The Horizon Report K-12 2015
Except from Horizon Report 2015: 3D Printing
Time-to-Adoption: Two to Three Years
Known in industrial circles as rapid prototyping, 3D printing refers to technologies that construct physical objects from three-dimensional (3D) digital content such as 3D modeling software, computer-aided design (CAD) tools, computer- aided tomography (CAT), and X-ray crystallography. A 3D printer builds a tangible model or prototype from the electronic file, one layer at a time, through an extrusion-like process using plastics and other flexible materials, or an inkjet-like process to spray a bonding agent onto a very thin layer of fixable powder. The deposits created by the machine can be applied very accurately to build an object from the bottom up, layer by layer, with resolutions that, even in the least expensive machines, are more than sufficient to express a large amount of detail.250 The process even accommodates moving parts within the object. Using different materials and bonding agents, color can be applied, and parts can be rendered in plastic, resin, metal, tissue, and even food. This technology is commonly used in manufacturing to build prototypes of almost any object that can be conveyed in three dimensions.
Overview
The earliest known examples of 3D printing were seen nearly 25 years ago at the University of Texas at Austin, where selective laser sintering was developed, though the equipment was cumbersome and expensive.251 The term 3D printing itself was coined a decade later at MIT, when graduate students were experimenting with unconventional substances in inkjet printers.252 Since 3D printing appeared in the first NMC Horizon Report in 2004, the technology has helped the US Department of Defense to inexpensively create aerospace parts, architects create models of buildings, medical professionals develop body parts for transplants, and much more. The 3D printing market is growing rapidly around the globe; Canalys forecasts that 3D printer sales, materials, and associated services should rise from $2.5 billion dollars in 2013 to $16.2 billion dollars by 2018.253 Currently, the United States, Japan, Germany, China, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and the Republic of Korea hold the largest share of the 3D printing industry market, but Latin American countries are beginning to advance in this area.
During the process of 3D printing, the users start by designing models of the desired objects through specialized software, such as CAD. While a variety of companies produce CAD software, AutoDesk is the acknowledged leader in the development of such tools.255 3D scanning technology, an alternative to model designing, is evolving quickly and yielding new approaches. Microsoft, for example, developed the Kinect as a gaming system, but their technology also enables the digitizing of real objects through 3D scanning.256 Experiments in the mobile realm provide a glimpse into the future of this visualization technology. Researchers from ETH Zurich’s Computer Vision and Geometry Group have created an app that transforms a smartphone to be a portable digital scanner257 and researchers at CalTech have designed a new camera sensor containing a tiny chip called a nanophotonic coherent imager to capture height, width, and depth information from each pixel.
The adoption of 3D printing is also being fueled by online applications such as Thingiverse259 and MeshLab,260 repositories of free, digital designs for physical objects where users can download the digital design information and create that object themselves. The MakerBot is one of the most notable brands of 3D desktop printers that allow users to build everything from toys to robots, to household furniture and accessories, to models of dinosaur skeletons. Relatively affordable at under $2,500, the MakerBot was the first 3D printer designed for consumer use.261 RepRap is a community open source project that has also stimulated the rise in making; for about $1,000 individuals can buy a RepRap kit and build their own device.262 Because of the inherent ability for users to create something, whether original or replicated, 3D printing is an especially appealing technology as applied to active and project- based learning in K-12 education
.
Relevance for Teaching, Learning, or Creative Inquiry
One of the most significant aspects of 3D printing for education is that it enables more authentic exploration of objects and concepts that may not be readily available to schools. For math, it can help students visualize graphs and mathematical models; in geography, 3D printing can help students better understand geological formations at scale; and in history, replicas of ancient artifacts can enable more hands-on learning.263 Literature classes can also benefit from the ability to enable a deeper exploration of concepts. At Mt. Blue High School in Maine, students used a 3D printer to create an art installation that helped demonstrate their comprehension of concepts from the graphic novel, Watchmen.264 Indeed, 3D printing is a promising new way for artistic expression and scientific concepts to come together to encourage STEAM learning.
Some of the most compelling progress of 3D printing in schools comes from the communities that are forming around the tool’s potential to enhance more authentic learning. Scots College in Sydney, Australia, was the first school in New South Wales to teach 3D printing and design to students through Makers Empire’s Lighthouse School Program. They are part of a selective group that receives early access to app, module, and lesson plan updates in exchange for feedback on the usage and implementation of the software and activities. One notable lesson involved an examination of UNESCO World Heritage sites and their importance to society. Students hand-drew 2D examples of sites such as the Egyptian Sphinx and the Eiffel Tower and then proceeded to enliven their study through the creation of 3D World Heritage site designs using modeling software.
For 3D printing to gain additional traction in schools adequate training is needed to ensure teachers and students have the digital competency needed to turn their ideas into reality. In Massachusetts, Sizer School leaders recognized that piloting a 3D printing program required exposing as many students and teachers as possible to the new tools, but they did it in a very structured manner. By partnering with NVBOTS, a company that provides end-to-end 3D printing solutions for schools, Sizer School was able to administer in-depth training to two teachers and six students so that at least one student printer-technician and one teacher administrator was present in each class. This type of training and management was critical to enabling teachers and students to learn 3D design and printing and incorporate it more seamlessly into lesson plans.266 Substantial growth of 3D printing in schools around the world is anticipated; for example, the Chinese government has created new policy that will install a 3D printer in nearly 400,00 schools over the next two years.
The Horizon Report 2015 Pages 40-41
Time-to-Adoption: Two to Three Years
Known in industrial circles as rapid prototyping, 3D printing refers to technologies that construct physical objects from three-dimensional (3D) digital content such as 3D modeling software, computer-aided design (CAD) tools, computer- aided tomography (CAT), and X-ray crystallography. A 3D printer builds a tangible model or prototype from the electronic file, one layer at a time, through an extrusion-like process using plastics and other flexible materials, or an inkjet-like process to spray a bonding agent onto a very thin layer of fixable powder. The deposits created by the machine can be applied very accurately to build an object from the bottom up, layer by layer, with resolutions that, even in the least expensive machines, are more than sufficient to express a large amount of detail.250 The process even accommodates moving parts within the object. Using different materials and bonding agents, color can be applied, and parts can be rendered in plastic, resin, metal, tissue, and even food. This technology is commonly used in manufacturing to build prototypes of almost any object that can be conveyed in three dimensions.
Overview
The earliest known examples of 3D printing were seen nearly 25 years ago at the University of Texas at Austin, where selective laser sintering was developed, though the equipment was cumbersome and expensive.251 The term 3D printing itself was coined a decade later at MIT, when graduate students were experimenting with unconventional substances in inkjet printers.252 Since 3D printing appeared in the first NMC Horizon Report in 2004, the technology has helped the US Department of Defense to inexpensively create aerospace parts, architects create models of buildings, medical professionals develop body parts for transplants, and much more. The 3D printing market is growing rapidly around the globe; Canalys forecasts that 3D printer sales, materials, and associated services should rise from $2.5 billion dollars in 2013 to $16.2 billion dollars by 2018.253 Currently, the United States, Japan, Germany, China, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and the Republic of Korea hold the largest share of the 3D printing industry market, but Latin American countries are beginning to advance in this area.
During the process of 3D printing, the users start by designing models of the desired objects through specialized software, such as CAD. While a variety of companies produce CAD software, AutoDesk is the acknowledged leader in the development of such tools.255 3D scanning technology, an alternative to model designing, is evolving quickly and yielding new approaches. Microsoft, for example, developed the Kinect as a gaming system, but their technology also enables the digitizing of real objects through 3D scanning.256 Experiments in the mobile realm provide a glimpse into the future of this visualization technology. Researchers from ETH Zurich’s Computer Vision and Geometry Group have created an app that transforms a smartphone to be a portable digital scanner257 and researchers at CalTech have designed a new camera sensor containing a tiny chip called a nanophotonic coherent imager to capture height, width, and depth information from each pixel.
The adoption of 3D printing is also being fueled by online applications such as Thingiverse259 and MeshLab,260 repositories of free, digital designs for physical objects where users can download the digital design information and create that object themselves. The MakerBot is one of the most notable brands of 3D desktop printers that allow users to build everything from toys to robots, to household furniture and accessories, to models of dinosaur skeletons. Relatively affordable at under $2,500, the MakerBot was the first 3D printer designed for consumer use.261 RepRap is a community open source project that has also stimulated the rise in making; for about $1,000 individuals can buy a RepRap kit and build their own device.262 Because of the inherent ability for users to create something, whether original or replicated, 3D printing is an especially appealing technology as applied to active and project- based learning in K-12 education
.
Relevance for Teaching, Learning, or Creative Inquiry
One of the most significant aspects of 3D printing for education is that it enables more authentic exploration of objects and concepts that may not be readily available to schools. For math, it can help students visualize graphs and mathematical models; in geography, 3D printing can help students better understand geological formations at scale; and in history, replicas of ancient artifacts can enable more hands-on learning.263 Literature classes can also benefit from the ability to enable a deeper exploration of concepts. At Mt. Blue High School in Maine, students used a 3D printer to create an art installation that helped demonstrate their comprehension of concepts from the graphic novel, Watchmen.264 Indeed, 3D printing is a promising new way for artistic expression and scientific concepts to come together to encourage STEAM learning.
Some of the most compelling progress of 3D printing in schools comes from the communities that are forming around the tool’s potential to enhance more authentic learning. Scots College in Sydney, Australia, was the first school in New South Wales to teach 3D printing and design to students through Makers Empire’s Lighthouse School Program. They are part of a selective group that receives early access to app, module, and lesson plan updates in exchange for feedback on the usage and implementation of the software and activities. One notable lesson involved an examination of UNESCO World Heritage sites and their importance to society. Students hand-drew 2D examples of sites such as the Egyptian Sphinx and the Eiffel Tower and then proceeded to enliven their study through the creation of 3D World Heritage site designs using modeling software.
For 3D printing to gain additional traction in schools adequate training is needed to ensure teachers and students have the digital competency needed to turn their ideas into reality. In Massachusetts, Sizer School leaders recognized that piloting a 3D printing program required exposing as many students and teachers as possible to the new tools, but they did it in a very structured manner. By partnering with NVBOTS, a company that provides end-to-end 3D printing solutions for schools, Sizer School was able to administer in-depth training to two teachers and six students so that at least one student printer-technician and one teacher administrator was present in each class. This type of training and management was critical to enabling teachers and students to learn 3D design and printing and incorporate it more seamlessly into lesson plans.266 Substantial growth of 3D printing in schools around the world is anticipated; for example, the Chinese government has created new policy that will install a 3D printer in nearly 400,00 schools over the next two years.
The Horizon Report 2015 Pages 40-41
