1. 3D Printing By: Anthony Tu

2. What is 3-D printing? 3D printing is the process of making a three dimensional solid object based off a digital file on a computer. The creation of a 3D printed object is achieved by laying down layers of the specified material until the entire object is created.

3. How does it work? 1. Make a 3-D design of your object using a 3-D modeling program or using a 3- D scanner. 2. The 3-D printing software “slices” up the digital model into thousands of horizontal layers. 3. All of these horizontal images are blended together, resulting in one three dimensional object

4. What do I print 3-D with? 3-D printing can be achieved with the use of a 3-D printer. However, not all 3D printers use the same materials, or even the same technology create objects. Two of the most popular methods include:  Selective laser sintering (SLS)  Fused deposition modeling (FDM)

5. Applications of 3-D Printing Applications include:  Design visualization  Prototyping  Metal casting  Architecture  Education  Healthcare  Entertainment  Retail For example, an architect can create a full 3-D model of a building with ease using 3-D printing.

6. Who will benefit from this Technology?  Artists  Architects  Teachers  Scientists  Businesspeople  Any design-related job  Anyone interested in 3-D models

7. Cost of a 3-D printer  A 3-D printer is typically quite expensive  It can range from 200 to 5000 dollars  They have relatively good availability – they can be bought in many stores and online

8. The downsides of 3-D printing  3D printers use a ton of energy  They are expensive  They use a lot of material to create the 3-D object  They can contaminate food if it comes in contact  They can be used to create illegal objects

9. The Future of 3-D Printing In the nearby future, more and more objects will be created using 3-D printing:  It will be used for creating models in businesses  It may create objects for daily use  Use different materials like silver or gold and create jewelry  Form metal in specialized shapes  Create large, complex objects, like cars.

10. References  http://3dprinting.com/what-is-3d-printing/ http://3dprinting.com/what-is-3d-printing/  http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5125-3d-printing-jobs.html http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5125-3d-printing-jobs.html