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Comparing trends show that 3D printing stepped over to another level around 2012~2013. Why?

3D printing vs 3D scanning

3D printer vs 3D scanner

Davo
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Megidd
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2 Answers2

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A great story on the history of 3D printing is published by 3DSOURCED. It shows that the patents for FDM and SLA expired a few years earlier and the RepRap 3D printer self replicating project became very popular. Also, 3D printer manufacturers emerged and electronics, software and parts became available at a larger scale, so that it was more affordable for a hobbyist to dive in.

0scar
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Another opinion received:

That’s the result of MakerBot and others promoting the tech to the general public for the first time after the patents expired. They were just running up stock prices to make a lot of money

Megidd
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