The shiny chrome surface, embossed with the lightning bolt logo of his beloved San Diego Chargers, covers the calf area of his prosthetic leg, the result of a roadside bomb in Afghanistan in 2010.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

At the naval hospital where he was recovering from his wounds and the resulting surgery, Sullivan ran into entrepreneur Scott Summit, who suggested a solution to covering the metal rod that protruded conspicuously from his knee.

• web3D纳金网www.narkii.com
  PHOTOS: Behind the scenes of a 3D printing plant

Summit\'s firm, Bespoke Innovations, uses an obscure process known as 3D printing to make durable thermoplastic leg coverings, or fairings. By digitally scanning the surviving leg to match its shape and form, Bespoke produces curved panels resembling soccer shin pads that cover the artificial limb. You can often tell a person has a prosthetic leg by the way the pants leg flaps, Sullivan says. "Having that symmetry now, you can\'t tell the difference."web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Thanks to the Internet and declining hardware costs, 3D printing — once a specialized process used sparingly by industrial companies for prototyping — is becoming more common among design hobbyists and entrepreneurs such as Summit.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

The consumer market\'s embrace of the technology has been swift. Sales for all 3D printing products and services worldwide grew 24% to $1.33 billion in 2010, fueled in part by a fast-growing market of do-it-yourselfers, says industry research firm Wohlers Associates.

The firm also estimates sales will continue to post "strong double-digit growth" in the next several years, reaching about $3.1 billion by 2016 from an estimated $1.6 billion this year.

Here\'s how 3D printing generally works: Once a product is designed on software, the file is sent to a special 3D printer that contains a spool (or cartridge) of a material — typically, plastic, metal or ceramics — in a fine powder or gel-like texture. Like printing on paper, the 3D printer lays down successive layers of the material and builds up until an object emerges. It\'s then cleaned, painted or cooled.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

"It\'s like a hot glue gun. Think of it as building from strings of spaghetti glue," explains Jim Kor, a Canadian engineer who has printed the exterior panels of a fuel-efficient concept car, the Urbee, with the help of Stratasys, a Minnesota company that is a 3D printing technology pioneer.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Traditional manufacturing, involving injection molding or die casting, generally produces better results for making parts in large volumes. Experts caution that 3D printers, particularly entry-level models, can produce rough finishing and imprecise details, and raw materials may be expensive.

But proponents say the technology enables on-demand parts production, eliminates assembly lines, reduces inventory and is a speedier process for making objects or parts that don\'t require precise detailing.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

The technology is already prevalent in industrial manufacturing. Boeing prints some air duct parts for its planes. Invisalign\'s teeth aligners are printed, as are hearing aid shells by Starkey Laboratories in Minnesota.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

"You have freedom of creation. You can do almost anything," says Terry Wohlers of Wohlers Associates.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Some innovators are determined to prove that theory. Anthony Atala, a professor at theWake Forest University School of Medicine, is something of a cult figure in 3D printing with his research on printing human organs. Using living human cells and a special gel that binds them, he has printed a human bladder that is in a clinical trial.

Big ideas, small scale

3D printing has bred a cottage industry of entrepreneurs who see business opportunities in making products for customers — jewelry, toys, home decor and clothing — who otherwise have no access to customized, small-scale manufacturing.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Want to make a toy robot for your third-grader? MyRobotNation.com, which specializes in 3D-printed toy robots, has design software and a product ordering page on its website.

Need a good use for a mountain of Lego Duplo blocks? Thingiverse.com, a website where product designers share their designs for others to use, features small plastic connectors that link the blocks to toy train sets. Using the connector, Duplo blocks can be built as a bridge tower or train depot.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Thingiverse founder Bre Pettis says the Duplo connectors may be the most unusual objects on his site. The 15,000 designs attest to the creativity and diversity of interests of its users, he says. "The possibilities are endless."

The emergence of hobbyists has been a blessing in new sales possibilities for printer makers. Printer prices vary widely, ranging from sub-$1,000 models that require assembly at home to $500,000 products used by industrial companies. 3D printers and raw materials are generally purchased online or through resellers.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

But printer prices are coming down as makers increasingly eye the casual-user market. Company 3D Systems created much buzz at the recent Consumer Electronic Show with Cube, a desktop 3D printer aimed at home users. At $1,300, it\'s one of the cheapest fully assembled printers, says CEO Abe Reichental.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

He says a third of the company\'s 2011 research-and-development budget was poured into the consumer market. "We think that\'s the big part of the future," he says. "The technology is finally affordable."

Fueling the popularity of 3D printing is the fact that the software, once intimidating to casual hobbyists, is becoming cheaper and easier to use. You no longer need to spend hundreds of dollars for high-end computer-aided design software. Some websites — 3DTin, Tinkercad, Google\'s SketchUp and Autodesk\'s 123Dapp.com — allow users to design directly online. Sites such as www.narkii.com require little design skill.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Software is improving in other areas, as well. Bespoke\'s Summit says scanning an amputee\'s surviving leg once required a heavy scanner, and was a cumbersome and costly task.

But Bespoke recently switched to a new Autodesk program that allows scanning with a simple point-and-shoot camera. "It went from exotic wizardry to common camera. And it\'s made the process a lot easier," Summit says.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Another catalyst for the do-it-yourself movement is the variety of software and printer plans available online for individuals to use and modify as they see fit. RepRap, a free desktop 3D-printer kit that users have downloaded to build their own printers, is one example.

Three years ago, Pettis founded MakerBot, a company that makes printers based on RepRap\'s designs. It has sold about 10,000 printers in the U.S. since 2009, he says.

Fast results for small orders

3D printing has also fueled a boom in small businesses, such as Shapeways and Ponoko, that promise customers quick-turnaround printing for small orders.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

Sarah Stocker and her business partner, Mark Danks, opened MyRobotNation last year to leverage their work experience in the video gaming industry. On their site, customers can log on to design robots and order a finished product — ranging from 2-inch ($18) to 6-inch ($170) — that are 3D printed. "It\'s basically like playing a video game," Danks says.

Entrepreneurs with limited resources, such as designer Jeff Bare, are increasingly using online service companies such as Shapeways, which prints uploaded designs and lets members open virtual stores on the site where they pay a fee for each item they sell.

Bare, a furniture designer by day, began designing a cover for the iPad three months before it was introduced in April 2010. With an estimate of iPad dimensions, he printed a prototype. After making adjustments, he was ready to sell his covers when iPad was launched. The first cover, made of polyimide (nylon-based plastic), sold a month later for $30.

Bare is one of 120,000 users of Shapeways, based in New York. Shapeways printed 750,000 products last year, ranging from jewelry (a popular category) to phone accessories. "In China, you have to order thousands. (Here), you can order one or two," says Shapeways CEO Peter Weijmarshausen. "The risk of doing business goes down to absolutely zero."

Despite its potential, 3D-printing technology does not yet pose a serious threat to traditional manufacturing.web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

When you look closely, printing traces are visible on items printed by low-end printers, Wohlers says, and 3D printing isn\'t ideal for large-volume orders that need to be turned around quickly. While printer prices are coming down, the materials cost is still "relatively expensive," says Autodesk CEO Carl Bass. For example, ABS plastic — used often for its durability — when packed into spools of a 3D printer can be "a couple of hundred times more expensive" than the raw material, Bass says.

Despite the technology\'s shortcomings, its proponents liken it to the microwave oven in the early \'80s, a curious appliance not quite ready for prime time but with the potential to become indispensable. web3D纳金网www.narkii.com 

中文翻译： web3D纳金网www.narkii.com 
 

闪亮的镀铬表面，与他心爱的闪电标志的浮雕圣迭戈充电器，涵盖了他的假腿，结果于2010年在阿富汗路边炸弹的腿肚部位。

沙利文在海军医院，在那里他从他的伤口，导致手术中恢复，跑进企业家斯科特首脑会议上，他提出了一个解决方案，涵盖从他的膝盖明显突出的金属棒。

• 三维印刷厂的场景：照片背后web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

首脑会议上的坚定，定制的创新，使用一个不起眼的过程被称为3D印刷耐用的热塑性腿覆盖，或整流罩。通过数字扫描尚存的腿，以配合其形状和形式，定制生产弧形板，类似足球护腿板，涵盖了假肢。你经常可以告诉一个人有一个假腿的裤子腿皮瓣的方式，沙利文说。“现在有了这样的对称性，你可以不知道其中的差别。”

由于互联网和硬件成本下降，3D印刷 - 一旦一个专门的过程，有节制地使用工业公司为原型 - 正在变得越来越普遍设计爱好者和企业家，如首脑会议。

消费市场的怀抱的技术已经迅速。所有的3D印刷产品和服务的全球销售额增长了24％，在2010年13.3亿美元，部分是因为快速增长的市场的做自己动手，说行业研究公司沃勒斯Associates的。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

该公司还预计销售将继续发布“强两位数的增长”在未来几年内，2016年达到约3.1亿美元，今年估计为1.6亿美元。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

这里是如何三维打印一般工作：一旦产品是软件设计，该文件被发送到1特殊的3D打印机包含1材料的阀芯（或墨盒） - 通常情况下，塑料，金属或陶瓷 - 1细粉末或凝胶般的质感。3D打印机打印纸一样，奠定了连续层的材料，并建立直到有一个对象出现。它然后清洗，油漆或冷却。

“它是像1热胶枪。想想它的面条胶字符串的建设，”解释吉姆韩，1加拿大工程师谁已经印刷与Stratasys公司的帮助省油的概念车，在Urbee，在外观面板，明尼苏达州的一家公司，它是一个三维打印技术的先驱。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

一般传统的制造业，涉及注塑，压铸，产生更好的结果为使大量的零件。专家警告说，3D打印机，尤其是入门级车型，可以产生粗糙的整理和不精确的细节，可能是昂贵的原料。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

但是，支持者说，该技术可以让按需零件生产，消除了装配生产线，降低库存，使物体或零件，不需要精确的细节，是加快过程。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

该技术已在工业生产中普遍存在。波音飞机打印一些风管部件。Invisalign的的牙齿对准印刷，听到在明尼苏达州的斯达克实验室援助炮弹。

“你有创作的自由，你几乎可以做任何事情，说：”特里·沃勒斯Associates的沃勒斯。

一些创新的决心证明这一理论，在维克森林大学医学院的教授安东尼·阿塔拉，是一个邪教组织在与他的研究上打印人体器官的三维印刷图的东西。使用人类活细胞和一种特殊的凝胶结合，他已经印制了人类的膀胱，在临床试验中。

大思路，小规模web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

三维打印孕育了山寨行业的企业家们看到商机，在为客户的产品 - 珠宝，玩具，家居装饰和服装 - 否则谁没有访问定制的，小规模生产。

要让你的三年级一个玩具机器人吗？MyRobotNation.com，专门在3D印刷玩具机器人，在其网站上设计软件和产品订购页面。

需要很好地利用了山乐高得宝块呢？Thingiverse.com，产品设计师分享他们的设计，以供他人使用的一个网站，设有小塑料连接器，玩具火车组连接块。使用连接器，可建得宝块作为一个桥塔或火车车厂。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

thingiverse创始人BRE佩蒂斯说：“得宝连接器可能是他的网站上最不寻常的对象。15,000设计证明的创造力和多样性及其用户的利益，“他说。“可能性是无穷无尽的。”web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

出现的爱好者一直在祝福新的销售打印机制造商的可能性。打印机的价格千差万别，从分1000美元的模式，需要在家里组装到工业企业所使用的产品500,000美元不等。3D打印机和原材料一般在网上购买或通过经销商。

但打印机的价格正在下降厂商越来越多眼休闲用户市场。公司3D系统在最近创建的嗡嗡声立方，针对家庭用户的桌面三维打印机的消费电子展。首席执行官说，安倍晋三Reichental 1300美元，这是完全组装的最便宜的打印机之一。

他说，2011年该公司的研究和开发预算的三分之一，被浇成的消费市场。“我们认为这是未来的很大一部分，”他说。“这项技术终于负担得起的。”

3D印刷的普及推波助澜的是该软件，一旦恐吓休闲爱好者，正变得更便宜和更容易使用的事实。您不再需要花费数百美元，高端计算机辅助设计软件。有些网站 - 3DTin，Tinkercad，谷歌的SketchUp和Autodesk的123Dapp.com - 允许用户直接在网上设计。如www.narkii.com网站几乎不需要设计技巧。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

软件是提高在其他领域，以及。定制的首脑会议上说，扫描一次截肢者的尚存腿沉重的扫描仪，是一个繁琐和昂贵的任务。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

但最近定制切换到一个新的Autodesk程序，可以用一个简单的点和傻瓜相机扫描。“从异国情调的巫术常见的摄像头。和它的过程轻松了许多，”高峰说。

为做它，自己运动的另一个催化剂是各种软件和打印机网上提供个人使用和修改，因为他们认为合适的计划。一个免费的桌面3D打印机套件，用户下载，以建立自己的打印机，RepRap，就是一个例子。

三年前，佩蒂斯MakerBot，RepRap的设计的基础上，使打印机的公司成立。它已经售出约10000打印机在美国自2009年以来，他说。

小订单的快速结果web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

3D打印也助长Shapeways和Ponoko如小企业的热潮中，保证客户快速周转印刷小批量订单。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

萨拉·斯托克和她的生意伙伴，马克Danks，打开MyRobotNation去年利用其在视频游戏行业的工作经验。在其网站上，客户可以登录到设计机器人和成品 - 从2英寸（18美元）到6英寸（$ 170） - 这是3D印刷。Danks说：“它基本上是喜欢玩视频游戏，”。

与有限的资源，如设计师杰夫裸，企业家越来越多地使用Shapeways，打印上传的设计，让成员在网站上开设虚拟商店，在那里他们支付的费用为每一个项目，他们卖的，如在线服务公司。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

光秃秃的，一天天的家具设计师，开始为iPad 3个月的封面设计，然后才在2010年4月推出。他估计iPad的尺寸，印刷原型。作出调整后，他准备卖掉他的封面时，iPad的推出。第一盖，聚酰亚胺（尼龙基塑料），卖30元一个月后。

裸是120,000 Shapeways用户之一，根据纽约。shapeways印制了75万的产品，去年，从珠宝（一种流行的类），手机配件。“在中国，你不得不下令数千（在这里），您可以订购一个或两个，说：”Shapeways首席执行官彼得Weijmarshausen。“做生意的风险下降到绝对为零。”web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

尽管它的潜力，3D印刷技术还不传统制造业构成严重威胁。

当你仔细一看，印刷痕迹，可见低端打印机打印的项目上，沃勒斯说，三维打印是不适合于大批量订货，需要迅速转身。欧特克首席执行官卡尔·巴斯说，“虽然打印机的价格正在下降，原材料成本仍是”相对昂贵。例如，ABS塑料 - 经常用于其耐用性 - 包装成一个3D打印机的线轴时，可以是“一对夫妇更昂贵百倍”比原材料，巴斯说。web3D纳金网www.narkii.com

尽管该3D技术的缺点，它的支持者把它比作微波炉在80年代初，一个奇怪的家电不太为黄金时间做好准备，但有潜力成为不可或缺的。（web3D纳金网www.narkii.com）web3D纳金网www.narkii.com