Site Features Guide

MAIN DIRECTORY... GET LISTED!... LATEST RP INDUSTRY NEWS RELEASES & NEWSLETTERS The Most Important Industry Developments & Case Studies Gathered Together from Around the World! Rapid Prototyping Instant News Search! Upcoming Rapid Prototyping Event Calendar SEARCH . . .         This Site         RP Bibliography         Additional Eng'g. Resources Site Alphabetical Index Get On Our Mailing List! SERVICES & EQUIPMENT    Rapid Prototyping SYSTEMS    Rapid Prototyping MATERIALS    Rapid Prototyping SOFTWARE    Related Goods & Services    RE Scanners & Digitizers    Rapid Manufacturing Directory    Service Bureaus TUTORIALS    BRIEF Rapid Prototyping Tutorial    DETAILED RP Tutorial    RP Terminology Unraveled    Rapid Prototyping FAQ's !    Patents for Business Strategy    3D Printers    Rapid Manufacturing Tutorial    Rapid Tooling & Metal Parts Tutorial    Reverse Engineering Tutorial RAPID PROTOTYPING INDUSTRY    RP Industry Overview    Rapid Prototyping Stock Prices    Rapid Prototyping Digest    RP Mailing List Archive TECHNOLOGY    Featured News Article Archive    Rapid Prototyping Bibliography    Rapid Prototyping Patents    Glossary RAPID PROTOTYPING APPLICATIONS    Medicine & Dentistry    Art and Architecture    Rapid Tooling & Metal Parts    Rapid Manufacturing    Scientific and Consumer CONTACT US    Our Products & Services    Get Listed ! Link to Us !

There's a lot of data here, quite literally the equivalent of thousands of printed pages. Use this guide to find your way around. Here are descriptions of the main features of the site:

The Worldwide Rapid Prototyping Directory.
Use the navigation column to the left, or use the Directory page to see a more detailed listing. The Directory page is the gateway to the rest of the WWGRP site, and the world of additive fabrication. It has links and contact information for every commercial system manufacturer, materials manufacturers, and third party software producer on the face of the earth. It also has listings for related products and services, university and government programs, information sources, and consultants. In depth coverage is also provided for many RP application areas.

Alphabetical Index.
The embarrassment of riches that is the Worldwide Guide to Rapid Prototyping web-site can sometimes be difficult to find your way around in. Even though we provide search tools and comprehensive directory resources, what has been lacking is a deep index. Well, not any more. You can now quickly scan nearly 300 cross-referenced terms and jump right to the information you need.

RP & RE Equipment, Materials & Software. The most comprehensive directory pages available anywhere, cross-referenced to technology descriptions and other useful info.

The Worldwide RP Service Bureau Directory. Listings for more than 830 locations on every inhabited continent that provide RP services, including e-commerce web-sites. Many companies have provided descriptions of their specialties, and nearly every listing provides basic information about which technologies are available. Service bureaus allow you to experiment at low cost and they have in depth knowledge about specific applications. The listings also include SB's that provide reverse engineering and scanning services.

Brief RP Tutorial. Need a quick technology overview? Try our Brief Tutorial section which also covers rapid tooling.

Detailed Introduction to Rapid Prototyping Technologies. Learn more about the major technologies, as well as those that are still under development and not yet commercialized.

RP Terminology Unraveled. The terminology that is used to describe the many technologies and applications of additive fabrication is extremely confusing. This section provide a roadmap to show you the relationships.

RP's Frequently Asked Questions. Visit this section to find out how - and if - rapid prototyping can benefit you. Learn about the advantages and limitations of RP, and find the quickest path to a solution for your problem. Compare technologies and see a huge range of examples.

3D Printers. Just what is the difference between a 3D printer and a rapid prototyping machine? You can find out in this brief tutorial.

3D Printer Choices Below US$20,000. What are the trade-offs in 3D printers selling for less than US$20,000? This new section tells you what you need to know, and includes lots of background and tutorial material.

Rapid Manufacturing. Our major section on this important outgrowth of RP will teach you about the myriad developments going on today - and their enormous potential to entwine additive fabrication into almost every field, and every human life tomorrow.

Using Patents as Key Information Sources for Competitive Intelligence and Business Strategy. The days when a straightforward approach to technology protection was possible are over. A new era has begun with potential risks and rewards that extend far beyond the basic functions of patents. This tutorial tells you what you need to know.

Rapid Tooling & Metal Parts by Additive Fabrication. A complete roadmap to the multifarious technologies and applications that are now commercially- available. Complete comparison tables are also available.

Reverse Engineering Tutorial. Our comprehensive tutorial section on reverse engineering demystifies the choices. It's the fastest way to sort out what's available and how to meet your needs. The world's most complete commercial directory for RE is an important added feature.

Rapid Prototyping Industry Overview. Here's a concise summary of the applications, products and services, major US and foreign players and market trends. This section has recently been completely updated and expanded to reflect the numerous major changes that have occurred in the last few months.

Calendar of Upcoming Events. Here's the most complete guide to events, conferences, conventions and seminars of interest to the RP community. Listings are free. Let us know if your's is missing.

RP News and Stock Prices Instant searches of Google News and other web services for RP industry and technology news, stock prices of public companies and direct links to industry news release pages.

Latest Industry News Releases & Newsletters. All the important news releases in the additive fabrication industry over the last two years have been archived and categorized. Find out the latest news and track developments over time. Download many past industry newsletters in their entirety.

The Compleat Rapid Prototyping Mailing List Archive. You can have every posting to the Rapid Prototyping Mailing List for the last seven years available for searching on your own hard drive. Updated through 3/26/09, there are the equivalent of thousands of pages of RP writings and retributions available for downloading in several zip files. The material can be used as a source of advice, case studies, contact information, expert individuals and market data.

Do you have a question about additive fabrication? We may already have answered it! See our Mailbag Section for answers to many typical questions - and also some downright weird ones.

Rapid Prototyping Glossary. Here are brief explanations of dozens of terms associated with RP and linked to further information within the site. An extensive list of acronyms is also available with links to the glossary.

RP Digest. A compendium of recent articles drawn from the trade and popular press available on the Internet concerning rapid prototyping and closely related technologies. Updated and expanded, it now has links to nearly 170 full-text articles from dozens of sources. The articles have been selected to provide wide knowledge on all facets of RP and the links include brief summaries.

Featured News Article Archive. Some of the more than fifty articles we've presented over the last several years have been newsworthy, but we've also tried to present the vast range of work that's being pursued in this field. Among the subjects we've covered are the use of RP in the separation of Siamese twins, the reconstruction of the Devil's Tower Neanderthal child, new rapid tooling and direct manufacturing technologies, micro-rapid prototyping, RP of buildings, and many more. These articles are available in a searchable archive. Hundreds of photographs and illustrations are included, many of which are outstanding.

Mom, the Mother of All Rapid Prototyping Bibliographies. References to nearly 6,000 academic, business and trade publication articles covering every facet of the technology and industry. This is the largest single source of RP information in the world and is the effulgent incunabula of the field of additive fabrication.

How to Find Research Papers! Here are a complete set of directions to help you use all the academic and web resources available today to find the papers referenced by Mom, including a few tips you might not have thought of before.

Academic Research Programs. Scores of listings of university, as well as government and research institute programs. Brief descriptions and university/industry collaborations are included.

Pursuing Higher Education in Rapid Prototyping. We get frequent questions about where to go for formal education in rapid prototyping and related topics. There is no single answer that covers all situations, but here's where to start.

The Rapid Prototyping US Patent Database. and the The Additive Fabrication Spy^TM keep you current with intellectual property developments in the field.

Visit the RP Patent Museum. Learn about the most important RP intellectual property from both historical and fundamental invention perspectives. This feature includes material on nearly 80 US patents that illuminate the development of the field, and provide an overview of both today's and tomorrow's applications.

The Additive Fabrication Spy^TM Highlights from the most recent issue, complete through 3/10/09, are available on-line. Many of the most important developments in the field are taking place well out of public view. Find out about them months - and even years - before they appear in the marketplace.

Do you have a question about additive fabrication? We may already have answered it! See our Mailbag Section for answers to many typical questions - and also some downright unusual ones.

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