3 important technologies used in 3D printing machines

Three-dimensional printing is an additive manufacturing process that involves the production of tangible objects from an input digital file. The additive manufacturing method is the production of solid articles by adding successive layers of the material until the object is produced. Each of the added layers is usually sheets of the material that takes the shape required by the designer.

3D printing usually begins with the production of a virtual design that is usually done with the help of computer-aided design (CAD). Experts in CAD object design can perform the initial design on their computer before uploading the print file to the 3D printer. For those who want to print an existing object, a 3D scanner can be used to make a digital copy of the object before putting it into the 3D modeling program. 3D printers use different types of technologies to make their objects and some of these technologies are discussed below.

Selective laser sintering (SLS)

SLS technology uses a powerful laser to fuse small particles of desired materials. Some popular materials are plastic, ceramics, glass, and metals. These materials are usually fed to the printer in powder form, after which it fuses them by scanning the layers generated by the 3D modeling program. After the layer is scanned, the powder bed adds a layer of thickness to the object being produced to take a further step in production. This process is repeated over and over again until the entire object is completed. An advantage of the SLS method is that excess powders in the production of an object can be recycled and used for another production.

Stereolithography (SLA)

This method is similar to the photopolymerization method in which solids are produced from liquids. Stereolithography technology involves the use of a liquid ultraviolet curable photopolymer resin tank and an ultraviolet laser to build successive layers of the object. To produce a layer, the laser beam takes a cross section of the design on the surface of the liquid resin and exposes it to ultraviolet light, curing and solidifying it, before adding it to the previous layer.

Merged Deposit Modeling (FDM)

This technology involves the use of a metal wire or plastic filament that is usually unwound from a spool and used to supply the required material to an extrusion nozzle capable of turning the flow on or off. The extrusion die is heated to melt the input material and has the ability to move horizontally or vertically based on instructions it receives from a computer aided manufacturing (CAM) software package. As the heated material is extruded through the die to form successive layers, it immediately hardens and adheres to the previous layer produced.

In conclusion, the 3 technologies mentioned above are the most popular technologies employed by 3D printer manufacturing companies these days. All three use different 3D printing software, but can be easily understood and work perfectly over time.