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Astonishingly 3D printing has excited the world of aerospace. This paper takes stock of the popular 3D printing processes in aerospace. Reasons for their popularity over the traditional manufacturing processes are dwelled upon. Materials developed specially for aerospace applications along with their characteristics are discussed. Ongoing activities related to 3D printing at various companies and organisations around the world are looked into. Project works in the area of extra-terrestrial printing are also highlighted. Even though 3D printing processes are operationally simple, they do have limitations in terms of the type, quality, and quantity of the materials they can handle. This paper underlines these points while discussing drawbacks of the printed components. Challenges associated with 3D printing in microgravity are also touched upon. Finally, a glimpse is taken into the future appearance of aerospace industry with 3D printing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The objective of this study is to extend the applications of reverse engineering technology from manufacturing industries to the biomedical industry. By obtaining nearly exact geometric data of human tissues, such as bones, tendons, and ligaments, in a high-speed and inexpensive manner, potentially groundbreaking research becomes possible for applications in injury rehabilitation, injury prevention and strengthening. Previous applications of reverse engineering technologies in the biomedical community have dealt largely with prosthetic design and plastic surgery. This study expands this research to include muscular and skeletal applications. The primary advantage provided by scanning technologies is an improved quality of data. Secondly, the time investment for the medical researcher is greatly reduced. And finally, the use of a scanning technology will occasionally provide a less expensive alternative to the medical imaging counterparts. The goal of the research is to develop guidelines and methodologies for reverse engineering human structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]