3D Printing and Rapid Prototyping Services in the US Industry Market Research Report Now Available
IBISWorld released a new market research report on the 3D printing industry that states an expected growth for 2012 of 18.5% for total sales of $662.4 million. Over the five years to 2017, industry demand and revenue are forecast to surge forward as 3D printing explodes in popularity and more customers from a wide array of industries join the 3D printing revolution.
The report states that the industry's fate is tied to the manufacturing sector. “Developing a prototype is an essential part of product development, and manufacturers are often weighed down by the time and costs involved in the traditional prototype manufacturing process,” said IBISWorld industry analyst Nima Samadi. “Because of this, during good economic times, manufacturing activity is major driver of industry revenue.”
Among the trends, the report notes three areas. The consumer market is still in its infancy but has a tremendous amount of growth potential. The medical market will increasingly use 3D printing to create customized medical devices and medical devices that more accurately replicate the human form. The aerospace market has the potential for strong future growth for 3D printer manufacturers. ...
The report lists Stratasys and 3D Systems as accounting for roughly 22.3% of industry revenue in 2012. While substantial opportunities for new entrants looking to cater to a niche industry or carve out a regional customer base exist, IBISWorld expects industry concentration to grow over the next five years despite the influx of new companies entering the market. ...
The report, which sells for $895, is available at http://www.ibisworld.com/industry/3d-printing-rapid-prototyping-services.html.
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3 Impacts 3D Printing Will Have on Manufacturing
Bloggers, techies, and industrial innovators in the know seem to have settled on one theme for this year: additive manufacturing, otherwise known as 3D printing. Many have called 2012 "the year of 3D printing" and expect this 30-year-old technology to break into the mainstream market soon with new industrial viability. ...
What is clear, however, is that developments to the technology have allowed 3D printers to begin actively saving companies time and money while shortening product-to-market timetables and increasing customization capabilities.
Customization:
The additive manufacturing process is quite literally 3D printing, explained Frank Marangell, president of Israel-based Objet Technologies. ...
Product-to-Market Speed:
The key to Apple Inc.'s success, said Objet's Marangell, is its ability to create a direct link between product and design. ...
Efficiency:
"When you think about traditional manufacturing," said Marangell, "you have to think about all the tooling upfront [as well as] the transportation, the storage, the inventory. Time is a big factor. You don't even think about the inefficiencies of the process."
Additive manufacturing changes this model, opening the door for new processes and new efficiencies across the manufacturing process. ...
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Lytro Light Field Camera
The bottom line: The Lytro Light Field Camera rethinks photography with its unique hardware and fascinating image output. But if you're not a gadget-loving, Mac-owning early adopter, steer clear until Lytro makes improvements.
Review: ...
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3D cinema will wane off, 4D will stay – Sarner’s Ross Magri
[Philip Lelyveld comment: If you would like to know more about the Russian glasses-free theatre projection system from the 1940's that he mentions, send me an email.]
[3D Focus]
Sarner are world leaders in designing attractions around the world including 4D and 5D cinemas. The company was responsible for Valhalla, the world’s largest and most expensive dark ride (£15 million) at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, the Doctor Who Experience and also provided the technical expertise to develop and install the specialist equipment for thePirates 4D attraction at Thorpe Park complete with 'leg ticklers' and motion seats.
The company is currently working in Africa to create a £167 million tourism and leisure facility to be known as Delta Leisure Resorts, the first of its kind in West Africa.
We spoke to Sarner Managing Director Ross Magri who puts his case forward as to why the current wave of 3D films is just another fad whereas 4D cinemas will continue to exist.
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I did a degree in film and photography at Napier in Edinburgh. It was some years ago now but one of my dissertations was based on stereoscopy and 3D, so I went in great detail through the history trying to understand why 3D never caught on. It was very interesting to discover that the demise of 3D at every stage of its revival seems to have been for the same reasons; the fact that one has to wear 3D glasses and viewers complaining of eye strain and headaches. Some evidence exists of this in the fact that in the Soviet Union, glassless 3D cinemas were more successful than the ones in the West, although it is very difficult to conclude that this was the only reason. ...
On the other hand, 4D in theme parks exists because of its novelty factor, and the films are short enough not to cause eye strain or headaches. The short 3D film we produced for the Doctor Who Experience in London, was extremely well received, but the 3D film is part of a dark walk and forms part of the overall visitor experience, so I strongly believe that 3D / 4D and 5D (whatever that may be), will continue to evolve in theme parks and other special events, insofar as the cinema is concerned, I have serious reservations and strongly suspect that interest will wane away over the next year or two.
It is my belief that 3D will take over 2D only when the cost difference for the playback and display hardware is almost identical to that of 2D; we have glassless 3D screens that are not limited by the angle of view and the ambient light level, and when film production companies invest in the necessary hardware and expertise to ensure 3D films mimic as close as possible the way we see in 3D. ...
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Tobii and SeeFront join forces on glasses-free eye-tracking 3D
Two companies have joined forces to create thetechnology they claim will underpin the future of interaction: glasses-free 3D interfaces with eye-tracking capabilities.
Tobii Technology, an eye-tracking and gaze interaction specialist, and SeeFront, creator of a proprietary glasses-free 3D technology, have joined forces to showcase their respective technologies in a one-of-a-kind arcade game.
Based on Tobii EyeAsteroids, unveiled by the eye-tracking company late last year to demonstrate the accuracy of its eye-tracking technology, the new version combines eye-tracking control with SeeFront's glasses-free 3D capabilities to create a fully immersive environment with hands-free control.
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3D Audi A3 Premier at the Geneva Motor Show
- New 3D technology at the premiere of the Audi A3 in Geneva
- 3D presentation at the world premiere of the new compact model
- Short film starring DTM driver Mike Rockenfeller
Toni Melfi, Head of Communications: “Innovative technology offers a dynamic experience of the Audi A3 at the exhibition stand”
The 3D film “Where’s Rocky?” – which centers around factory driver Mike Rockenfeller as the protagonist – will be shown at the Geneva Motor Show.
The Audi exhibit at the Geneva Motor Show is a world premiere for two reasons: the new Audi A3 and the unconventional “A3 Dimension” technology that will be used to present it on Tuesday. It offers a three-dimensional video display in an unprecedented quality and size. The 3D film “Where’s Rocky?” – which centers around factory driver Mike Rockenfeller as the protagonist – will be shown.
The video display wall for A3 Dimension consists of 25 displays that provide a unique spatial impression of the 3D film. The new technology allows three-dimensional images to be presented with greater brilliance and clarity. People and objects appear to viewers as realistic pop-outs and seem close enough to touch. “A3 Dimension gives the car an appearance that appeals to the senses. Structures and surfaces seem touchable and reveal the quality of our products,” said Florian Otto, Project Manager of 3D Audi Communications. ...
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Robert Richardson & 3D, Film vs. Digital: Oscar 2012 Q&A
Q. All right. I'm wondering if you can talk about working in 3D. This is not the first 3D film to win, but it's unusual to get recognized with 3D.
A. You're right. I think the odds of winning are extraordinarily small. I was the crystal ball didn't work this way. [?] I know it worked that way for Mark Wahlberg, but for me, I didn't see it. I don't know [unintelligible] a Mark Wahlberg piece, but his predictions are near two for three. Uhm, yeah, I know it's very difficult to choose 3D, and I'm surprised by it as well. And I think it's not just 3D. It's a digital aspect versus a film aspect.
Q. Where do we go now, dramatically, with 3D now that you've paved the way?
A. That's a huge question, but I don't think there's any limits for it. 3D is a very solid step. I believe it's 15, 20 percent, give an arbitrary percentage. The advantage is a tool towards what filmmakers can use, if used, as just that, as a tool, not as a gimmick. There's an end. I do believe it will alter that, but, technically, I don't believe we can go into that here, 'cause I could go on for an hour [inaudible]. ...
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Sony Introduces New 3D Tech To Reduce Eye Fatigue
[Philip Lelyveld comment: According to this article, Sony has introduced technology to eliminate 'depth of field' decisions and make the entire 3D image clearer. Do you think that is the case?]
The improved 3D TV namely the HX850 had the X-reality Pro processor incorporated in the set. This same processor had also been used in the company’s HX923 model which had been launched last year. In addition to this hardware, the new set also includes a large database which contains information on the various types of format that would be required for displaying. The set is able to select the appropriate correction depending on the type of input that is coming.
This new technology is specially benefiting the display of background scenes as well as those that have some protrusions in it. The background and foreground now appears clear, a far cry from the usually hazy background that had been the case in all the previous models. It was left to the viewers to decide which scene to concentrate upon.
Directors too resort to creating 3D content using the technique of burring the background to force viewers to concentrate only on the picture they so desired. This however had a disadvantage as viewers who yet tried to focus on the blurred background experienced eye fatigue along with its associated problems. Now this issue is completely removed with the use of the new technology from Sony that is rendering both the foreground as well as background scene clearly. It is therefore more a viewers ease of viewing that the TV set from Sony will be catering for, rather than the director’s choice of focus.
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Sony preparing passive 3D, OLED TVs for 2013?
Expected to make their debut at September's IFA technology show in Berlin, Sony's Deputy President of home entertainment products, Noriaki Negishi, stated that:
"Our engineers don't really like [passive] because it has half the resolution of active shutter 3D, but consumers appreciate the convenience of passive."
With Sony entering the Passive 3D fray, it leaves Samsung as the only manufacturer still exclusively pushing Active 3D TV sets.
The Passive 3D sets will also be accompanied by Sony's next generation of OLED TVs, with Negishi stating that "2013 will be the year when we will really fight back with new technologies."
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Paranha 3DD
[Philip Lelyveld comment: watch the trailer to the end, it just gets better - or worse - as it goes. (There is an ad in front of the trailer.)]
... Piranha 3DD has been gestating for some time, snagged with minor setbacks and delays....
No official release date was outlined, but it would appear Piranha 3DD will hit theaters and Video On Demand simultaneously. At this time, there has been no word on how the VOD title will be made available (cable and streaming services, digital download, etc). ...
So much exploitation, so many fish, so much Hasselhoff -- we can't wait to see this sequel!