Apr 2, 2019 | By Thomas
Boston-based MIT Media Lab spinoff Formlabs has today launched two new 3D printers at the Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) show in Chicago, and at Hannover Messe show in Germany. The new Form 3 and Form 3L feature a new process the company calls Low Force Stereolithography (LFS) which "uses a custom-designed system of lasers and mirrors and a flexible film tank to cure solid isotropic parts from liquid resin with pinpoint precision."
“We entered the industry seven years ago with the first powerful, affordable desktop SLA 3D printer and since then have shipped more than 50 thousand printers, and our customers have printed more than 40 million parts,” co-founder and CEO Max Lobovsky said in a press release. “We’re excited to take another huge leap forward with LFS 3D printing, dramatically improving the print quality and reliability people can expect while still offering the most powerful and affordable 3D printer on the market.”
Features of the LFS process include:
- A flexible film tank that reduces peel force;
- A modular light processing unit (LPU) that maintains a precise, high density laser spot to ensure accurate and repeatable prints;
- Easier cleanup and smoother parts with tear-away light-touch supports;
- Integrated sensors that help maintain ideal print conditions, sending alerts about the state of the machine;
- Remote printing through the online dashboard.
The Form 3L, which offers five times the building space of the Form 3, is powered by two Formlabs optical laser units and delivers twice the laser power. Lobovsky says no printers in the Formlabs’ price range offer that printing volume.
In addition to hardware, Formlabs has also introduced a new Draft Resin material which enables up to four times faster printing at 300 microns for rapid prototyping.
The cheapest Form 3 is priced at $3,499 and the 3L starts at $9,999. The smaller of the two models will begin shipping in June, while the first shipments of Form 3L printer are expected to commence Q4 2019. Formlabs' older, Form 2 3D printers, will get a little cheaper as a consequence, with prices starting at $2,850.
Posted in 3D Printer
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so.... FEP?
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