What is 3D Printing? - Working Procedure And Steps Involved

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a manufacturing process where a 3D printer creates three-dimensional objects by depositing materials layer by layer in accordance to the object’s 3D digital model.

What is 3D Printing Used For?

3D printing enables people like you and me to easily manufacture complex objects from the comfort of our own homes.Unlike the behemoth machines installed in factories, modern desktop 3D printers are small , cheap, and easy enough to install to operate.

A 3D printer (machine on the right hand side) easily fits on a study tableIt is often cheaper, faster and more customizable to 3D print something in your home than to buy such sundy items from the store. The technology is already quite mature and the build quality of the fabricated items is constantly improving. It’s not hard to imagine the oft-cited vision of a world where everyone has a 3D printer in their homes.

How does 3D Printing Work?

If you are familiar with the operation of a normal Inkjet printer (the one that prints documents), then it’s pretty easy to understand a 3D printer.

For example, let’s say you want to make something useful, like a case for your iPhone. If you had a 3D printer, this is what you would do in order to make it.

1.    Just like a document printer requires a digital document (a PDF or DOC file) for printing, 3D printers require digital design files of 3D objects (STL files are the most common). So you would first need to create or download a digital file that encodes the design of the iPhone cover.

The design file for the iPhone cover

2.    Once you have the digital design saved, your computer will process the file and get ready for printing. You can change settings just like you change settings in a normal Inkjet printer.

3.    Next, you choose a material for the iPhone cover (preferably plastic) and load your 3D printer with enough material. In a normal Inkjet printer, you buy and use ink cartridges. In a 3D printer, you buy and use filaments made different materials. Filaments serve as the “ink” for 3D printers.

4.    A normal Inkjet printer creates a document by depositing ink on a paper.  A 3D printer creates a physical object by depositing many layers of materials on a print bed. When your 3D printer is loaded with materials, the computer will now send instructions to the 3D printer about how to deposit the material layer by layer to recreate a physical copy of the digital design.Woohoo! The 3D printer is now printing the iPhone cover. It will be ready in an hour.The 3D Printed iPhone cover in all its glory!

How do I get Started with 3D Printing?

3D printing is easy for anyone to learn. But before we hand you a shopping list and dive into nitty-gritty details, it is probably better to first take a brief look at the different steps in the 3D printing process. Once you understand the process well enough, you will be in a better position to start your journey and decide what you want to buy.

Step 1 of the 3D printing process : Design

If you want to 3D print any object, you need a digital design file encoding the three-dimensional geometry of the object. Therefore, design is the first important step of the 3D printing process.CAD (Computer Aided Design) software can be used to design. Using the tools and shapes available in the software, you build up your 3D object.

If you have ever worked with MS Paint, GIMP, Inkscape, Illustrator or Photoshop, then CAD software will seem familiar to you. They all feature similar click, select, drag and drop interfaces.

Step 2 of the 3D printing process : Slicing

Once you have the design file, the next step is to open the design in a dedicated slicing software (called a “Slicer”). The Slicer’s job is to process the 3D design and create a file containing instructions for a 3D printer to print your file. You can change settings in the Slicer to control various aspects of the printing process.

It also plans the best way for the print head to move during the print phase so that it can create the first slice, then move upwards, then create the second slice and so on. Based on its calculations, it instructs the printer what to do in a language called G-Code.

Step 3 of the 3D printing process : Printing

This is the simplest step of all. If you have a 3D printer connected to your computer, simply hit “Print” and watch the magic happen. Alternatively, you will need to load your G-Code file onto a appropriate memory card for your printer.

Regardless, you’ll now see your machine begin 3D printing, setting down its material layer by layer, building up into a physical object corresponding to your digital design.

What Skills do I Need to Make 3D Printing Work?

In the last few subsections, we looked at different steps in the 3D printing process.  If you are a beginner, you might need to pick up some skills before you become somewhat good at each of these steps.

Design skills : 

If you want to design your own objects, it follows that you will need to familiarize yourself with 3D design software. Note that this is not an essential skill since you can always download designs from the internet.

Every CAD software is slightly different, so it is recommended that you choose one from the get go and try to get completely familiar with its interface and capabilities.

Thankfully, there are very good tutorials for almost all popular CAD softwares on the internet. Start with basic tutorials to build simple objects and when you feel confident with your knowledge, proceed to advanced tutorials dealing with more complicated objects. 

Operating the slicer and printer :

Operating the slicer and printer is not always plug-and-play. Several things can go wrong and you need to be knowledgeable enough to troubleshoot and fix the common problems yourself.

•  You should be able to set up your printer and calibrate it before you can start printing your own designs. This process is not too difficult and each printer comes with its own instructions for assembly and calibration. 
•  Some 3D models can have overhangs. Since a 3D printer prints layer by layer, it cannot handle designs with too severe of an overhang. In this case, you have to create support structures using your slicer software so that those problematic areas can be printed. The support structure is printed differently using infills and they can be taken off after the print is complete. You need to be able to analyze a 3D model in your slicer and create the necessary support structure for a successful print.
• Sometimes, even if the printer is correctly calibrated and the model has the correct support structures, the print quality is going to be terrible. This can happen due to several reasons. For example, the first layer may not stick properly to the print bed. The printing temperature might not be perfect for the material that you are using. If the material cools off too rapidly, this might lead to shrinkage or warping. You will need to understand these common issues and fix them by either changing the appropriate settings in your slicer or using other means. 

What do I Need to Start 3D Printing?

Finally, here’s a list of equipment and software which you should get to 3D print things:

1. CAD Software :

Tinkercad is an easy to use CAD software for designing 3D models

If you choose to design your own 3D models, then you need to get a CAD software.

The first step is to find the right software. There are many paid and free 3D modeling software out there. Some of them are targeted at beginners, some at intermediate designers and finally, some at expert designers. Since you are starting out, you should try out a simple software targeted at beginners. 

2. Slicer :

You need to get a Slicer to change print settings

Very often, the 3D printer manufacturer will include a slicer software in the package. In this case, you can simply use the included slicer.

If your printer’s manufacturer did not include a slicing software or if the 3D printing results are not satisfactory, try the free Cura slicing software. Cura was developed by Ultimaker, but it can be used with most desktop 3D printers out there.

3. 3D Printer : 

The 3D printer is, of course, the most important component of your 3D printing setup

Finally, the most important component for DIY 3D printing – the printer itself. The most important factors to consider while buying a 3D printer are:

•     Price : You can get something as cheap as the Wanhao Duplicator i3 Plus for around $350 or something as expensive as the Ultimater 3 for ten times that price ($3500).
•     Size : For example, the Monoprice MP Select Mini is tiny and allows a ridiculously small maximum print size of 120 x 120 x 120 mm. On the flipside, there’s the Creality CR-10, which is a budget 3D printer offering print dimensions up to a cubic meter. Depending on how much space you want the printer to occupy on your table and what you want to print, you can choose your sweet spot and select accordingly.
•     Material compatibility: Not all printers can handle all materials. You should always check the allowed materials for a printer before you buy it. Using incompatible materials may damage or break it, so you need to ensure that your material choice will be covered by the printer you buy.
•      Technology: Desktop 3D printers usually uses one of the following two technologies : FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) and SLA (Stereolithography). 

4. Printing Materials : 

Just like your Inkjet printer won’t work if you run out of ink, your 3D printer won’t work until you feed it some 3D printing material. So you better buy some!When it comes to buying 3D printing materials, you have to first go through your 3D printer documentation and check which types of materials it supports. Most desktop 3D printers will support at least PLA or ABS plastic. Some 3D printers may support other types of plastics and composite materials containing wood, metal or stone.Once you’ve got your 3D printer, CAD software, Slicer and 3D printing material, you are all set. It’s time to rock and roll and start printing.

From households to the industry to disaster zones, 3D printing is transforming the world for the better. The future looks extremely bright for this technology and the benefits it will bring us. In fact, the future is so bright, that we might all need some 3D printed sunglasses real soon.