To build in space, we need extremely specialized tools. But with hi-tech, comes higher risks. Losing any of this unconventional [w]gear[/w] could be a disaster. So we are going to need even more extraordinary technology—a way to make unlimited replacements. If we have a science fiction replicator, there are replicate tools. A tool, thus, suddenly appears in space, that would be pretty cool. But we don’t have that yet. Or do we? 在太空中搞建设，我们需要专门的工具。但是高科技意味着高风险。这种不寻常的工具一旦丢失其结果可能灾难性的。因此我们需要一项非常与众不同的技术，一种制造无线替代品的方法。如果我们有一台科幻小说里面的复制器，有很多复制出来的工具，这样的技术应用在太空中，那该有多好。但是这样的技术目前还不存在。真的不存在吗？

Theoretical physicist David Kaplan has found a company that replicates tools and pretty much anything else you can imagine with a 3D copy machine. I’m in Burlington Massachusetts at the Z Corporation where they’ve developed a technology that similar does replicators you see in the sci-fi movies. It’s called 3D painting. I’m here to find out if they can 3D print my Crescent wrench. 理论物理学家大卫科普兰找到了一家公司，他们运用他们的3D复印机复制工具或几乎所有你可以想象的东西。我现在处在位于马赛诸塞州伯灵顿的Z公司，他们开发了一种可以像科幻电影中那样复制物品的技术。他们称它为3D打印。我来看看他们能不能打印我的可调板手。

We’re one of the world’s leading manufactures of 3 dimensional printers. Everything on the table in front of us has been printed in one of the machines behind us. Printed? Yes. OK. Most printers will print things in 2 dimensions. Our 3D printer will then take that to the third [w]dimension[/w] and make something you can hold in your hand. OK. I don’t get it. And this? That’s just an example of the complexity of the things that you can make. It moves? It moves and was printed all as one piece. This came out of a printer just like this? Came out of a printer just like that. 我们是一家世界领先的3D 打印机制造商，桌上所有你看到的东西都出自我们身后的打印机。它们是打印出来的？嗯，没错。大部分的打印机都只能打印出2D的东西，我们的3D打印机则可以立体打印，并制造出实实在在的东西来。我没明白。这是什么？这个样品可以告诉你我们可以打印出多么复杂的东西。它可以活动？可以，而且它是一次打印出来的。它印出来就是这个样子？是的，印出来就是这样。

What is the material that makes this thing? It’s a specially engineered composite material that starts out as powder. Then we add to it a binder material that solidifies those powder particles together. These materials are the company’s own secret recipe— an unique [w]concoction[/w] not used anywhere else. This is one of our 3D printers. There is a print head inside this machine. It ejects specify fluids for coloring different parts. Yeah. But we also have a print head for printing our binder materials to solidify the particles. 它使用什么材料做成的？一种专门研制的复合材料，一开始是粉末状的。然后我们加入粘合剂使这些粉末粘合在一起。这些材料都是这家公司的秘方，一种独一无二未曾试用过的材料。这是我们的一款3D打印机，这是机器内部的打印头。它可以喷射颜料给不同部位上色。我们还有一个可以喷射胶黏剂的打印头。

Oh, my god! The powder is a paper and these binding stuff is the ink. And in this tray here that it prints on will actually drew up into the machine to give it that 3rd Dimension. OK, I’d like to see that. Could you reproduce the wrench? Absolutely. It has moving parts here? Not a problem. 天啊。粉末就像是纸，而这些胶黏剂就像是墨水。在这个盘子开始打印时被吸进机器里以完成立体打印。嗯，我想看一看。你能复制这个扳手吗？当然。它可是有活动部位的哦，没问题。

First thing really do is scan it. Alright. We’re going to take a look? Yeah. Let’s see it. Here we go. The scanner inputs every facets of the wrench into this computer, creating an image that would be sent to the printer. Oh, that is cool. How accurately can you measure the shape? The accuracy is within 40 microns. That’s like the human hair width. Actually, a little less. That’s[w] incredible[/w]. 第一件事是将它扫描到电脑。我们过去看看？好。就是这样，开始。这台扫描仪将这个扳手的每一个表面输入进电脑里，再以3D图像的形式传输到打印机。呵呵，不错啊。扫描的精度如何呢？误差在40微米，和人头发丝的直径差不多，没错，比那还小。真是难以置信！

Alright, so there wrench are scanned. Here is the wrench you did. OK, can you make that ring red? Sure, I want to select it and print so now that piece is red. I see. Just that simple. When we’re ready with this, go down and hit print. Alright there, printing is done. Let’s take a look at the wrench. OK. I don’t see anything. It’s in there. Just reach into the powder and pull out your wrench. OK. Holy cow. Yeah, there is a real wrench out there. Oh, my god, you printed this. Yeah, came right out of the paper. That’s amazing. All that left to do is to blow off the rest of that powder. That is cool. A color 3D printer. I’m freaked out by this. I’m holding these moving parts that just came out of a printer. Just that easy. 好了，扳手扫描完了。这就是你的扳手。你能将那个环涂成红色吗？没问题，先选中再填充它就变成了红色。了解。就那么简单。这个好了就可以点击下面的打印。打印完成。让我们看看这个扳手吧。我什么也没看到啊。在里面呢。把手伸到粉末里把你的扳手拿出来。哇塞。没错，一个五脏俱全的扳手。天啊，这是你打印出来的。对，用那些粉末。太了不起了。现在只要把外面那些粉末吹掉就好。太帅了。彩色3D打印机。太让人兴奋了。不错，这个活动部件是打印出来的。就那么简单。

This changes everything. So how strong can this thing get? You can get strength just by infusing this with total actual [w]resin[/w]. We can actually use it as a tool? Absolutely. OK. Let’s see if this really works. Can I really put hard? Go forward. Just as you hold a real wrench. OK. What do you think? Wow, that’s a real tool . Holy cow. We just printed this. That’s right. An hour and half ago it was nothing but a bunch of powder and binder. It’a box of powder. Yeah. That is incredible. Now you’ve got a real tool that you can use for functional tasks. 这将改变一切。它的强度如何呢？和树脂材料一样。可以像真的工具那么使用吗？当然。让我们看看它是不是真的能用。我要用力啦，用吧，就像使用真正的扳手一样。感觉怎么样？和真正的工具一样。太帅了，它是我们刚刚打印出来的。一个半小时前它还是一些粉末和粘合剂。一盒粉末，对。真难以置信啊。现在你有了一件真正可以使用的工具。

So going in the space, you take a printer and you can just print whatever you want. That’s right. Anything from the tool that you need or the actual object you are working on. And I can keep the tool? Absolutely. We can print another one. OK, good. So if you lose your tool in space, you can print out another one .因此去太空，带上一台这样的打印机，你就可以想要什么打印什么了。完全正确，任何你想要的工具或部件。这个扳手我能留着么？没问题，我们能再打印一个。一旦你的工具在太空丢失了，你可以再打印一个。