3DPrint.com’s Top 3D Printing News This Week

This last week has been another big one for the 3D Printing Industry. We have seen several printer announcements, as well some pretty interesting industry news. To top all that off, we launched 3DPrint.com as well! Here are our top stories, based on social sharing, and any followups to these stories since they were published. Once a week, our editors will try and create an overview just like this one, so that readers, like yourself, can get a quick summary of the week, without spending the time to read each story.

Major Laser Sintering Patent Expired (Full Story)
The biggest news of the week seemed to be the realization that a key patent for laser sintering within 3D printing devices had expired on Tuesday, the 28th. This news spread like wildfire, prompting many to question just how much this expiration means for the spread of laser sintering technology. Cory Doctorow, in a BoingBoing article, questioned if this will really make much of a difference for 3D printing companies seeking to use certain technologies. In the end, it certainly is a major patent that has expired, and many more will follow this year. The market will open up gradually for many competitors to step in.

3DPrint.com Launches out of Beta With a Bang!
This very site, launched with a bang last week. We had close to 50,000 unique visits in the first seven days, and added two new writers to the team. As we move forward, we look forward to making many awesome connections within the industry, while providing up to the minute news, as soon as it happens. We will strive to provide the top breaking news within the 3D prining industry, as well as a few interesting editorials every now and then.

Organovo Delivers Liver Tissue to Key Opinion Leader Much Earlier Than Expected (Full Story)
Not expected  until April of this year, Organovo surprised us all, and announced that the first liver tissue had been delivered to a Key Opinion Leader this week. This is just one of several major bioprinting announcements expecetd from the company this year. The news sparked a series blog debates about the possible moral and ethical implications of 3D bioprinting, focusing on the issues that may become hot topics, such as hybrid human/animal body parts.

World’s First Carbon Fiber 3D Printer, The Mark One Announced (Full Story)
At Solidworks World 2014 this week, MarkForged announced the launch of the Mark One 3D Carbon Fiber printer. Immediately, the news spread, and skeptics came out of the woodwork. Is it really carbon fiber? Will it be as strong as traditional carbon fiber? Is it woven? Most of these questions, according to the company, can be answered with a “Yes,” and those at Solidworks World seemed thoroughly impressed with the output of the device.

TDPIX Becomes World’s First 3D Printing Mutual Fund (Full Story)
Outlook Funds Trust announced the launch of the first 3D printing related mutual fund. The ticker symbol is TDPIX, and the fund will allow investors to diversify among numerous 3D printing investments. The minimum investment will be $2500, while the expense ratio is 1.5%. more details at 3DPFund.com.