科技前沿:第一支完全3D打印槍支問世

The many promises of 3D-printing include intricate product prototypes, one-of-a-kind jewelry, even human tissue. Now, a group has revealed a proof-of-concept of another sort: a gun.

3D打印機術有很多光明前景，其中包括打印複雜的原型產品、款式獨一無二的珠寶，甚至是打印人體組織。不過現在，有一個組織又發現了3D打印的另一用途，那就是製造槍支。

Texas-based Defense Distributed, founded by 25-year-old University of Texas law student Cody Wilson, has given images it says show the first 3D-printed handgun. The group, which is aiming for nonprofit status, claims the weapon can fire standard handgun rounds. The majority of the device, called the "Liberator," is fabricated entirely out of plastic, save for a nail used as a firing pin as well as a six-ounce piece of steel, intended to allow the gun to be detected by metal detectors.

德克薩斯州非盈利組織Defense Distributed是由一名年僅25歲的德州大學法律系學生科迪??威爾森創辦的。該組織近日給《福布斯》雜誌的網站提供了一些圖片，聲稱圖片中的槍支就是世界上第一支完全採用3D打印技術造出的手槍。這個組織還表示，這支手槍可發射標準的手槍子彈。這支手槍的名字叫“解放者”（Liberator），它的主體部分完全是用塑料製造的，只有撞針是金屬。另外，槍裏還裝了一塊6盎司的鐵片，目的是爲了讓這支槍能夠被金屬探測器探測出來。

Wilson generated headlines last year when he announced his plans to produce a 3D-printed gun. It took the group about eight months to design the Liberator.

去年，威爾森宣佈打算利用3D打印技術製造一支槍的時候，他的大膽計劃就吸引了大量關注。這個組織大概花了8個月的時間設計出了“解放者”。

Also known as additive manufacturing, 3D printing is a method of making a three-dimensional solid objects from a computerized model. Commonly, 3D printers lay down successive layers of plastic material to create objects of virtually any shape. The printers can also create interlocking mechanical parts, such as gears and cogs. The process is distinct from traditional machining, in which objects are whittled or sculpted down from larger blocks of material.

3D打印技術也叫疊加製造技術，它是一種可以通過電腦模型製作出三維實物的技術。簡單來說，3D打印機通過連續不斷地疊加塑料材料，幾乎可以塑造出任何形狀的物體。3D打印機也可以製造出具有連鎖機制的零部件，比如齒輪和接榫等。這個過程與傳統加工方法存在顯著的區別，後者通常是通過對大塊材料進行切割或雕塑來加工複雜的零件。

Boston-based Luxe Research estimates that the $777 million 3D printing market will grow to a whopping $8.4 billion by 2025. Most of that growth will be driven by industrial applications, particularly in medical, automotive and aerospace industries.

據波士頓Luxe Research研究公司預測，到2025年，3D打印市場的市值將從現在的7.77億美元猛增到84億美元。其中大多數增長是由商業應用驅動的，尤其是在醫藥、汽車和航空領域。

But devices aimed at consumers are increasingly popular. Late last month, New York-based Shapeways raised a $30 million investment round lead by Andreessen Horowitz. The company has some 10,000 "shop owners," or individuals who have designed products, from shoes to cellphone cases, that they print out and sell through Shapeways' website.

不過以普通消費者爲目標的3D打印設備也在變得越來越流行。上個月末，紐約的Shapeways公司獲得了一輪由安德里森霍洛維茨基金（Andreessen Horowitz）等公司投資的3,000萬美元融資。Shapeways公司擁有大約10,000個“店主”或個體手工業者，他們自行設計了從鞋子到手機殼等各種產品，然後用3D打印技術製造出來，再通過Shapeways的網站銷售。

On Friday, office supply giant Staples (SPLS) announced that it is the first major American retailer to sell 3D printers. The retailer will sell the Cube 3D Printer from 3D Systems on for $1299.99. The device will be available in a limited number of Staples stores by the end of June.

上週五，辦公用品提供商史泰博（Stapes）宣佈，它將成爲美國第一家銷售3D打印機的零售企業。它將在自己的官網的“3D系統”一欄裏以1299.99美元的價格銷售Cube 3D打印機。另外到今年六月底，在史泰博的門店裏也將能夠買到數量有限的3D打印機。

According to Forbes, the Liberator is capable of connecting to different barrels, allowing for various calibers of ammunition. The device's creator plans to eventually publish the files necessary to print it at home as well as details on its operation.

據《福布斯》報道，“解放者”手槍可以安裝不同口徑的槍管，從而能發射不同口徑的子彈。該槍型的設計者打算最終在網絡上發佈可以讓人們在家自行“打印”這支手槍所需的圖紙，以及這支手槍的詳細操作方法。

That will surely raise another round of concerns, particularly in the wake of recent gun violence around the country. Stratasys, a company that makes 3D printers, confiscated their machine from Defense Distributed last year after the company discovered the printer was being used for gun development.

此舉當然會引起新一輪的擔憂，尤其是在美國最近槍案頻發的背景下。3D打印機制造商Stratasys去年發現Defense Distributed在利用它的3D打印機研發槍支後，就從Defense Distributed手裏收回了它的3D打印機。