-Stereolithography, the technology behind the majority of resin 3D prints, is commonly described as 'the mother of all 3D printing technologies' and is taken into consideration one of the most commonly used strategies for creating high-quality 3D prints. Here at Materialise, we have been using Stereolithography considering that 1990. Time to talk a little bit extra regarding this modern technology and our latest resins.
3D Resin Printer
The Modern technology: It's everything about UV Lasers
The modern technology behind (most) resin 3D prints is referred to as Stereolithography. And also here's the one-minute description of how Stereolithography works:
- In the first circumstances, the roller of the printer expands a razor-thin layer of fluid polymer. Because this layer is liquid, it will certainly spread out over the whole platform guaranteeing that each layer has a constant thickness
- The liquid polymer we utilize is UV delicate. When struck by a computer-controlled UV laser, the resin will alter from a liquid to strong state. Basically, the laser "attracts" the outlines of the print onto the resin layer and sets the components that it touches.
The components that are not touched by the laser will certainly continue to be fluid
- These 2 actions are repeated over and over and also over again. The model is reduced by a fraction, and also the roller expands a brand-new layer. The laser after that solidifies certain locations of that layer, which will become parts of your 3D print. This is repeated till the design is completed
Once the printing process is finished as well as the whole object has been published, the print is increased from the resin container. The excess fluid will just move away as well as can be reused for various other prints. The prints after that have to be eliminated as well as ended up manually (i.e. eliminate assistance framework, smoothen surface areas, spray-paint surface areas, etc.).
The Resins: From Tiny Details to Mammoth-Size
There is more than one product made use of with this technology. As a matter of fact, we offer 4 different Stereolithography-based materials that come with their very own characteristics. However, these resins additionally share some attributes: they include smooth surfaces and also are fantastic for post-processing.
Mammoth resin: Mammoth resin is published on one of the largest printers around ... you presumed it, the Materialise Mammoth printers (that's also the printer you saw in the video above). Previously this resin was known as Paintable resin. These printers could print huge components up to a size of 2100x700x800 mm, which can be spray-painted in numerous shades.
Transparent resin: Also printed on our Monstrous printers, Clear resin is (shock, surprise) clear as well as can be gotten in several colors. Actually, it is the only transparent product that we currently use at i.materialise.com. It could also be purchased for components as much as a size of 2100x700x800 mm.
Gray resin: Gray resin is the great all-rounder. It comes with a terrific level of information, is suitable for tiny and mid-size designs, and also includes a smooth, grey surface area. This grey shade makes it ideal for hand- or spray-painting tasks. That's why this resin is so popular amongst the range modeling area.
Standard resin: Our newest addition to the resin family. Basic resin comes at a low-budget price while providing extremely detailed results. To conserve some even more cash, you could even order Common resin with assistance structure, meaning less time spent in post-processing.