3D Printing Is Hot…And It’s Only Going To Get Hotter

We
often think of 3D printing as a new technology with futuristic implications,
but we rarely stop to consider how far it’s come or where it could be in
another few years.

3D
printing was invented by Charles Hull in 1984, and in the ensuing 34 years we
have developed ways to scan and 3D print objects in real time and have even
begun one of the most science-fiction endeavors yet–3D printing human organs.

Still, 3D printing has yet to reach its full potential, and that’s a good
thing. With everything we’ve achieved and all the breakthroughs still being
made, it’s only a matter of time before niche achievements carried out under
perfect laboratory conditions become repeatable (and affordable) options for 3D
printing hubs across the globe and currently being used invalves, gears, containers and power cords.

3D
printers offer us a look at how computer and software technology can create
meaningful changes in hardware by revolutionizing the design and physical
creation processes. Here’s a look at where 3D printing is in 2018 and where
it’s headed in the future.

Printing Organs, Saving Lives

For
a while, the talk of 3D printed body parts was nothing more than theoretical
science fiction. Sure, some researchers had figured out how to use a
semi-organic material in a 3D printer and had even activated some living cells
that replicated on the formed compound to create something like a real liver in
a petri dish.

But
in the last few years, things have progressed dramatically. In recent years,
scientists have 3D printed a replacement foot for a duck, a new jaw for an
elderly woman with a bone infection, and a few early clinical trials have shown
success using the next-generation of 3D printing to replace people’s own
failing organs using CAT scans for shape and their own cells as a source of DNA
to bring the organs to life.

This
process is referred to as 3D bioprinting by industry insiders, and it is
enjoying widespread adoption and funding that promises to further accelerate
progress towards fully-functioning bioprinted organs that can be used instead
of transplants from organ donors.

Research
labs have already begun to use 3D bioprinted organs to conduct medical tests,
which both reduces the need for animal testing and legitimizes bioprinted
organs as more successful clinical studies show that the organs are a suitable
replacement for naturally-sourced human organs.

A
medical device company recently created a 3D printed bionic ear that combines
the external structure and an internally-wound hearing aid that offers both a
lifelike prosthesis and advanced hearing aid technology that is aided by its
integration into the silicon-based external ear.

This
sort of integrated manufacturing promises to change and improve all
prosthetic-style devices by making more lifelike prosthetics more capable than
ever before and eliminating many process such as screw machining, ultrasonic cleaning,
and deburring.

All
of today’s 3D-printed implants and prosthetics are more like fully-customized
inorganic prosthetics than living and breathing organs, but the line is quickly
blurring as more firms make more progress towards printing exact replicas of
human organs and activating the tissues using grafts or samples from patients.

Today,
3D printing delivers extremely customized synthetic implants like new
mandibles, duck feet, and components of external prosthetics that used to
require intensive shaping by hand that was more art than science.

The
ability to work with multiple materials and use highly-accurate measurements
means that 3D printers will be welcomed in virtually every medical field as
materials science catches up to the software and hardware behind 3D scanning and
printing especially in regards tolinear actuators and slides technology and pressure sensing and measurement technologies.

Construction

Just
as with creating body parts, the only limit to 3D printing is how sophisticated
the materials science is and how large of a 3D printer you have access to. 3D
printers are increasingly utilized in art installations and one-off niche
problem-solving applications as they allow manufacturers to create highly
specific or esoteric components without requiring customized tooling in a
traditional manufacturing setting.

At
this year’s South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, a 3D printing and
construction startup called ICON upped the ante on 3D printing by 3D printing a
complete home in real-time on the grounds of an event.

The
home is made of a concrete compound and can be 3D printed in under 24 hours for
$4,000. Even with such nascent and proprietary technology for large-scale 3D
printing, the results are impressive.

The
company aims to use this technology to transform affordable housing options,
and its first endeavor is building a neighborhood of 100 3D printed homes in El
Salvador. As time passes, ICON and other large-scale firms will continue to
perfect 3D printing at the commercial scale, and it’s only a matter of time
before we see the booming prefabricated housing field and the 3D printing field
intersect to further drive down construction costs while bringing high-design
architecture to every lot and budget size.

And
when it comes to complex architectural designs or engineering challenges, 3D
printing will push the envelope far beyond today’s formed and reinforced
concrete. These materials triumphs will lead to changes in both high-design
flagship projects and repeatable, affordable construction in developing nations
and expensive urban areas alike and impact the material demand for graphite and emi shielded products.

It
will also transform the imbalance of skill and labor demand in many areas, thus
reducing development barriers from recently-growing urban areas that typically
see dramatic increases in construction costs as the labor pool becomes occupied
by the largest and highest-bidding contracts.

Micro Manufacturing

Just
as tooling costs for certain components can make architectural sketches cost
prohibitive, if not impossible, to bring to reality, remanufacturing small
parts for out-of-production devices is often impossible once the assembly lines
are shut down and the tooling is lost forever. Manufacturing costs such as heating and
equipment such as
transformers, and enclosures
will be greatly lessened.

For
fans of niche hobbies or uncommon objects, 3D printing has brought life back to
countless thousands of previously ‘obsolete’ items that were likely missing one
part that kept them from being usable.

From
brake cable housings on vintage bicycles to ink cartridge clips on antique
typewriters to brackets on classic cars, 3D printing can enable serious
archivists and amateur hobbyists to complete their projects and reduce
manufacturing waste and functional product obsolescence.

Similarly,
micro manufacturing enables a new generation of consumer goods to be produced
on-demand, allowing for both increased customization and reduced inventory or
resource waste.

One
of the simplest and most ubiquitous examples of 3D printing in the mainstream
mico manufacturing world is custom phone cases that allow you to order a case
for virtually any modern cell phone with any color combination or design that
you choose.

Cell
phone and other small tech device cases are an ideal candidate for 3D printing,
because they typically employ easy-to-print materials like silicon or plastic, are in high
demand thanks to a booming global consumer technology industry, and are not a
good candidate for large inventory due to the rapidly-evolving nature of the
smartphone, tablet, and laptop industries.

3D
printing helps to reduce waste and keep pace with ever-changing trends and
consumer demands in this and many similar fields.

The Future of 3D Printing

The
3D printing industry is projected to nearly double from a 2018 total of $12.8
billion to over $21 billion in 2020, which indicates that its adoption and
applications are still spreading rapidly.

Many
major conventional manufacturers have already partially or completely
transitioned from conventional manufacturingand inventory to 3D printing and
‘digital inventory’ models which allow them to create products on-demand while
virtually eliminating tooling and prototyping costs.

The
potential of this manufacturing model allows for far faster design and testing
phases, ongoing product updates, and increased product ‘lifespan’ thanks to the
ability to create replacement or updated parts without maintaining a physical
inventory or active assembly line involving conveyors, lifts, reels, and agv’s.

As
commercial demand for 3D printing technology increases, it will continue to
drive further improvements in available technology while making devices more
affordable to a wider range of industries and businesses. Much of the
technology for creating futuristic-sounding 3D printed products exists today
but requires affordability and widespread adoption to become viable.

Alongside
this progress in the commercial and consumer-facing 3D printed product realm,
the medical field will continue to make advances towards transplant-ready
3D-printed organs, which many consider to be the ultimate realization of this
technology.

The
intersection of computer software that models and designs given goods, printing
hardware that can turn these models into reality, and materials science that
will continue to push the envelope of what’s possible in 3D printing will move
us towards a future where 3D printing is less of a novelty and more of a given
across manufacturing and medical realms.