3D Printers Could “Cost” Hundreds of Billions of Dollars a Year

3D printers | With any 3D printer, anyone can download a CAD file and make a product from an existing design without being bound by any intellectual property rules. Intellectual property losses are estimated at 100 billion USD a year.

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With a 3D printer, anyone can “steal” a design

Speaking at a 3D printing conference held by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in June 2016, Russell Slifer, Deputy Director of the USPTO and former Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, said: “The number of patent applications related to 3D printing has grown 23 times, and trademark applications from companies in the 3D printing field have increased 300% over the past 5 years.” This shows the huge potential of 3D printing. But it also comes with real threats to intellectual property.

With a 3D printer, anyone can download a computer-aided design (CAD) file that “tells” the printer how to make a 3D object. Because they are digital, these CAD files are easy to share on the Internet through file-sharing services, just as people already do with movies and songs. So with just a CAD file and a 3D printer, people can make factory-style products without any legal constraints related to intellectual property protection.

Here is a typical example: In July 2015, the Wall Street Journal reported on a group of hobbyists who used 3D printers to make figures based on famous characters from Hollywood hits such as Iron Man and Star Wars, and then sold them. The hobbyists later shared the character designs widely on social media.

Assessing the losses that 3D printing could cause in intellectual property, Gartner, Inc. (USA), a world-renowned IT research and advisory firm, predicted that by 2018, 3D printing would cost the world about 100 billion USD a year.

Legal hurdles

A main reason the world suffers losses from 3D printing is that intellectual property law still has many gaps. “If digital media made life hard for the copyright system with mass copyright infringement, 3D printing will also create mass infringement of protected patents,” said Jia Li, an innovation and intelligence consultant at CPA Global, a world-leading US company in technology and intellectual property management.

One gap that many people point to is that patents often protect a method of making a new product, while a 3D printer can make the same product without infringing the protected method. “Even when a patent protects the new product itself, 3D printing makes it easier for people to modify it and design new products based on the protected one. 3D printing can get around many of the difficulties and design limits that traditional manufacturing faces,” Li explained.

The next hurdle is that infringement is very hard to prove, since 3D printing can happen anywhere, anytime, as long as there is a printer, even before the official manufacturer starts production. On top of that, the commercialization of 3D printers is a big challenge for market regulators, as huge volumes of counterfeit and knockoff goods can be produced.

Faced with these challenges, what should inventors and manufacturers do? According to Li, “The future of intellectual property will be shaped by different forms of IP merging into one. For example, copyright will merge with patent rights. Until IP law changes to keep up with this, IP owners need to seek both copyright and patent protection for a new product. If a product can be made with 3D printing technology, the patent application should also seek protection for that manufacturing method.”

In the future, IP protection will also shift away from protecting manufacturing methods and product components toward protecting ideas and designs. These are the proof of the creator’s rights and may become the main source of profit in the years ahead.

(Source: IPWD)

Contact CT3D Group

CT3D Group – Professional 3D printing, 3D scanning, design and rapid prototyping services nationwide.

• CT3D Thu Duc – Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Hai Phong: in3d.edu.vn – Hotline 0975 008 728 (Mr. Thai)
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Frequently asked questions

Is it a copyright violation to download free 3D files online and print them?

It depends on the license the author attached to the file. Many shared files are licensed for personal, non-commercial use only, or require attribution. Printing to sell when the license does not allow it, or printing famous branded characters for business, may infringe intellectual property rights.

How can a business protect its designs when outsourcing 3D printing?

Sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with the print shop before sending files, spelling out how data is stored and deleted and that it will not be used for any other purpose. Send only the format needed for printing, such as STL, instead of the original CAD file with its full design history. For important products, register an industrial design or patent before going public.

Is it legal to 3D scan someone else’s product and print it again?

Scanning and reprinting a protected product to sell it may infringe industrial property rights or copyright. Scanning to recreate a replacement part for your own equipment is usually lower risk, but you still need to check the specific protection status. When in doubt, consult an intellectual property expert.

Are 3D designs protected in Vietnam?

Yes. A product’s shape can be registered as an industrial design, a technical solution can be patented, and artistic models can be protected by copyright. Each form has its own requirements and procedures. Businesses should keep dated design records as proof of their creative rights.

Related services at CT3D Group

• Custom 3D printing service
• High-accuracy 3D scanning service
• Custom 3D design service
• CT3D Group network: ct3dgroup.com · in3d.edu.vn – Hotline/Zalo 0975 008 728