It seems that the 3D printing technology is not the best as we may think. 4D printing technology was introduced to us in 2013; however we are still talking about 3D printing technology and its wonders as if it is the latest thing that has been brought to us by technology in the world of designing and printing. It may be easy to understand 3D technology because it is about designing and creating different objects that have 3 dimensions to be commonly known as 3D objects, but what about the 4D printing technology and what are the four dimensions that it talks about? If you are really interested in discovering more about this new technology that is still developed in the labs, keep reading the following passages that reveal more about the future and its technological trends that will stun all of us.
♦ What is the difference between 3D & 4D printing technology?
3D printing refers to designing and creating different objects that have three dimensions which are “height, width and depth”. So, what about the 4D printing technology? The 4D printing technology comes to add a fourth dimension, what is it? The fourth dimension is “Time”. What does this mean?
The 4D printing technology is a combination of 3D printing technology and “Time”. This means that {3D + Time = 4D} Can you understand this now? The 4D printed objects are created with extra features such as self assembling or folding in addition to the ability to change their properties like transparency, flexibility and color. Are you shocked?
♦ What are the characteristics of the 4D printed objects?
Do you think that the 3D printed objects that you see today are really stunning and consider them unprecedented? You are completely wrong. If you think that the 3D printed objects are really amazing, what will you say about the 4D printed objects? The 4D printed objects or materials are designed and coded by researchers to change themselves on their own as they react to the surrounding conditions and change over time. It is really stunning to watch materials changing their properties on their own, but what is more shocking is that these 4D printed objects can be coded to control water absorption. There are different materials that can be used for creating the 4D printed objects such as carbon fiber, wood grains, textile and plastic.
♦ What are the advantages of 4D printing technology?
Like 3D printing technology, 4D printing technology is believed to save more time, effort and of course MONEY. It is also believed to encourage innovation which means that we are going to witness a technological revolution thanks to this new technology which is called 4D printing.
The 4D printed objects are also more creative than other traditional objects since they do not stay the same as they are and change over time. The 4D printed objects react to different surrounding conditions including pressure, temperature, darkness, humidity, light and more changes making us describe these objects as smart objects.
♦ 4D technology in cinema
Using the 4D technology is not limited to the objects that we need in our life. It extends to invade everything in this life even cinema. Through adding extra stimulation in the cinema while watching movies such as the smell of flowers or food and using artificial lightening, rain or wind, watching movies will be definitely more exciting since it involves more than one sense such as hearing, sight, smell and even feeling what is going on in the movie.
“It seems that we will forget the 3D printing technology soon to start thinking of the 4D printing technology and its wonders.”