Wednesday, February 6, 2013

3d printers are changing the world

3D printing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I was thinking today just how much 3d printers are going to change the world. I think you might say that 3d printers are as big a change as typewriters were to writers when they were first invented. Or you also might equate the change to when the printing press was invented in regard to ideas proliferating around the world. When you can literally make anything you want in plastic or some 3d printers can make almost anything (up to the size limit of that particular 3d printer) you start to realize the possibilities. Hobbyists can design any 3 dimensional object in a Cad Drafting format and make it in some form of plastic right on the spot with their 3d printer. When you consider making literally any object in plastic or some even make it in a type of powdered metal that solidifies as it is laid in layers possibly with heat or glue as a bonding mechanism. You can see almost making anything is possible. And beyond that it literally becomes like a copy machine. Once you have made the pattern to make one you can then make as many copies of whatever the object is. The only limitation is the time and products you need to make it and the speed of your 3d printer to do the job. 

However, as far as I can see most 3d printers are more designed for making "prototypes" of an object rather than reproducing something forever. So, unless your 3d printer is designed and financially practical to make "infinite copies" I wouldn't count on it to do that.

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