Different kinds of 3D Printing Technology

3D printing refers to different manufacturing processes that produce parts layer-by-layer. Each manufacturing process is unique in the way they produce metal and plastic components. They may also differ in material selection and longevity, speed of manufacturing as well as cost and speed.

There are many types of 3D printing.

Stereolithography (SLA)

Selective Laser Sintering

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM)

Digital Light Process (DLP)

Multi Jet Fusion (MJF).

PolyJet

Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS)

Electron Beam Melting (EBM)

The right 3D printing process to suit your needs requires an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each process and mapping those attributes to the requirements of your product development. Let's talk about the importance of 3D printing in product development Then we'll explore the benefits of various types of best 3d printer under 500, technologies. To discover more info about 3d printer, you've to check out best 3d printer site.

3D Printing for Rapid Prototyping and beyond

It's safe to say that 3D printing is typically employed for prototyping. Its capability to rapidly produce just one component allows designers to test and communicate ideas efficiently and cost-effectively. Determining the purpose of your prototype will determine the 3D printing method that will yield the greatest benefits. Additive manufacturing can be suitable for a variety of prototypes that span from simple physical models to parts designed for testing functional requirements.

Despite 3D printing being almost associated with rapid prototyping, there are situations where it's a viable production process. Most of these are applications that require low volumes and complex geometries. Often, components for medical and aerospace applications are the best applications for production 3D printing as they frequently meet the requirements previously mentioned.

Five things to consider when printing 3D models

As with most things in life, there's rarely an answer that is easy to find when choosing a 3d printer price process. We frequently mention five key criteria when helping customers evaluate their options for 3D printing.

Budget

Mechanical requirements

Cosmetic appearance

Material selection

Geometry

SLS parts post-processing

Polymer 3D Printing Methods

Let's examine some of the commonly used 3D printing methods for plastic and talk about when they are most useful to engineers, designers, product developers, and other stakeholders.

Stereolithography (SLA)

Stereolithography (SLA) is the first industrial 3D printing method. SLA printers excels at producing parts with high levels of clarity, smooth surface finishes and precise tolerances. SLA parts feature beautiful surface finishes that are used to check the suitability of the component. SLA is widely utilized in the medical field and is used in a variety of applications, including microfluidics and anatomical models.

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)

Selective laser sintering (SLS) melts together nylon-based powders to form solid plastic. Because SLS components are made of real thermoplastic material they are tough, suitable for functional testing and are able to accommodate live hinges as well as snap-fits. Parts made from SLS are more durable than SL however they are more rough on the surface. SLS does not require support structures, and it is possible to use the whole build platform to assemble many parts. This makes it more suitable for larger part quantities in comparison to other 3d printer processes. Many of the parts created from SLS can be used to make prototypes that could be made later on. In our SLS printers, we use sPro140 machines developed by 3D Systems.

PolyJet

PolyJet is yet another 3D plastic printing process. However, there's an additional twist. It is able to create parts that have many properties, including colours or material. Designers can make use of the technology to prototype elastomeric or overmolded parts. If your design is single, rigid plastic, we recommend sticking with SL or SLS as it's more economical. PolyJet is a great tool for prototyping silicone rubber or overmolding designs. This will allow you to iterate and validate your design faster and can save you money.

Digital Light Processing (DLP).

SLA and digital light processing are similar in the sense that both cure liquid resin using light. The major distinction between the two techniques is that DLP employs an electronic light projector screen whereas SLA uses a UV laser. This means that DLP industrial 3d printer can create an entire layer of the build all simultaneously, which results in faster build speeds. DLP printing is commonly used to speed up prototyping. However, it could be utilized to create small-scale plastic components in low quantities because of its greater throughput.