Multi-material printing
Tough economic times mean that manufacturers are increasingly squeezed on time and cost, even as products become more complex. With the increasing use of advanced manufacturing techniques, such as over-moulding, and the growing prevalence of products featuring multiple types of materials, product designers need even more advanced prototyping and modeling techniques. Multi-material 3D printing is a solution to this challenge.Based on the well-known approach of jetting a single photopolymer model material and a support material layer by layer onto a build tray, multi-material 3D printing involves the simultaneous jetting of multiple types of model materials. It makes it possible to print parts and assemblies made of multiple model materials that have different mechanical and/or physical properties, in a single build. There is also the possibility to fabricate materials on the fly, enabling users to create composite materials that have preset combinations of mechanical properties. This allows printed parts with specific Shore A values to match the values of the intended production materials. The result: models that closely emulate the final product, enabling, for example, feasibility testing and over-molding process simulation.
Multi-material printing, such as provided by Objet's PolyJet Matrix Technology and its Connex500 3D printing system opens the way to savings throughout the design cycle. It enables close emulation of the look, feel and function of final products, facilitating selection of end-product materials. In addition, it enables printed prototypes that are very close to the production part, and it can save days and eliminate the costs of simulating and preparing complex and expensive molds for double injection.
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Objet Geometries is based in Rehovot, Israel. www.objet.com
