3D Printing Circuit Boards
 |
Printing electronic circuit boards represents something of a holy grail for 3D printing. The level of detail and the necessarily flexible use of material present some of the most vexing logistical questions facing the 3D printing industry and thus present an opportunity to achieve its most momentous technological achievements. Some folks are estimating that printing circuit boards is near - as soon as two years from now.
This development would present tremendous competitive challenges for the existing players in the electronics hardware industry, who have been protected since the industry began by huge cost and informational barriers to entry. Think about it: how many people actually know how to design and build a piece of electronic hardware? How many of those with the knowledge and skill have the infrastructure to actually build the thing? Very, very few.
3D Printing's Creepiest Application
 |
You can say a lot about the state of 3D printing technology, but here is a new way to describe whether the technology sits today: creepy. Really, really, creepy. Here is a place where you can reproduce yourself without dealing with the inevitable catastrophic collateral damage that actual reproduction (your kids) will inevitably inflict on your generally tolerable life.
That's right, put your face on a storm trooper. Or a Barbie doll. Or on a muscle-bound figurine of a kick-ass action figure.
Graphene and the Future of 3D Printing Materials
One of the central logistical obstacles to the use of 3D printing for the production of complex consumer goods identifying and producing the kinds of materials necessary to create such objects. If we are going to move beyond the current era of printing all plastic or wax objects, we must first develop a material that can be economically used to create the different components of an object that demand different functional qualities.
It seems a potential candidate has arrived...
In this article from the Huffington Post, one writer muses about the possibility of using Graphene as a material for 3D printing.
3D Printing Your Minecraft Creation
 |
One of the significant barriers to the development of the site-based manufacturing model made possible by 3D printing is the lack of readily accessed 3D schematics. A central goal then, should be to identify and leverage potential sources of 3D schematics.
Here is one potential source of 3D designs the 3D printing community can use: the gaming community. To the extent that gaming is a productive enterprise delivering new designs, we should welcome it.
3D Printers Lower Barriers to Market Entry
 |
3D printers are beginning to become more accessible as more companies supplying printers compete to get your business. By providing access to cheaper and more sophisticated 3D printers, the market is allowing would-be manufacturers to gain access to product markets the traditional manufacturing model would deny them access to.
Apparently, this fact is beginning to be recognized even by the centers of conventional business wisdom. This past February, the Economist had this to say about the impact 3D printing would have on lowering barriers to entry for small market producers....
"Perhaps the most exciting aspect of additive manufacturing is that it lowers the cost of entry into the business of making things. Instead of finding the money to set up a factory or asking a mass-producer at home (or in another country) to make something for you, 3D printers will offer a cheaper, less risky route to the market. An entrepreneur could run off one or two samples with a 3D printer to see if his idea works. He could make a few more to see if they sell, and take in design changes that buyers ask for. If things go really well, he could scale up—with conventional mass production or an enormous 3D print run."
Hey, even a broken clock is right twice a day, right? You can find the rest of what is a pretty good article here.
3D Printing Scanners: Iphone Style
The Future of Piracy.
 |
3D scanners are going to be a huge source of 3D printing schematics. They meet all the requirements for a ready
source of blueprints: they're cheap, easy to use, and is a means of copying that anyone can access immediately.
There are a couple of problems these scanning devices will present however...
First, scanning is going be a source of piracy. With this new tech, expect the same kinds of intellectual property battles we have seen over music and other digital products.
Further, these phones do come with a significant use limitation: the scans are limited to surface replication. This iphone scanner is likely just the beginning though- expect in the next few years a scanner than can replicate the insides of an object and not just the exterior.
Intellectual Property and 3D Printing: We Know What's Coming
 |
We've done this before. Someone creates digital content. It's well designed, useful, and generally awesome. People naturally want to share it with others. The others agree and flock to P2P forums to get it without paying the creator. Sound familiar?
It should.
Napster, BTJunkie, and any of the other myriad file sharing sites have been a headache for copyright holders and a vexing quandry for IP lawyers trying to secure content (or defend against an infringement claim). Stage right: 3D printers.
Anyone in the 3D printing community knows 3D schematics are essentially similar to digital media files: copyable and valued creative works that can be shared with the click of a button. Now, the problems associated with such sharing have begun...
Awesome New 3D Printing Designs
The design below is just one of several photographs of some pretty sophisticated and detailed 3D printing designs. However, even as the designs are visually pleasing, their lack of functionality is reflective of the fact that 3D printing is still an art that is in it's infancy. Here is the link to some more sweet 3d printing designs.
