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3DPI.TV – 3D Printing Inventor To Receive Honour From National Inventors Hall of Fame

Chuck Hull will soon join the likes of Thomas Edison, the Wright brothers and Henry Ford. The inventor of 3D printing — and founder of 3D Systems — will soon be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Hull is also being recognized by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for his ground-breaking invention of the original 3D printing technology — a Stereolithography Apparatus. Today we commonly refer to this 3D printing process as Stereolithography or SLA.

Hull also co-created the STL file format which anyone with a home 3D printer and industrial insiders will be more than familiar with, as the standard in 3D printing software formats. In 1983, Hull 3D printed a small cup, acknowledged as the first-ever object created with additive technology. The success of Hull’s process served as a catalyst to his founding of 3D Systems in 1986.

The National Inventors Hall of Fame has, since 1973, been honouring the individuals who have conceived, patented and advanced great technological achievements. To be inducted, candidates must hold a United States patent that has contributed significantly to the nation’s welfare and the advancement of science and useful arts. Hull continues to lead the 3D printing revolution as 3D Systems’ Chief Technology Officer and is celebrating 30 years of continuous 3D printing innovation and presiding over seven different 3D print technologies, more than 100 materials and 1,700 patents.

Feeling deeply honored by the recognition, Chuck Hull said he always knew that 3D printing had the capacity to change the entire design-to-manufacture process, but could not have anticipated the full impact that his work would have on every facet of our lives.

Hull will be formally honored on May 21, 2014, at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia.