From worker to academician! The “Broken Wall” Life of the “Father of 3D Printing in China”

He is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, a professor at Xi’an Jiaotong University, and a skilled worker who has worked in the factory for more than ten years. He is Lu Bingheng, the founder of my country’s additive manufacturing technology and the father of China’s 3D Printing.

First promotion in life”I want to be admitted to Peking University, and I want to engage in aerospace.” Influenced by Qian Xuesen and other older scientists, Lu Bingheng had a dream of aerospace since he was a child. Contribute to the aerospace industry. But in the end, Lu Bingheng went to other universities to study mechanical manufacturing. After graduating from university, Lu Bingheng was assigned to a factory to work as a lathe worker. This work lasted for five years. Later, he ushered in the first promotion in his life. “The factory said to promote you, first become a technician, please go to the family factory to supervise the technology.” “There are more than 100 family workers there, and one third of them are illiterate, but the things I learned are gradually getting here. After the application, I learned the manufacturing process, designed the fixtures, including turning on the machine tool to teach them, and finally formed good benefits.” “I have benefited from the eleven years of working in the factory in my life, and I have never lost it.” Lu Bingheng, who was in his seventies, said emotionally when he recalled his factory career. At the beginning of the reform and opening up, Lu Bingheng was already the father of two children. Under the pressure of life, he was admitted to Xi’an Jiaotong University as a postgraduate, under the tutelage of Professor Gu Chongxian until he graduated with a Ph.D. This opens a new chapter in life. He did all these tasks himself. “I will review it today. Fortunately, I learned mechanical manufacturing.” Lu Bingheng said that his experience in the factory gave him the awareness and ability to practice. He gave an example. To complete his master’s thesis, he needed to make more than two hundred parts. The factory he first contacted didn’t hear from the factory for more than a month, so he decided to get started by himself. It only took two night shifts and did it quickly and well. The required parts were out, and the thesis was successfully completed. After graduating from his Ph.D., Lu Bingheng went abroad to exchange and study as a visiting scholar. When visiting an automobile company, a piece of equipment caught his attention. “That is a 3D printing device. You only need to import CAD (computer-aided design) models to make a prototype. I haven’t seen this in China. I feel very new.” Lu Bingheng immediately decided to turn his research direction. In this emerging field, he believes this is a good opportunity for the development of my country’s manufacturing industry. After returning to China, Lu Bingheng initially wanted to introduce this kind of machine, but it was expensive, and a laser alone would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Due to the shortage of funds, he had to dispel this idea. Facing the double barriers of “technology + capital”, Lu Bingheng is determined to “break the wall” by his own strength and develop this technology from scratch. At first he didn’t know the working principle of the technology, so he explored it step by step through practice; he couldn’t afford expensive parts and raw materials, so he joined other scientific and technological workers to make it at a small cost. Finally, with the joint efforts of him and the team, not only a prototype was manufactured, but also

“The spirit of moving westward” cannot be lost. The spirit of moving westward is a kind of precious spiritual wealth that was born in the process of moving from Shanghai to Xi’an in 1956 in response to the support of the Northwest of Jiaotong University. , Carry forward the tradition, work hard to start a business”. “The spirit of moving westward has always encouraged me!” Academician Lu emphasized in the program that he clearly felt the great spirit of moving westward from his tutor Gu Chongxian. Professor Gu was one of the old professors who moved westward, and dedicated all of his own to the land of Sanqin. “He knew that the country was developing industry at this time, and he was needed here, so he moved to Xi’an with his family and children.” Lu Bingheng said that when he first arrived in Xi’an, Professor Gu felt that this place was far inferior to Shanghai, but he saw many factories under construction. , He was touched, thinking that Xi’an is where he should come, and helping to build these factories is what he has to do. The innovation and practice that Lu Bingheng has always emphasized also comes from Professor Gu’s far-reaching influence. According to Lu Bingheng, in order to collect machining cases, Professor Gu led teaching assistants to visit a dozen factories, compiled teaching materials with actual cases, and proved the theory. In the end, this set of teaching materials was adopted by more than 100 colleges and universities across the country. “Now, both of my dreams have come true. The 3D printing technology I studied has contributed to my country’s aerospace industry, and I myself have been hired by Peking University as a part-time professor.” Lu Bingheng standing on the stage is not without pride. Say. He encouraged the students to keep in mind the spirit of moving westward, to solve the engineering problems that the country urgently needs to solve, to shine in their work, and to realize their own value.