Introduction:

3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer control, with material being added together (such as plastics, liquids or powder grains being fused), typically layer by layer.

In the 1980s, 3D printing techniques were considered suitable only for the production of functional or aesthetic prototypes, and a more appropriate term for it at the time was rapid prototyping. One of the key advantages of 3D printing is the ability to produce very complex shapes or geometries that would be otherwise impossible to construct by hand, including hollow parts or parts with internal truss structures to reduce weight. Fused deposition modeling (FDM), which uses a continuous filament of a thermoplastic material, is the most common 3D printing process in use as of 2020.

History:

1940’s & 1950’s

The general concept of and procedure to be used in 3D-printing was first described by Murray Leinster in his 1945 short story Things Pass By, But this constructor is both efficient and flexible.

 Raymond F. Jones in his story, “Tools of the Trade” published in the November 1950 issue of Astounding Science Fiction magazine. He referred to it as a “molecular spray“.

1970’s

In 1971, Johannes F Gottwald patented the Liquid Metal Recorder, U.S. Patent 3596285A, a continuous Inkjet metal material device to form a removable metal fabrication on a reusable surface for immediate use or salvaged for printing again by remelting.

1980’s

In April 1980, Hideo Kodama of Nagoya Municipal Industrial Research Institute invented two additive methods for fabricating three-dimensional plastic models with photo-hardening thermoset polymer, where the UV exposure area is controlled by a mask pattern or a scanning fiber transmitter. He filed a patent for this XYZ plotter, which was published on 10 November 1981.

1990’s

At the time, all metal working was done by processes that are now called non-additive like casting, fabrication, stamping, and machining although plenty of automation was applied to those technologies, the idea of a tool or head moving through a 3D   

2000’s

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) printing process patents expired in 2009.

2010’s

The 2010s were the first decade in which metal end use parts such as engine brackets^] and large nuts would be grown either before or instead of machining in job production rather than obligately being machined from bar stock or plate.

2012’s

In 2012, Filabot developed a system for closing the loop with plastic and allows for any FDM or FFF 3D printer to be able to print with a wider range of plastics.

2014’s

In 2014, Benjamin S. Cook and Manos M. Tentzeris demonstrate the first multi-material, vertically integrated printed electronics additive manufacturing platform (VIPRE) which enabled 3D printing of functional electronics operating up to 40 GHz.

2020’s

As of 2020, 3D printers have reached the level of quality and price that allows most people to enter the world of 3D printing. In 2020 decent quality printers can be found for less than US$200 for entry level machines. These more affordable printers are usually fused deposition modeling (FDM) printers. In November 2021 a British patient named Steve Verze received the world’s first fully 3D-printed prosthetic eye from the Moorfields Eye Hospital in London