Since the 1940s, engineers have used a common design language—a set of definitions, symbols, and practices—to draft engineering drawings that can serve as clear manufacturing blueprints or inspection checklists.

Although this system still works well for many traditional manufacturing methods, it hasn’t equipped engineers to produce clear and consistent design documents for additive manufacturing, commonly called 3D printing. That absence of standard methods of communication risks information about 3D-printing designs being lost in translation.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) published an updated standard—based in large part on research by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)—that includes language specifically for 3D printing. ASME’s standard, titled Y14.46—“Product definition for additive manufacturing,” identifies important features unique to 3D printing and outlines how they should be documented. 

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