Categories: Technology

Laser Origami: The Faster Alternative To 3D Printing

Alternative technologies are now popping up which give 3D printing a run for its money. 3D printing has proven to be a formidable way to create and prototype things that would previously take weeks to put together. But even though 3D printing is becoming one of the most anticipated technologies on the market, it is still really slow. This is the reason why innovators are putting together new technologies like laser origami. It will significantly increase the speed and precision of 3D printing.

Laser origami (or LaserOrigami as the technology is named) was innovated by Stefanie Mueller, Bastian Kruck, Patrick Baudisch and the the Hasso Plattner Institute in Germany. It’s a relatively new approach to prototyping and producing products that would otherwise be costly and take up to several weeks to create. The approach is quite simple, but the whole laser origami procedure is a precise science that blows 3D printing out of the water, at least currently.

Unlike traditional laser cutting technologies, the laser origami approach requires no manual assembly after the actual object has been “printed.” What would normally take 3D printing several hours to print only takes minutes for the laser origami process. It’s an impressive display of precision that I think would blow anyone’s mind when they see it for the first time.

The laser uses a combination of cuts and heating in order to separate and bend the plastic sheet into what the user wants to create. The procedure is a whole lot different from 3D printing and takes a few more calculations to figure out where the cuts are and where the laser should heat the material in order to bend it. In a way, it uses heat and gravity to create the final product. The result is a lot more refined and complete once the process is finalized. Whether or not laser origami will ever replace 3D printing is too early to speculate about, but it is definitely a technology to keep a close eye on in the future.

Laser Origami – The Faster Alternative To 3D Printing

Richard Darell

Richard Darell is the founder and CEO of Bit Rebels, a multifaceted online news outlet that reports daily on the latest developments in technology, social media, design and everything geek. Today this media entity welcomes more than 3.5 million unique visitors per month and is considered the go-to place for people in constant motion. As an Internet entrepreneur, he is dedicated to constantly trying to develop new ways to bring content faster and closer to the end user in a more streamlined way. His excitement for statistics has allowed him to further develop systems that continuously produce accurate and fast-paced analytics to better optimize the approach by which Bit Rebels presents news and content. His graphic design background has proven to be an important tool when designing new systems and features for Bit Rebels since the development of solid and stable code depends entirely on their structure and implemented procedures. Richard currently resides in Stockholm, Sweden and directs the Bit Rebels offices in both Stockholm and Atlanta. You can reach Richard at richard@bitrebels.com