3D printing is a relatively new invention that allows users to design an object and ahve it printed out right in front of them. It creates the object from a design it is told to print and adds on layers to the base until the object is finished being built. 3D printing has continued to evolve over the past few years, but the basics of it are still mostly the same.

Digital File, Printing Machine and Material The machine uses direction a digital file to create the 3d object. Once the file is uploaded to the printer, it can print smoothly. The file gives the printer an accurate layer-by-layer "instruction" on how to print the object. Many 3D printers have different means by which they print the object, for example, one might use a nozzle instead of a laser to lay down material, but one thing they all have in common is their use of a sort of box where the material is laid down. This space needs to be free of any obstruction to allow for the machine to successfully print an object. Additionally, many printers will only operate in certain temperatures. The material used when printing can vary as well. While it is usually colored plastic, some machines use nylons, synthetic sandstone, metals such as steel or silver, and/or resins to create a firmer base for the object. Certain machines can use multiple for a single object.

Different Types 3D printing can be used for many different things. There are scarcely any industries that have not been impacted by 3D printing in one way or another. Because of its easier accessibility, you can print pretty much anything with barely any limits. Shoes, houses, healthcare materials and props are just a few of the many things that are being built with 3D printers today. There are also quite a few different types of 3D printing. The most common one since 2009 is FDM, but there is also SLA, jetting processes, SLS and metal printing. FDM, or Fusion Deposition Modeling, uses one nozzle to lay down the plastic. It is the cheapest method and only needs a box, system and nozzle to operate. SLA is an older method that beams a laser at resin to harden it, which is then pulled out of a liquid vat. This process can have more detail than FDM, but is way more complex. Metal printing uses welding to create the desired object and SLS uses a laser to fuse different powders into the layers of an object. Jetting processes use the same techniques as SLA, but uses a jet of reactive polymer and UV light for each layer instead.