Rapid Prototyping – A Boon for Innovators, Product Designers & Industrial Engineers

Rapid Prototyping – A Boon for Innovators, Product Designers & Industrial Engineers

Product prototype development is one of the most crucial steps in the life-cycle of new product development. As the need to build product prototypes faster increased, better techniques were developed, which eventually lead to the inception of rapid prototyping.

Developed by 3D Systems, a company providing comprehensive 3D products and services, rapid prototyping today has revolutionized the product design and development industry, allowing innovators, product designers, industrial engineers, and product manufacturers to rethink their product development approach.

Rapid Prototyping – What is it?

Rapid prototyping is a bundle of techniques, which help in crafting various materials, including plastics and metals, into models that represent the product concept. Rapid prototyping gives innovators, product designers, and industrial engineers the ability to hold, feel, and test as many product prototypes as they need in order to make the final product fully functional and safe to use. Rapid prototyping has ousted the need for conventional casting, molding, or machining in the manufacturing process.

Rapid prototyping is a common term for the process that quickly fabricates a conceived object or product with the help of three-dimensional (3D), computer-aided design (CAD) data. The 3D CAD data is uploaded to a special machine or printer that swiftly constructs the required component. The popular term, “3D Printing” is a prevalent example of the rapid prototyping technique.

Today, the rapid prototyping practice has been widely embraced by product development companies that design and develop electromechanical products, mechanical products, electrical and electronic products, medical device products, sports products, and other complex products.

Advantages of Rapid Prototyping

Due to its ability to construct an object or product quickly with the help of computer data, rapid prototyping is a resourceful tool to build product prototypes in a faster and more efficient way. Innovators rely on product prototypes to prove that their concept really works. By being able to develop their conceived item swiftly, innovators are able to share the concept efficiently with potential stakeholders and manufacturers in a real, tangible form. This is an essential step, also known as “Proof of Concept,” and it is quickly becoming an important standard in the new product development process.

Product prototypes also play a very vital role in detecting any design defects prior to the product manufacturing process. In order to eliminate design defects completely, numerous product prototypes are needed, and rapid prototyping is just able to do that, in a swift and efficient manner. After rapid prototyping an item, defects are detected, which are then corrected, and again a new prototype is created. The process is perpetual until all the design defects are eliminated. Product development companies that employ rapid prototyping techniques are eventually saving their clients substantial sums in product development by repeatedly and swiftly delivering a number of product prototypes, which are worked upon to make the final product better.

Although not a core part of the product development process today, rapid prototyping has begun to help shape and reshape the approach towards new product manufacturing. The revolutionary techniques are making things easier for product prototype development. Product designers, industrial engineers, product development companies, and product manufacturers who have embraced these contemporary techniques are already helping their clients (the innovators) in a much better way.

Need help with rapid prototyping? Perhaps with product design or product development or product manufacturing? Contact GID Development Corporation today.

We are a leading product development company in California, US, and we provide fast, efficient, and economical product design, rapid prototyping, product manufacturing, and other product fulfillment services.

At GID Development Corporation, our product designers, industrial engineers, and other personnel have vast experience and knowledge in bringing product concepts to life. No matter how complex a conceived product is, we will bring it to reality. Whether it is developing an electromechanical product, electrical product, electronic product, mechanical product, medical device product, or any other novel product, we will “GET IT DONE!”

A free 15-minute telephonic consultation is available. Just call Jim Grimes at 714-323-1052 between 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM PST.

Rapid Product Designing & Rapid Prototyping – Advantages

Rapid Product Designing & Rapid Prototyping – Advantages

New product design and product development, both have come a long way today. Traditionally, product designs were hand drawn. Now, Rapid Product Designing are creating detailed, clear product designs using special-purpose computer applications, like Dassault Systèmes’ 3D EXPERIENCE 2016, SOLIDWORKS, and 3DVIA among many others.

For product development, specifically the product prototype development, engineers nowadays are utilizing revolutionary additive manufacturing (popularly known as 3D printing) processes, which include selective laser melting, fused filament fabrication, direct metal laser sintering, and stereolithography to name a few.

These modern rapid product designing and rapid product prototyping techniques are geared toward the swift, precise, and effortless development of new products. More importantly, with these state-of-the-art techniques, it is possible to minimize the cost of new product development! Let us look at some of the advantages that these computer-assisted 3D product designing and 3D printing techniques offer.

  1. These contemporary techniques radically minimize the time of turning a product concept into reality. Simple product concepts can be brought to life in a matter of days, and complex product concepts in a matter of a few months. Therefore, inventors can quickly realize their dreams of swiftly getting groundbreaking products into the market and selling them to make profits.
  2. These techniques help save money. Creating product designs using computer applications means getting definitive designs with a minimum number of attempts; hence, it avoids the redundant costs of creating multiple product designs. 3D printing, on the other hand, eliminates the need for plastic product manufacturing tools or other molding tools needed for building product prototypes. This elimination of tools substantially saves money for the inventors.
  3. The modern techniques help mitigate product redesigning risks. Since the product designs are created virtually on the computer, they are, in most instances, ideal in every manner. Even if they are not, or if any changes are required, the product designers can quickly and effortlessly modify or change the product designs. These new product designs are then efficiently and economically 3D printed, saving time, money, and more importantly, the efforts of doing everything from scratch for the inventors.
  4. The techniques facilitate in the creation of the definitive product. Because 3D product designing is carried out virtually, using special computer applications, the chances of leaving out any product construction requirements are almost next to nothing. In the virtual world, the product designers and product developers can test almost every aspect of the conceived product. This way, they can add, remove, and experiment with the various features of the imagined product without actually creating any mockup or prototype!
  5. These techniques allow quick creation of product prototypes. Once the product designs are ready, they will be fed to a 3D printer (it’s a kind of an industrial robot). The 3D printer is then configured according to the required specifications. Once the 3D printer is configured, it will then extrude material into the desired shapes. The entire process, from feeding the product design into the 3D printer to the extrusion of the material into the desired shapes, is substantially swifter than injection molding techniques.
  6. These breakthrough techniques enable the creation of custom shapes. The 3D printer extrudes the material into desired shapes or geometries based on the instructions received from a computer. In simpler words, a 3D printer prints a material, instead of ink, based on the design it is provided. Ergo, it is possible to create custom, intriguing shapes effortlessly. This advantage of these techniques is very beneficial when it comes to medical device product development as well as electromechanical product development.
  7. These techniques make it possible to develop product prototypes using any material. Not only polymer and its variants, but 3D printers are capable of accepting and printing materials like rubber, ceramic, edible materials, and almost any metal alloy!

These were just some of the many advantages that rapid product designing and rapid product prototyping techniques offer. They are just ideal for new product design and new product development, especially product prototype development.

If you are an inventor and want to realize your product idea with these revolutionary product design and product development techniques, then partner with GID Development Corporation. A leading product design company in California, USA, GID Development Corporation provides rapid product design, rapid prototyping, rapid product development and other new product fulfillment services. They even have the ability to develop CNC-machined prototypes using different plastics and metals. This ability of GID Development Corporation comes in very handy, especially when the raw materials for rapid prototyping processes are not suitable or durable enough for the conceived product.

Whether you have a revolutionary idea for a medical device product, sports product, electromechanical product, a product with embedded software, product with electronics, or any unique product, the product development company in California, GID Development Corporation will absolutely “GET IT DONE!”

Have any queries regarding rapid product prototyping or 3D printing? Just call Jim Grimes at 714-323-1052 between 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM PST, for a FREE 15-minute telephonic conference. He will answer to various questions regarding product design, product prototyping, and product development. You can like our Facebook page well.