The steps involved in 3D printing are
numerous and depend upon the kind of 3D printer one is using. For our purposes
we will discuss the most common way of 3D printing without considering handheld
3D, though the basic processes by which a 3D item is created with these pens is
basically the same. Nor will we cover 3D printer calibration, loading and
unloading of the printable 3D material, or printer heat up and cool down times.
I have extensive experience with 3D printing. As a result the description(s) below
do not rely on outside citations.
Assuming we have a 3D printer available
for use, and before any such printing can be accomplished, we first must have
an actual 3D file to print. These files can be obtained in a variety of ways –
by downloading them from a website, by scanning them with a 3D scanner (both
fixed and handheld) or by creating a 3D file in one of the many available
software programs designed for 3D printing. Regardless of how the file is
obtained, the means by which a 3D file is constructed is universal and requires
some kind of computer aided design (CAD) program or 3D modelling program -
similar to what an architect would use. These files are most commonly saved in
a stereo-lithographic (STL) format. These design programs allow for creating
files within a three dimensional grid environment with all the requisite
geometric, size and spatial considerations therein. Back to the architect
analogy the file works as a kind of blueprint that can be uploaded into the
brain of the 3D printer. Think of it like this. Rather than drawing a picture
of Mickey Mouse and sending it to a traditional printer and getting your flat
printed copy, you are creating a Mickey Mouse statue in CAD that your printer
can manufacture into a real world object.
In its most basic sense, 3-D printing is
the ability to take various hard but pliable and malleable materials, heat
those materials to their viscous melting point, and then run the material
through a thin heated extruder (much like a pen tip) in their liquefied form
and onto a flat surface. Once upon this flat surface the liquefied material
quickly cools and hardens, resulting in a very thin layer of the material
working as the base and support for the next layer. The 3D printer works in 3D
space on an X-Y axis giving it the ability to rise and fall, slide side to side
and back and forth, and skip areas per the CAD file design, all while
constantly moving and creating new, thin layers of material. The 3D printer is
also capable of creating stanchions and supports during the printing phase to
account for any areas in the CAD design where the 3D object being printed may
not have adequate support. The material most commonly used for 3D printing are
various kinds of plastic resins. However, any material that can be melted down,
maintain its chemical properties and re-solidify can be 3D printed, such as
metals and even chocolate.
Now that we have a basic, cursory
understanding of 3D printing, the question might arise – what does this have to
do with public libraries? Why are public libraries increasingly implementing
this technology? An argument can be made that 3D printing (and by extension the
burgeoning concept of the “makerspace” or “digital lab”) is another means by
which the library fulfills its duty of providing educational opportunities to
the public. The purpose of 3D printing in the library space isn’t as much about
the finished object, as it is the processes involved getting to that finished
object. 3D printing involves planning and calibration, thoughtful design,
mathematic calculation, software manipulation, execution and various hands on
activities with interactive content. Still, questions persist as to the
appropriateness of 3D printing in public libraries. As a result, information
scholars are looking more and more into these questions to determine if 3D
printing is a viable, tenable and sensible choice for the funds and focus of
public libraries. Should public libraries be involved with 3D printing?
Literature
Review
Scholarly
research and academic literature on this question of 3D printers in public
libraries suggests that the effort of public libraries in this area is a
justifiable and positive one. Lisa Kurt and Tod Colegrove show how previous
public library adoptions of technology, such as computers, scanners, copiers,
and audio and video production equipment are adequate precedents for the
justification of 3D printers ("3D
Printers in the Library," 2012).
Dixon and Ward (2014) find 3D printing helps promote self-guided learning and
exploration (p. 18). 3D printing affords public library patrons early exposure
to a new technology that patrons have communicated to the researchers had
inspired the patrons to be more curious and try something different (Dixon
& Ward, p. 19). Scholar Jason Griffey (2014) finds 3D printing in public
libraries in keeping with the their perpetual mission as ” an engine of
democratization of knowledge and information,” and is in keeping with the
public library’s long history of providing technology to their patrons (p. 6).
Greg Landgraf (2015) has discovered through conversations with public
librarians that 3D printing is a great introduction to STEM (science,
technology, engineering, mathematics) educational efforts that are an
increasingly focus of library programming. Tracy Wong (2013) finds the public
library a “natural place” for 3D printing and other makerspace activities
because they help foster connections, collaboration and community within the
library and continue the trend of libraries reinventing themselves and their
purpose while simultaneously adhering to the library mission of information and
inclusiveness (p. 34). Wong (2013) finds 3D printing in public libraries
especially helps students develop numerous areas of expertise and ways of
critical thinking while confronting “multi-faceted challenges” (p. 35).
While most of the available literature
is positive in regards to 3D printing in public libraries there are some
caveats. Researcher Moorefield-Lang (2014) finds the staff excitement over
introduction of 3D printing does not always match positive implementation.
Lindsey Halsell sees 3D printing as the next essential service, but as such
requires a deeper consideration of establishing library and user policies which
currently remain largely unexamined (“3D Printing and Libraries,” 2013). Chad
Sansing (2015) concludes 3D printing is a worthwhile venture for most public
libraries, but concedes they do not make sense for smaller systems with budget
limitations.
Use
& Applications
In
keeping with much of the findings in scholarly literature, my own professional
experience with 3D printers has shown 3D printing to be a very valuable library
tool. 3D printing has become central to much of our “digital lab” programming,
giving participants the opportunity to see, learn, and interact with a
technology they might otherwise not have been exposed to. 3D printing fosters
creativity and collaboration, inventiveness and trial and error. We are able to
use 3D printing as another gateway technology to STEMs programming, which
public schools throughout the country are increasingly emphasizing.
I mentioned elsewhere during discussion
in MLIS 7505, but it is pertinent to how we are concretely using 3D printing in
our libraries today. Recently, we used a 3-D printer, 18 laptops and 18 iPad Air
2 tablets to host 24 “GEMS” – Girls in Engineering, Math and Science at one of
our libraries. We are doing similar programming throughout our system. The 3D
printer was central to the exercise. The GEMS were tasked with using modular
and CAD software and challenged to create a unique file in a robust and
complicated design program. None of them had used this software or a 3D printer
before. They were asked collaborate separately on the available laptops and
tablets yet to work towards a common goal - to create a 3D object with working
parts. It is the kind of interactive experience suitable for a science camp.
The goal was to foster problem solving and scientific thinking with the result
being a 3D generated artifact. Each girl and group were eventually able to
accomplish their goal. The GEMS and the parents gave us overwhelmingly
positives reviews for the program. They were actively learning with the results
of their learning an actual, physical product.
As a practical matter we have also been
able to use our 3D printing to create competitions among staff concentrating on
team work and were able to use the 3D printers to create the prizes for these
competitions. The key to 3-D printer utilization is
education and outreach. 3-D printing must be promoted as a learning tool, an
educational tool and as a kind of scientific discovery. That is one of the main
selling points of 3-D printing. It lets anyone and everyone get their hands
dirty in the process of manufacturing and creation. Rather than a cog in
the process, each person can be an originator and inventor, testing ideas and
designs and equations and angles to create something with real tactility.
Concerns
& Caveats
Some of the primary challenges with 3D printing
are start-up costs, budget overruns and equipment failure. 3D printing isn’t
necessarily cost prohibitive, but it does take some substantial resources to
get 3D programming started in public libraries. With 3D printers it is often
wise to pay more for the expensive models than to settle for a lower or
mid-range printer. The reason for this is that even the best 3D printers have
their problems, mostly hardware related. My own professional experience and the
reading of online grumble threads indicate that there is quite a bit of
frustration with many 3D printer manufacturers. This frustration seems to
increase exponentially among lesser 3D printer models, but this is an anecdotal
conclusion only. Also, that is not to say the more expensive models don’t find
their detractors. Indeed, it is often the sheer expensiveness of some models
that infuriates users when the hardware fails, the belief being the more
expensive the model of printer, the more reliable it should be. That is not
always the case. In the last year alone we have had four separate failures of
our 3D printers at a repair cost of over $600. There are also the plastics and
resins that the printer uses, as well as supplemental software and hardware
costs that must always be considered.
Conclusions
The literature and my own extensive
professional experience indicates that 3D printing is definitely a valuable
resource for public libraries to pursue if they are financially able to do so.
3-D printing isn’t about the finished product. It is about learning to create
the finished product. It is about creating files in CAD, tweaking them,
uploading them, working in a literal 3-D space with all its manifold
considerations and calculations and creating a real thing that confirms either
ones success or failure in design. It is writing a poem where the subjectivity
of the art is replaced by a mass of ruined, melted plastic that says in no
uncertain terms “wrong, try again”. Or produces a perfect little bauble, a
sphere or a working widget, that validates ones time, effort and precision.
When I think about the value of learning about 3-D printing I sometimes equate
it to patrons checking out a book on “Screen Writing for Dummies” or “Learn
HTML5 in 24 Hours.” We’d never denigrate people using those materials as
resources for self-learning and discovery. The goal of our 3-D effort isn’t the
worthless bauble that is the result. It is the invaluable learning to create
that worthless thing, which makes that bauble not worthless at all. What we are
doing with our maker spaces isn’t simply letting people show up saying “make me
Mickey Mouse”. We are saying - you do it, you make Mickey Mouse, and having
them make it – loading the software, creating the file, calibrating the
hardware, loading the machine, monitoring its process and letting them fail to
try again. 3-D printing is definitely a worthwhile investment for the public
library.
References
Dixon,
N., Ward, M., & Phetteplace, E. e. (2014). The Maker movement and the
Louisville free public library. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 54(1),
17-19.
Griffey,
J. (2014). The case for 3D printing. American
Libraries, 45(9/10), 22.
Halsell, L. (2014,
June 28). 3D printing and libraries: Facilitating access for the
next
essential service. Retrieved from http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/blogs/the-scoop/3d-printing-and-
libraries/
Kurt,
L & Colegrove, T. (2012, July 17). 3D Printers in the library. Retrieved
from
http://acrl.ala.org/techconnect/?p=1403
Landgraf,
G. (2015). Making room for informal learning. American Libraries,
46(3/4), 32-34.
Moorefield-Lang,
H. (2014). Makers in the library: Case studies of 3D printers
and maker spaces in library settings. Library Hi Tech, 32(4), 583-593.
doi:10.1108/LHT-06-2014-0056
Sansing,
C. (2015). Worth the hype?. School
Library Journal, 61(5), 15.
Wong, T. (2013). Makerspaces take
libraries by storm. Library Media
Connection, 31(6),
34-35.
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