There is a popularly held belief that 3D printing only came into existence within the last few years. While the technology is certainly cutting edge, it was first developed back in the 1980s. The first company to develop 3D Printing was 3D Systems Inc, which pioneered the technique of stereolithography (SLA). A patent emerged for the technique in 1986.
SLA is quite different in method from 2 dimensional printing, where ink fires on to a blank piece of paper. Instead, SLA works by creating a design from a body of liquid plastic, called photopolymer. SLA uses a platform covered in perforation, and an ultraviolet laser to generate layers of hardened plastic. The platform loweres into the liquid, the laser shines on that layer according to a design, causing the liquid to harden.
After creating a hardened layer, the platform lowers further and the layer creates the next layer on top. Once the final layer hardens, a solvent spray rinses excess photopolyemer, and ultraviolet radiation cures the finished design.
Source: http://www.livescience.com/38190-stereolithography.html
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