SG2065: The will to seize the future
At a time when the world is wowed by 3D printing, one man and his team in Singapore are looking ahead. Their target: 4D printing. Their ambition: turn 3D-printed objects into 4D "Transformers" of the future. This means objects that change shape and form in real time, as they are exposed to different external stimuli. Professor Chua Chee Kai heads the Singapore Centre for 3D Printing (SC3DP) at NTU. 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, refers to the way objects are "printed" layer by layer by a machine. Prof Chua predicts that in five to 10 years, 3D printing will be mainstream in manufacturing. Prof Chua said, “The new applications and possibilities which 4D printing brings forth are fascinating, endless and far surpasses the limits of today's manufacturing.” Prof Chua's SC3DP has secured funding that now totals close to $150 million. He and his colleague, Prof Leong Kah Fai, are the top two most-published and most-cited scholars in this field in the world. Ms Joanne Teoh, a second-year PhD student at the School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering at NTU, said she is very excited to be involved in this breakthrough technology. Test beds are sprouting up all over Singapore - a driverless electric shuttle runs across NTU. At another centre, research scholars model traffic patterns. In these circles, the sense of excitement about what future technology and science can do, right here in Singapore, is palpable.
Media Report
- Straits Times Online, 9 Aug 2015
