rapid prototyping
Over the years we have made R&D a vital part of the development of new products. As the end of year approaches, our design team are working and finalising the last few segments to the 2022 product portfolio.
During this period of development we spend a lot of time designing and testing small segments such as brackets, clips and other small, yet key parts to a finished piece of furniture. How do we do this? We brain storm ideas, create drawings and design the small segments and then put them through our Ultimaker 3D printer.
“Here at Identity Furniture 3D printing has proven to be an inexpensive and influential method of rapid prototyping. In short, 3D printing is an innovation which fuels more innovation.”
3D printing was introduced to the design world in the 1980s and originally called ‘rapid prototyping’. It allowed companies to develop prototypes faster and more accurately than what other methods were offering. After more than 30 years of innovation, its uses are far more diverse today and is a key part to not just ourselves at Identity but to companies across the globe and across many industries.
As we saw earlier, the 3D printing process involves building up layer upon layer of molten plastic to create an object. As each layer sets, the next layer is printed on top and the object is built up.
To make a 3D print, a digital file is needed that tells the 3D printer where to print the material. The most common file format for this is the G-code files. This file essentially contains ‘coordinates’ to guide the printer’s movements, both horizontally and vertically. - Ultimaker
