Advances in 3D printing

[Islacrusez]

An interesting article on a new type of 3D printing under development. Looks like it might solve the horizontal layer striations of conventional printing, at the very least!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-31918215

[Xeones]

This is certainly interesting. The article itself doesn't really give a lot of information about the process, but it sounds promising. The print speed really is impressive and no striations would be fantastic.



This article seems to indicate the resolution is quite good too. Take a look at the white Eiffle Tower they've done. If they've managed to reduce the striations, while still maintaining that kind of detail, this truly could be a game-changer as they say.

I'm curious to find out the cost-to-print with this process. Is it comparable to other printing methods?

[Islacrusez]

No idea on the costs of the process; I expect that technicalities of commercial applications are a little further down the line. As for the striations and resolution, from what I understand of the process there are no striations because it is not composed of layers of resin added to each other, instead it is slowly cured from one end of the other as if it were in a virtual mould. It would also seem that the detail limit is the resolution of the projection; and since optics are already very advanced, I expect that very fine detail can be expected. I imagine that the actual hard-limit of this method is at the molecular level, and or more closely related to the material than the method.

[Dr Mathias]

Pretty amazing. I think that 3D printing is going to be one of the biggest tech shifts since the printing press in the 1400s.

[Xeones]

Yeah, this is essentially a progression of more established stereolithography printing. The resolution would be determined by the UV laser focal point and the ability of the printer to redirect the laser to an adjacent point. I don't think there's anything there that's different from .

From what I'm understanding, the real difference is in the gas-permeable lens and the control of oxygen that allows the model to be constructed within the pool of UV-reactive resin. My understanding is most existing SL printers print "from the top" ei on the surface of the liquid resin pool with the platform or base for the part being printed moving further into the liquid pool as the process progresses.

EDIT: Upon further study, it appears this isn't always the case, but most use open air to finish the curing process. So with the Carbon 3D rig, it looks like do the entire curing process within the tank.

It's not entirely clear to me the specific advantage of being able to shoot the laser into the middle of the pool of resin to create the object, but it must have something to do with the UV/oxygen interplay.

The speed and resolution/lack of striations may just be a more straightforward improvement on optics and the mechanical components that direct the laser, allowing for both extremely high resolution, but also increased speed --or maybe it also has something to do with the UV/oxygen thing?

As I say, it's quite interesting, but I really wish I could find someone online that would explain things in enough detail to satisfy my questions!

[Islacrusez]

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/carbon3d-amazi ... en-1492315

This article has a bit more detail on the method itself, and should help explain why the setup is so different and so much more effective than the conventional 3D printing we're familiar with.

[Xeones]

Thanks, that article did better explain the specific aspects of the process that I wasn't as clear on.

So it really is all about the interaction between the oxygen/UV/resin. Carefully controlling the oxygen allows for faster resin "cure times" because you don't have to stop the entire process to allow for curing --which is why the speeds are better. That makes sense. It also allows them to precisely control the fabrication process to the extent that they don't have to burn a layer of resin, let it cure, and then put down another layer, it's more seamless, which eliminates the need to do things in slices, which, in turn eliminates the striations seen in normal prints.

Cool!