical-grade material is validated for short-term tissue, bone, and dentin contact.

3D Printing and Veterinary Medicine

During the COVID-19 pandemic and following supply chain crises of 2021/22, many firms turned to 3D printing to help keep machines online and products rolling off the factory floor. The expanded use of in-house 3D printing to create end-use parts, such as replacement parts for machines, has made additive manufacturing a key tool to address supply chain problems.

Formlabs commissioned the 2022 3D Printing Applications Report to better understand what, if anything, has changed recently among 3D printing users. The report demonstrates the shift in attitudes around 3D printing from an R&D and prototyping tool to an invaluable manufacturing technology needed to meet evolving consumer preferences and overcome supply chain challenges. Whether working to ease supply chain constraints, creating limited run products, or personalizing devices, businesses have been forced to rethink how they produce goods to meet customer demand.

End-use parts printed on the Fuse 1.

An IR sensor purge printed on the Fuse 1 in Nylon 12 Powder.

Building 3D printers is always an engineering challenge. Packing industrial-grade performance into an affordable, sleek desktop machine requires years of engineering and design work. This was especially true of Formlabs’ much anticipated selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printer, the Fuse 1.

One of the tools Formlabs engineers used to prototype parts was the Fuse 1 itself. But the use of 3D printing didn’t stop at prototyping. Today, every single Fuse 1 unit shipped to customers contains multiple production parts printed directly on a Fuse 1 using Nylon 12 Powder.

Using the Fuse 1 SLS printer to prototype and create end-use parts offered three main advantages, according to Seth Berg, the engineer program manager overseeing the Fuse 1:

The design freedom to create complex parts without internal support structures.
Reducing supply chains by prototyping and creating end-use parts in-house.
Eliminating outsourcing to achieve an affordable solution for small-batch production with a proven, versatile Nylon 12 material.

To see how the team did this, and which end-use parts on the 3D printer and 3D printers, watch the video below.

In May of 2020, Forbes ran an article titled: How 3D Printing Test Swabs Will Help Fulfill America's Shortage. They noted that the 3D printing industry has come together to tackle the COVID-19 swab shortage head on, with Formlabs, HP, Origin, Carbon, Desktop Metal and more working to ramp up swab production.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic required a global, concerted response. Through collaborating with USF and Northwell, Formlabs enabled a solution that has been deployed worldwide. With the accessible design, affordable equipment, and validated processes, the swab design enabled over forty million COVID tests in twenty five countries. Over the last year, Formlabs 3D printers have continued being used by governments and healthcare providers to improve patient testing and care. This global solution is just one example of how the agility of 3D printing can benefit the public good.

We saw this happen dramatically in Singapore, where Eye-2-Eye Communications ramped swab production to over 30,000 swabs per day to help keep the city safe.

“It has not only been an excellent opportunity to showcase the advantages of 3D printing for rapid design and development but it has also shown Formlabs effectiveness in being able to mass produce products in very short timeframes. Also, as we see spikes in cases across the globe it is reassuring to know we can scale our production relatively easily to meet demand if required,”said Chief Executive Officer of Eye-2-Eye Communications, Miles Podmore.

One controller with buttons printed on the Fuse 1 (left), and another with buttons injected molded (right).

One problem with creating custom aftermarket parts is these orders are typically low volume, and need to evolve in response to product updates by the original manufacturers. But with the rise of in-house 3D printing, custom manufacturing has sprouted in multiple industries.

Battle Beaver Customs is focused on delivering a premier gaming experience through custom gaming controllers. Their modifications make the controllers more responsive and more competitive, allowing players to increase their gaming potential and reach peak performance across a range of games. Rapid prototyping with the Fuse 1 SLS 3D printer allows Battle Beaver Customs to quickly change their mount and button designs. When building custom consumer products, quick turnaround times can pay dividends for businesses looking to stay ahead of their competitors. According to Head of Research and Design at Battle Beaver Customs, Michael Crunelle, the “Fuse 1 has been great for being able to make changes quickly, from concept to end-use part. Our competitors can’t keep up with us."

JetBoatPilot, a marine parts and accessories manufacturer, has built a reputation as an authority in the industry by creating aftermarket products that improve the performance and low speed handling of jet powered boats.

JetBoatPilot utilizes the Form 3 SLA and Fuse 1 selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printers to prototype and manufacture aftermarket parts. A newly designed and now top performing product, the Lateral Thruster 2.0, was designed and manufactured on the Fuse 1. Equipped with the Fuse 1 and Nylon 12 Powder, JetBoatPilot was able to cut costs by 6x compared to their previous manufacturing methods.“I probably would have made that (aluminum version) retail price somewhere in the $400 dollar range, maybe even $600 dollar range, if I really had pushed it. I wouldn't have sold nearly as many at $600. But now I'm selling it for $199 and the customer is happy as they can be. And I'm twenty times the cost of goods,” says JetBoatPilot founder Will Owens.

With 928 stores spanning across 48 countries, Lush Cosmetics is a retailer known globally for making creative and crowd pleasing products such as Massage Bars, Body Butters, Bath Bombs and more, attributes its success to being able to respond quickly to trends and customer demand.

To bring new, industry defining, highly-detailed cosmetics to life, Lush needed to turn to 3D printing for much more than prototyping new shapes. They’ve invested in a next-generation additive manufacturing center for mold creation, tooling, and end-use parts.

The Lush Cosmetics team vacuum forms using 3D printed molds in-house.

“We use our Formlabs 3D printers for a mix of mold creation, custom tooling, and end-use parts. We’re a reactive business and having this capability in-house means we don’t need to share designs externally as we own everything in the product development process,” said Damien Carter, Innovation Lab Manager at Lush Cosmetics.

See How Lush Cosmetics Operates

3D printing is unleashing new possibilities and business opportunities, such as mass customization. What used to be too complex, prohibitively expensive, or impractical to produce with traditional methods is available at no extra cost with digital technologies, giving full control to designers and opening the door for fully customizable consumer products to become a reality.

A good example of this is Gillette’s Razor Maker™, which gives customers the opportunity to customize the handle of their razor by picking various designs, colors, or adding custom text.

“For Gillette, piloting Razor Maker™ represents a crucial step in our customization journey where new technology and new business models must come together in order to deliver products that are as unique as our consumers,” said Donato Diez, global brand manager for Gillette and Razor Maker™

Learn How Gillette Uses 3D Printing to Unlock Consumer Personalization

White Paper

This guide will provide manufacturers with insights into the different approaches to customization, how to choose the most applicable approach, and more.

Download the White Paper

Dentistry has also been one of the most prominent drivers of 3D printing investment, desktop 3D printers are an increasingly common sight in dental labs and practices. As a matter of fact, the popular clear aligners, thermoformed on 3D printed molds, are possibly the single most successful use of 3D printing we've seen to date.

Over the past ten years, 3D printing has so advanced in dental that now no new dental labs are opening without using some form of digital dentistry. With materials so good they can 3D print permanent crowns, full dentures, and more.

3D printing technologies thrive in an environment where our unique bodies require custom solutions. As a result, the dental industry is going through a rapid digital transformation with digital workflows bringing increased efficiency, consistently high quality, and lower costs to dental labs and practices.

Five Ways 3D Printing Has Redefined the Dental Industry

Next time you’re out for a night on the town, keep your eyes peeled for our next unexpected 3D printing use-case: 3D printing is coming to custom glasses frames.

Marcus Marienfeld AG set themselves apart from conventional glass frames, using different and unique production techniques to create their frames. Recently they started integrating selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing into the production line for frames in their Swiss workshop for printing end-use parts and rapid tooling for forming titanium.

“You get very inventive and imaginative when you have a 3D printer in-house. I can do things with little effort that I wouldn't otherwise try," said Marcus Marienfeld.

See the 3D Printed Glasses

Visualizing 3D printing-driven changes in the way things are made does not require the feats of imagination it once did. As workflows have developed over the last several years and gained footholds in various industries, we are beginning to see that revolutionary potential demonstrated.

From dentistry and across healthcare to consumer goods, architecture, and manufacturing, the public is interacting more and more with the end products of 3D printing. Making custom parts cost-efficient, cutting lead times and overheads, and empowering customers by bringing them closer to the products they want—we can only expect the influence of 3D printing to continue expanding.

Explore Formlabs 3D Printers

Purposes and why people should own a 3d printer?? - No category - Talk Manufacturing

Bruce_17 July 12, 2016, 9:33am

Hi everyone, I am a Junior student studying in Hong kong, also a 3d printing enthusiast. Currently I am doing a personal project on 3d printing. My goal is to promote the 3d printing technology, and I would really want to know what are the purposes of a 3d printer??, specifically in the eyes of a average household. Is it just for business or household? What are some reasons why an average person may want to own a 3d printer?

1 Like

GIFT3D July 12, 2016, 10:02am

Hey Bruce,

3D printers can be used for both business purposes and as a hobby. The main purpose is to create items with only minimal material used. In industry products are made cheaply with mass production due to techniques such as injection moulding to ensure there is no material wastage. These moulds are far too expensive for ‘one of products’ and other methods can also be costly like cuttin, sanding and finishing materials like wood, plastic or metal items. 3D printing allows people to create new ideas/ products, construct low cost prototypes and find replacement parts at a low cost.

Custom designs that can be ‘one of a kind’ and rather cheap construction of items makes 3D printing desirable

Hope this helps. If you have further questions just ask.

RCole July 12, 2016, 4:33pm

It is amazing how much use a 3D printer is at home. Of course, I do my own design work, but there is so many design files you can download as well.

For a few examples: I built an attachment for tying two wire shelves together (so one doesn’t fall down again). I build an enclosure for my Pine64 that is my new streaming system for the TV. Cell phone stand, mount for an antenna (OTA HD TV antenna in attic), replacement pointer for a weigh scale, book ends and other things.

People also use them for making toys for their kids (until the kids start making their own). RPC gamers are creating miniatures. People are creating costume parts. The possibilities are endless. As the price of printers drops and quality and speed increases, more printers will be showing up in people’s houses. It’s another manufacturing revolution.

Enza3D July 12, 2016, 5:29pm

Bruce,

An average person won’t have as much use for a 3D printer as a business will. While the price is coming down, and you can print tons of toys/gadgets from pre-made models online (thingiverse, myminifactory, pinshape, etc.), if you truly want to make things for yourself, you have to learn CAD programs. This is one of the biggest bottlenecks to 3D printing really breaking into the consumer market, in my opinion. People see these really cool models they can print, and how people are using them to print replacements for all sorts of home appliances, even car parts and prosthetics, but don’t realize the amount of modeling time and software experience it takes to make said models. Without any CAD knowledge or the time/desire to learn new software, a 3D printer is really just a toy that has very limited use.

That being said, if someone is willing to learn some new tricks, they have tons of options and 3D printing opens a lot of doors for them. Free software, like Blender and Onshape, when combined with YouTube and Udemy, allow for makers to learn to model just about anything from home for free (or fairly low cost with Udemy).

Businesses benefit significantly from 3D printing due to reduction in prototyping times and cost. Traditionally, an engineer would model a design then send it to a shop to be fabricated and had to wait for the fabricated model to come back before making any edits to the design. With a 3D printer, you can mock up a design and have a physical model in your hands within hours instead of days.

Garyg July 13, 2016, 12:29am

I’ve been wanting to get a 3D printer for the past several years.

I needed to determine how much use I would get out of the printer as I did not want it sitting around gathering dust.

As Bruce said in a previous post, you need to learn CAD.

I’ve been learning to draw over the past 3 years.

I’ve been using printing services like 3D HUBS to get my designs printed.

Once my drawing skills became sufficient and efficient, I keep coming up with 3D printing projects on a quite regular basis.

My designs are small, around the house, automotive, gardening and bicycle repair and invention parts.

As a result of my 3D printing experiences so far, I’m planning on purchasing a 3D printer for home use.

I’m still unsure if my 3D printer purchase will happen this year or next, but I’m getting very close to purchase time.

…

I hope this helps you in some manner.

kr0sh2 July 13, 2016, 6:01pm

Like your shelf scenario, my primary use is repair and sometimes prototyping. Steam valve on my Gaggia Classic snapped off, made a new one in Tinkercad and printed it off in polycarbonate in about two hours flat. An official replacement would have cost me £20. One thing I think that’s an even bigger bottleneck is the price of a decent scanner - if someone could just scan their favourite mug and print twenty more we wouldn’t have to rely on CAD so much IMO.

kr0sh2 July 13, 2016, 6:05pm

Here’s that handle if anyone likes their coffee with steamed milk. http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1671472

InsaneCheese July 14, 2016, 12:04am

As an average user with a 3d printer, at the moment I just print up stuff I can find models for. I can at best resize them using the slicer. I’ve found a bunch of neat stuff and mostly print for the sake of making stuff - I pulled 40 smileys off my printer last night for tokens represent civilians in Infinity. I think the biggest thing that’s need to be pushed is that CAD abilities are insanely useful for making anything more than what you find online. It doesn’t help when you’re reading a 3d printing blog and the guy says “oh and then I whipped up this nifty bracket/holder/whosawhatsit in 15mins” which makes it sound easy - if you read the guys bio you find out he’s being doing CAD stuff for 15 years. Which I suppose it’s like computer science at high school. 15 years ago I got a crash course in Visual Basic, now I’d imagine it’s significantly more than an introduction for 14 y.o’s.

Enza3D July 14, 2016, 2:03am

This is unrelated to the original post, but how many of you guys would be interested in learning some CAD skills using free software (OnShape) and videos I post here? Like make talk posts once a week going over different skills starting from very basic to advanced? The comments can serve as kind of a forum.

I’ve been kicking around the idea of doing a Udemy series for CAD, and think doing this first would be a great starting point. Yes, no, maybe?

RCole July 14, 2016, 4:35pm

#10

It is true that the CAD programs are not keeping up with the speed that 3D Printing is evolving. But as CAD gets better and easier, this will change. Right now, yes, I’ll agree that most people would find a printer of limited utility. Remember when computers were thought of that way?

Take a look at some of the new devices like Microsoft’s HoloLens if you want to see where 3D is going in the computing world. Their design program allows the user to walk around a model and push and prod it to change a design. Sure, HoloLens is still only available to developers and expensive, but that will change too.

So, I think, as the CAD gets easier, 3D printers will be much more useful and be in more homes.

InsaneCheese July 14, 2016, 11:45pm

#11

I’d be interested, as long as I get to ask stupid questions. I’m sure there’s a bunch of other people who would be if you started it up.

Enza3D July 15, 2016, 4:10pm

#13

No such as thing as stupid questions when you’re learning something new!

RCole July 15, 2016, 4:21pm

#14

As a personal request - if you’re doing a tutorial, please make sure that there is good closed captioning. I’m happy to say that most of the existing OnShape tutorials have good captions and the ones produced by the OnShape team have transcripts available as well. Yay.

Enza3D July 15, 2016, 5:28pm

#15

The OnShape team is fantastic, and really do care about their users! This is definitely easy to implement and I myself get annoyed when videos don’t include this.

10 Benefits of a 3D Printer: Save Time and Money

More recently, 3D printing has been viewed as something completely new. The technology was underdeveloped, the hardware was too expensive for widespread use. But only a few years have passed, and the situation has changed radically. Not only did more and more 3D printers begin to appear in stores, but also some enthusiasts began to assemble this equipment themselves.

1. Economy

Although large-scale projects with thousands of 3D printed parts are not cheap, they are still much more profitable than other technologies. Many manufacturers use 3D printing for small runs or for prototyping. Plastic can also be used for injection molding, but casting small batches can require expensive equipment. But even in this case, manufacturers can produce cast 3D parts several times cheaper than using aluminum.

Prototype parts printed on Prusa i3 Bizon 3D printer, layer height 0.1mm, PLA material

2. Faster production cycle

Compared to traditional production methods, the entire process can take weeks or days, and most products are printed in hours. Some manufacturers have even begun to make parts to order, which has also allowed them to optimize their warehouse capacity and resource management scheme, making them more flexible. With this new approach, the manufacturer does not need to store every single part or component, they can simply be printed as needed and immediately put into action.

Miniature parts printed by Wanhao Duplicator 7 photopolymer 3D printer, layer height 0.5mm, photopolymer resin material

It not only affects the reputation of the company in its industry, insufficient technical control can lead to injury to employees and customers. Since 3D printing uses a completely different production method than most machine tool operations, the process has significantly fewer weaknesses and flaws overall.

Model printed on Picaso Designer X PRO 3D printer, 0.2 mm layer, ABS materials, HIPS

4. Less waste

The press is gaining more and more support in the form of supporters of the "green" movement. Because 3D printing produces significantly less waste than traditional processing, the technology is more environmentally friendly while reducing costs. 3D printing has even made its way into the textile industry, allowing clothing and prototypes to be printed.

Hercules Strong 3D printed yacht steering parts. Details printed in 15 hours with a 0.5 mm nozzle and a layer height of 0.3 mm at a speed of 60 mm/s.

5. Greater customization

3D printed products are also highly customizable. Parts can be printed not only with light plastic, some next-generation models may also have a metal coating. As a result, objects are not only aesthetic, but also functional. In addition, they can acquire thermal and chemical resistance. The existing metallization method can also be used for plastic.

Functional parts printed on Hercules. Material ABS, nozzle diameter 0.5 mm, layer height 150 µm, filling 100%. The model consists of 3 parts: the body and 2 halves of the latch, after printing and processing, the parts were glued together with acetone.

6. Customer Accessibility

If some craftsmen set up small mechanical workshops, for example, in garages, then most of us cannot afford such a luxury. 3D printing allows you to bring a significant part of the manufacturing process directly into the home, made possible by the availability of user-grade 3D technology. While it turns out to be quite expensive for one-off projects, the price of 3D printers and consumables is dropping rapidly.

Technical wing caps in REC RUBBER or REC FLEX. The models are printed on a Prusa i3 Steel 3D printer.

7. High complexity

In most cases, when it comes to complex parts and elements, the manufacturing process imposes certain limitations. Techniques used in casting and finishing objects may not be subtle enough for sophisticated design details. 3D manufacturing processes make it possible to realize almost any design solution, regardless of its complexity, and in a reasonable time. This not only eliminates the extra assembly steps required by traditional methods, but also provides more freedom to create future-proof designs.

Zenit 3D Printing Big Details From Engine 3D Printer

8.

Less risk

While there are inherent risks associated with these new technologies, in terms of day-to-day business, 3D printing risks are significantly lower than with traditional manufacturing methods. Not only is 3D printing much cheaper when it comes to testing a new design or product, the printed prototypes themselves can stir up investor and customer interest and get them to decide whether to proceed with mass production of a product, whether it is worth the time and effort required.

Wanhao Duplicator i3 3D Printer Miniature Printing

9. Variety of materials

The materials used in today's 3D printers are much more diverse than most raw materials in traditional production methods. 3D printing also provides the ability to mix different substances, a luxury that is not always available with conventional methods. Although many 3D printer manufacturers offer their own, very limited set of sources, 3D printers can work not only with original materials, allowing you to simulate ceramics, metal, glass and more.

Wanhao D6 3D Printer PEGT, ABS-PC, PLA, SBS

The manufacturer not only needs to clearly understand what the customer wants, the manufacturer must also be able to explain what he himself can. Drawings, diagrams, diagrams are all good, of course, but there is nothing better than a real prototype that you can hold, look at and study. The fact that the materials are inexpensive, coupled with the short prototyping time on today's 3D printers, helps a lot during the prototyping phase, keeping all stakeholders connected.

THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF 3D PRINTING

Despite a relatively slow start, the concept of 3D printing is finally gaining momentum and popularity among manufacturers and customers. We already see a lot of benefits of 3D printing, including shorter production cycles, more complex designs and improved quality, and the peak of the popularity and functionality of this technology is yet to come.

what's next for 3D printing

The future of 3D printing

Already, the prospects for 3D printing are extremely promising. Scientists are actively developing existing 3D printing techniques, developing new technologies and types of materials, and finding new areas of application. Many call 3D printing the technology of the future, and for good reason. The technique is able to completely turn the usual way of life, changing the way most things are produced. In fact, a 3D printer is a real multifunctional factory, small and compact. Due to this, the future of 3D printing can definitely be called successful.

3D printers can significantly reduce production costs, thereby reducing the cost of products. Judging by the growing trend towards the popularization of 3D technologies, raw materials for 3D printing will become the main commodity unit in the future. In general, the prospects for 3D printing are defined for many areas. And now we will try to reveal them as much as possible.

The future of 3D printing

If you try to imagine the future of 3D printing, the imagination paints a rather interesting picture. Given the great interest of scientists in the 3D bioprinting technique, which is one of the most promising 3D printing technologies, the production of artificial organs on a 3D printer is not far off. It is also safe to say that the future of 3D printing will bring us dramatic changes in areas such as:

Construction. 3D printing of houses, or contour construction, attracts many with its futurism and simplicity. The first steps in this direction have already been taken. The pioneers in 3D printing of houses were the Chinese, followed by the government of Dubai who discovered contour building. The first 3D printed office building has already been built in this city of the future, and an entire block is planned to be printed in the near future. And just recently, the first printed house in Europe was created on a 3D printer;
Electronics. When listing the prospects for 3D printing, this point should be given special attention. Scientists believe 3D printing of electronics is the future of digital device manufacturing, and with good reason. Graphene properties and its application in additive manufacturing are currently being actively researched. A huge breakthrough in this area is the creation of a graphene battery with an unlimited service life on a 3D printer;
Automotive and aerospace industry. The future of 3D printing is largely based on its ability to reproduce almost any element of varying complexity. In this regard, 3D printing is already widely used in the development of aircraft, machines and satellites. The ISS even has its own 3D printer, not to mention a number of successful 3D printing of cars.
Pharmaceutical industry. Yes, yes, you can imagine. The future of 3D printing is in the manufacture of tablets and other medicines. This is confirmed by epilepsy pills legalized in the USA, made according to a special technique. The essence of this perspective of 3D printing is the gradual release of active substances, so that instead of many tablets, you can drink just one.
Food industry. 3D food printers are gradually gaining space in cafes and restaurants. While this is probably one of the most raw 3D printing technologies out there, it has potential. Food 3D printers are especially interesting for the possibility of making food for astronauts, as well as the freedom to display culinary talent. This is confirmed by the amazing 3D-printed desserts of our compatriot.

Other questions and answers about 3D printers and 3D printing:

Finance Which 3D printer manufacturers are best?
Finance What is the best 3D printer to buy?

The future of 3D printers

Now let's try to imagine the future of 3D printers. There are several important points to be noted here. Below we list the most likely scenarios for the future of 3D printers.

Improving the reliability and quality of instruments. Surely, many users are looking forward to this, because most of the existing models of 3D printers cannot boast of uninterrupted operation and the absence of printing errors;
Large-scale distribution. It is certain that the future of 3D printers will please us with their popularization. Even now, one can observe a growing trend towards the use of 3D printing in almost all areas of industry. In parallel with the fact that more and more users learn about the possibilities of technology, the demand for desktop 3D printers is also growing;
Availability. In continuation of the previous paragraph, it is worth noting that the growing demand for 3D printers will lead to lower prices for these devices. The use of 3D printing for domestic purposes is gaining momentum, which brings new equipment manufacturers to the market. Naturally, such a step will entail a reduction in the cost of devices;
Enlargement of the construction area. 3D printing of large-sized objects has long occupied the minds of developers. Of course, this applies to industrial 3D printers, because the functionality of 3D printing at this scale will allow you to create full-fledged components, for example, cars and aircraft;
Expanding the range of available materials. The future of 3D printers depends a lot on 3D printing materials, because more means more possibilities. The development of special equipment and related materials is being carried out by many companies, and news about the release of new polymers is constantly appearing.

3D technologies of the future

Summing up, it remains to consider only 3D technologies of the future. These include various futuristic scenarios that, to one degree or another, are already beginning to develop today. These include the technique of virtual reality, 3D scanning to create the perfect clothes and shoes, 3D printed makeup, and more. In a way, 3D technologies of the future also include bioprinting. By the way, scientists are talking about building the first 3D printed settlement on the Moon and Mars, so the prospects for 3D printing are also relevant outside the Earth.

This was a list of the main scenarios for the future of 3D printing. Let's see how they are destined to come true.

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Purposes and why people should own a 3d printer?? - No category - Talk Manufacturing

10 Benefits of a 3D Printer: Save Time and Money

1. Economy

2. Faster production cycle

4. Less waste

5. Greater customization

6. Customer Accessibility

7. High complexity

8.

9. Variety of materials

THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF 3D PRINTING

what's next for 3D printing

The future of 3D printing

The future of 3D printing

The future of 3D printers

3D technologies of the future

Learn more