INTRODUCTION TO 3D PRINTING

How do we make things?

There are 4 main ways of how we make things that we use and see around us. Scroll down to understand these and get an easy introduction to 3D printing!

  1. Subtractive Manufacturing

by removing what is not needed

How is a CHAIR made?

How is a CHAIR made?

 
By CUTTING wood!

By CUTTING wood!


2. Forming Manufacturing

by applying force to change shape

How are POTS made?

How are POTS made?

 
By applying FORCE on rotating clay!

By applying FORCE on rotating clay!


3. Casting Manufacturing

by using a definite shape to make another object

How are ICE CUBES made?

How are ICE CUBES made?

 
Pouring water in an ICE TRAY of required shape!

Pouring water in an ICE TRAY of required shape!


4. Additive Manufacturing or 3D Printing

by adding material in the required shape

Imagine printing with your normal printer

Imagine printing with your normal printer

 
Now imagine making a stack of printed paper

Now imagine making a stack of printed paper

This is how a 3D Printer works! It prints one layer at a time, and then moves up to print another layer on top of the previous layer. After 100’s of layers on top of one another (like a stack of paper), a 3D object will be formed. The design printed in each layer will determine how the final object will look.

 

From Idea to Object in just 3 steps using 3D Printing

  1. Design your idea on a computer design software (CAD) or just download one from the internet

  2. Import the design in the slicing software to change print settings such as speed, material, etc.

  3. Send the file to a 3D Printer and start printing!

Watch the video to see these 3 steps ->

 

Watch this video from Stanford University for a SUMMARY of everything explained in this Introduction Section

 

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Types of 3D Printing and Materials