“Automated fabrication will take its place among the major industrial developments of the 20^th century. Companies which intend to be successful in the 21^st century need to learn how to use technologies like autofab now. This book will help us.”

— Adapted from the foreword by John P. McTague
Chief Technical Officer, Ford Motor Company

     Automated fabrication is a modern family of technologies that generate 3-dimensional, solid objects under computer control. This book provides a comprehensive treatment of these new machines and their applications in manufacturing and other fields. Autofab gives design and production engineers new freedom to:

• Efficiently handle change-orders late in the design cycle.
• Economically “print” prototypes and models for evaluation.
• Fulfill low-volume production orders profitably.
• Create low-cost tooling for quick-turnaround molding applications.
• Generate convoluted and contorted shapes, previously unproducible.

     Automated Fabrication shows you how.

Accolades from industry and the press

“This book is almost a must for all people entering the RP [“rapid prototyping”] business. Well and clearly written book that despite of it’s age is still valid reading. Exellent view over the history of “automated fabrication”, i.e. Rapid Prototyping. This book could be used as well for educational purposes as for setting up your own business. Personally I use it as a very good source of information and reference in my own work as a researcher. — Highly recommended.”
         —Hannu Kaikonen, University of Helsinki,
                 reviewing on Amazon.com, May 12, 2000

“One of the most readable and informative books we have ever reviewed.”
         —Engineering Automation Report, May 1994

“A beautiful job, and an important contribution to the industry.”
         —Itzchak Pomerantz, Founder, Cubital Ltd.

“Spans the entire spectrum of rapid prototyping technologies with depth and insight. Burns is an authority recognized among users and researchers alike.”
         —Prof. Unny Menon, California Polytechnic State University

“Thank you Marshall Burns.”
         —Industrial Laser Review, October 1993

Inside the book

     Valuable information you will find in Automated Fabrication:

• How to use a fabricator to slash time and costs from your product development cycle (Sections 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3).
• 37 Case Studies, with over 50 photographs, of actual projects using autofab in manufacturing, science, medicine, and other fields (Chapter 4).
• How to decide whether to use a fabricator on a project, which one to use, and how to sell management on the idea (Section 5.1).
• Comparison of subtractive CNC machines with new additive devices (page 175).
• New techniques on their way from 14 industry, university, and government laboratories around the world (Chapter 3).
• Important data to help you select the right CAD package (Section 6.1) and fabrication materials (Chapter 7) to use with your system.
• 21^st century career opportunities (Section 9.3).
• And much, much more! All explained in informative and readable style.

     Over 140 illustrations show you the actual fabricators, how they work, and examples of their output in real projects. More than 30 comprehensive charts and tables give you all the data on the machines, materials, and software.

Summary table of contents

1. Introduction to Automated Fabrication

   Part I: Machines and Usage

2. Commercially Available Fabricators
3. Processes under Development
4. Applications of Fabricators
5. Implementation Guidelines

   Part II: Technical Aspects

6. Data Input
7. Fabrication Materials
8. Underlying Science

   Part III: The Human Side

9. Economic and Sociological Impact
10. Prospects for the Future

Appendices
1. Chapter-by-Chapter Review
2. Molding Technology
3. Information Resources

Index: Over 1,200 entries

Excerpts from the book

     Authorized excerpts of Automated Fabrication are available at the following online sources.

The StL Format, Section 6.5.   Technical information on the de-facto standard data format for digital fabricators.

Impact of Automated Fabrication on Society, Section 9.1.   The ramifications of digital fabrication on how people live, work, and play.

Courses using the book

     Automated Fabrication is used as the textbook for several university courses around the world. The following is a partial list. If you are the instructor of a course that uses this book and you would like a link to your course here, please send the address for your course Web site to us at .

Introduction to Rapid Prototyping, taught by Prof. Jan Helge Bøhn at Virginia Polytechnic Institute (Virginia Tech)

Modern Rapid Prototyping Fundamentals, taught by Prof. Daniel A. Brandt at Milwaukee School of Engineering

Modern Rapid Prototyping Design Applications, taught by Prof. Daniel A. Brandt at Milwaukee School of Engineering

Advanced Modern Rapid Prototyping , taught by Prof. Daniel A. Brandt at Milwaukee School of Engineering

How to order

     Sorry, but Automated Fabrication is currently out of print. It may be possible to find a used copy at Amazon.com. We apologize for any inconvenience.