Don't be so quick to dismiss it, after all it's a prototype.
Sure the build plate is small and the parts will be smaller than with a makerbot but you cannot print a full size Lexi or XLR-One in a single print on a makerbot either. The parts may just need to be re-designed to allow for the smaller build plate (and also for the increased strength).
Better quality, stronger and faster "prints" are not something to turn your nose up at.
Each 3D printing method and technology has their own strengths and weaknesses. You'd be a fool to dismiss any of them.
The first I ever heard of 3D printing nearly 30 years ago was something similar to this, but instead of the object being built from the bottom up, it was built from the top down as the liquid resin added as the layers built up. Used a UV laser to harden the object in layers.
This method seems to resolve a lot of the issues that prevented that design from ever really going anywhere (although metal laser sintering is a similar concept).
I think it has a lot of potential. People are going to take over this and improve on it. Just think 100X faster and better quality. I like the concept. It IS a little pricey. But, the prices will come down as we go further into the future.
It's a distinction without a difference. Chosen to not like them/dismissed them are the same thing in essence.
They could work perfectly well for what you do, or in addition to what you currently use. However you seem to have totally overlooked the benefits of the technology (i.e. speed, strength, detail).
You may need to slice larger items in to smaller parts and join together, I fail to see how this is an issue especially when you have mentioned that you do this with FDM anyway.
It's not a replacement for FDM and wont be the "makerbot killer" tech but if used in conjunction with FDM you could produce some very polished, strong, lightweight pieces.
I think it's a really cool technique and the next step in SLA printing. I work with SLA
DLP printers everyday, I have designed/am designing a few aswell and
in comparison to many other 3d-print technologies, there's nothing like it. It's fast with a high quality finish. Especially speed with DLP printing. No matter how many
things you place on your buildplatform, every layer will take the same amount of
time. Only the height of the objects is important and some other factors like resin and projector, but those aren't as variable your models.
@Anthony
It's all about the settings. You'll notice with your Makerbot, that if you don't turn
your heating bed on or what ever that your print will warp and pop of of your
buildplatform. Same problem with SLA printing but then different method.
The first of a few things that I could see happening with this new printer would
be the variety in resins. The whole continuous printing is based on the oxygen
inhibition properties of the resin. Which won't leave that many resins. (Except if
they made new ones). Probably their printer, their resins which could make it
really exspensive. (e.g. 3D systems: $1200,- per liter, ouch).
The printed models will most likely also require post curing, prefferbly in vacuum
or inert environment. Otherwise the model will stay "wet", because the resin
can't cure when exposed to oxygen.
I've been reading their patent and it's really cool stuff. It sucks though that
they accelerated all of their videos, I hoped to see one that would print at
the actual speed and not 7x or 10x. I'm looking forward on more about this
printer and I hope this isn't an all out hype like the form 1.
Don't be so quick to dismiss it, after all it's a prototype.
Sure the build plate is small and the parts will be smaller than with a makerbot but you cannot print a full size Lexi or XLR-One in a single print on a makerbot either. The parts may just need to be re-designed to allow for the smaller build plate (and also for the increased strength).
Better quality, stronger and faster "prints" are not something to turn your nose up at.
Each 3D printing method and technology has their own strengths and weaknesses. You'd be a fool to dismiss any of them.
The first I ever heard of 3D printing nearly 30 years ago was something similar to this, but instead of the object being built from the bottom up, it was built from the top down as the liquid resin added as the layers built up. Used a UV laser to harden the object in layers.
This method seems to resolve a lot of the issues that prevented that design from ever really going anywhere (although metal laser sintering is a similar concept).
Alan
I think it has a lot of potential. People are going to take over this and improve on it. Just think 100X faster and better quality. I like the concept. It IS a little pricey. But, the prices will come down as we go further into the future.
It's a distinction without a difference. Chosen to not like them/dismissed them are the same thing in essence.
They could work perfectly well for what you do, or in addition to what you currently use. However you seem to have totally overlooked the benefits of the technology (i.e. speed, strength, detail).
You may need to slice larger items in to smaller parts and join together, I fail to see how this is an issue especially when you have mentioned that you do this with FDM anyway.
It's not a replacement for FDM and wont be the "makerbot killer" tech but if used in conjunction with FDM you could produce some very polished, strong, lightweight pieces.
I think it's a really cool technique and the next step in SLA printing. I work with SLA DLP printers everyday, I have designed/am designing a few aswell and in comparison to many other 3d-print technologies, there's nothing like it. It's fast with a high quality finish. Especially speed with DLP printing. No matter how many things you place on your buildplatform, every layer will take the same amount of time. Only the height of the objects is important and some other factors like resin and projector, but those aren't as variable your models.
@Anthony It's all about the settings. You'll notice with your Makerbot, that if you don't turn your heating bed on or what ever that your print will warp and pop of of your buildplatform. Same problem with SLA printing but then different method.
The first of a few things that I could see happening with this new printer would be the variety in resins. The whole continuous printing is based on the oxygen inhibition properties of the resin. Which won't leave that many resins. (Except if they made new ones). Probably their printer, their resins which could make it really exspensive. (e.g. 3D systems: $1200,- per liter, ouch). The printed models will most likely also require post curing, prefferbly in vacuum or inert environment. Otherwise the model will stay "wet", because the resin can't cure when exposed to oxygen. I've been reading their patent and it's really cool stuff. It sucks though that they accelerated all of their videos, I hoped to see one that would print at the actual speed and not 7x or 10x. I'm looking forward on more about this printer and I hope this isn't an all out hype like the form 1.