Not every industrial 3D printer is created equal and some will be better suited to your needs than others. Fortunately, there is a wide range available including the unique 3D printer from the polish manufacturer SondaSYS. This printer is powered by the now-standard Selective Laser Sintering technology, is on offer at LeoSparq Ltd. and has many special features.
1. Select to Change Build Volume
The option to change the build volume sounds like a good idea but only if it is not a manual and difficult process. The build volume of this 3d SLS printer is controlled digitally, and required adjustments are done automatically by the printer. You just need to select the size you require such as size 1 (265 x 265 x 310 mm) or size 2 (365 x 365 x 610 mm) and the printer will prepare the build volume and set the parameters for the galvo, laser, and heating.
Size 1 is more suited to printing small objects or a few objects as the heating and cooling times will also be short. The power required is less and the cost per part will be reduced. When you need a large format 3d printer, size 2 is best suited to print larger parts or larger volumes.
2. Military-Grade 3-Axis Optical Galvo
The galvo directs and focuses the laser beam and is vitally important in SLS 3D printing as the higher the quality of the galvo the more it allows for changeable build volume, substantially increasing printing speed and print quality.
SondaSYS are the only 3D printer manufacturer to use galvos that are of such high quality that the US Army also uses it in their guidance systems. These optical galvos were bought by Novanta a while back and developed by Cambridge Technology.
3. Laser Beam Width Selection Options
Having selective laser sintering means that you can print good quality parts very quickly. With the SondaSYS SLS 3D Printer from LeoSparq Ltd. the laser beam width is adjustable, just like the build volume. You can change the laser beam even during printing, which offers many advantages.
The width of the sintering path is determined by the width of the beam. The wider beam sintering path provides more power with each pass and this increases your printing speed. The wider path also creates stronger 3D parts due to it being more solid.
A wider beam does however give you lower resolution and less details. This is why being able to change the beam while printing is so important. You can print the internal fill of the part with a wide beam as the resolution does not matter, and use a narrow beam on the outside of the part to capture fine details.
4. Skywriting
The 3-axis galvo in the SondaSYS SL02 lets it make arcing movements between points to release excess energy while maintaining printing speed. The laser maintains speed without using more power as it is controlled by the SondaSYS RP software, and the algorithms of the Cambridge Lighting 2 system to automatically turn on and off. The excitation and sleep time of the laser only need to be calibrated once during setup.
Because of the physical limitations of moving the mirrors the laser dots in the standard 2-axis galvo system can only move to its destinations with irregular pauses. These irregular pauses lead to less than perfect areas on certain printed features like the folds on sharp angles as it causes an over-sintered part of the power.
5. Open Material Ecosystem
The open material platform of this printer lets you select the material supplier with the best priced powders that meet your needs. The open platform also allows R&D departments and research institutes to experiment freely to find new and exotic materials to develop better products and processes to benefit all users.