When I was around 10 years old, I was lucky enough to visit Movie World, one of Australia’s biggest theme parks. I remember stumbling upon a "4D movie theatre” where a salesman was encouraging the crowds to come in for the next session.
“Forget 3D films!” he yelled. “The future is 4D! Come inside and watch the world’s first 4D film and explore a whole new dimension … time!”
Intrigued, my brother and I went in, donned the usual blue-and-red lens glasses, and waited to have our minds blown. The result was disappointing: it turned out to be a 15-minute 3D film about time travel. We left, feeling a little cheated, and went to find a rollercoaster instead.
This is why I was a little skeptical at first when I heard about 4D printing. It turns out, however, that the technology is very real, and there’s a good reason why its inventors claim they have harnessed the fourth dimension.
What is 4D Printing?
Named after the space-time dimension recognized by physicists, 4D printing is the process of creating 3D objects that can be manipulated over time.
4D printing is similar to 3D printing in that, based on a digital design, a series of individual, 2D layers are created to eventually form a 3D object; the difference is that 4D printing uses a specific material that can be programmed to react to various stimuli in certain ways.
As a result, 4D printed items can change their shape over time as their environment changes — such as with fluctuations in temperature or exposure to water or light — while 3D-printed objects remain fixed.
How Does 4D Printing Work?
4D printing still relies on commercial 3D printers for the process. But, rather than using standard filament for 3D printers, 4D printing requires a smart material designed to react to stimuli — such as hydrogels, shape memory polymers (SMPs), or cellulose composites — to program and give the final object the properties it needs to shape-shift.
The 4D printing process starts with the engineer designing an object in a program, similar to 3D printing. However, rather than only manipulating the X, Y, and Z-axes, there is also the option to add variations in the object’s material structure — this is the geometric code that affects the final object’s ability to react to different stimuli.
What is 4D Printing Used for?
The advantages that 4D printing provides make the process suitable for many industries and applications that already benefit from traditional 3D printing. One of its most practical uses is creating large objects as one whole part rather than individual, smaller pieces. This is thanks to computational folding.
Additionally, smart materials such as SMPs can be used to print tailorable shapes — an important property needed for healthcare applications such as creating skin grafts or implant development.
Are 4D Printers Available to Purchase?
4D printing is a relatively new concept, so it’s no surprise there are no prototypes available for the general public to purchase. Only a select few companies, organizations, universities, and research labs currently have access to 4D printing technology, including:
- Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering
- MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab
- The University of Wollongong
- Singapore University of Technology and Design
- Stratasys
- Autodesk
The Future of 4D Printing
Although 4D printing is not quite yet in the hands of consumers, at its current rate of research and development, it is likely that you’ll at least come across several products produced by the technology in the near future.
After all, it was only less than a decade ago when MIT assistant professor Skylar Tibbits introduced the concept of 4D printing during a TED conference. Since then, researchers have used the principles behind 4D printing and self-assembly to manufacture products that have already started to change the world we live in, from smart textiles to self-assembling mobile phones.
Now that researchers have discovered the right materials that make printing transformative objects possible, the next step is to focus on printing shapes that can support themselves. If successful, 4D printing could then be used to create building materials that can adapt to better handle varying loads or even automotive parts that adjust according to the weather. With 4D printing, the possibilities are endless.
