40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing

3D printing is an emerging technology in the manufacturing sector, often referred to as a “manufacturing technology with industrial revolution significance.” Today, I have compiled the top ten 3D printing technologies, vividly presenting their principles through animated images. This mainly introduces five major technologies: SLA, CLIP, 3DP, PolyJet, and FDM, as well as the principles of five metal 3D printing technologies: NPJ, SLM, SLS, LMD, and EBM.

1. SLA (StereoLithography)SLA, or Stereolithography, is a light curing molding technology that uses ultraviolet light to irradiate liquid photosensitive resin, causing a polymerization reaction that cures layer by layer to create a three-dimensional entity. The dimensional accuracy of parts produced by SLA is high, making it one of the earliest commercialized 3D printing technologies.Below is the SLA process engineering.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingUltraviolet Laser Source40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLight Curing Reaction40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLayer-by-Layer Scanning Molding2. CLIPCLIP, or Continuous Liquid Interface Production, is a revolutionary 3D printing technology developed by Carbon 3D based on SLA technology, which increases the speed of 3D printing by 100 times.CLIP projects from the bottom, curing the photosensitive resin, while controlling oxygen in the uncured areas to form a dead zone that inhibits the light curing reaction, thus ensuring the continuity of curing.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLight Curing Reaction40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingOxygen Suppression of the Light Curing Process40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingDemonstration of the Light Curing Dead Zone40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingCLIP Molding Process3. 3DP (Three-Dimensional Printing)3DP, or Three-Dimensional Printing, is a rapid prototyping technology that is similar to traditional two-dimensional inkjet printing. It sprays a binder (colored binder can produce colored parts) from the nozzle to bond powder on the platform, typically using gypsum powder as the molding material. Currently, 3DP technology is mainly applied in two areas: full-color 3D printing and sand mold casting.Below is the sand mold casting process using 3DP technology by Exone.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingBinder Jetting40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingHeating and Curing40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingPrinting and Molding40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingCasting and Molding4. PolyJetPolyJet is a polymer jetting technology whose molding principle is similar to 3DP technology, but instead of a binder, it jets light-curable resin, which is cured by ultraviolet light after jetting.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingPolyJet Molding PrinciplePolyJet uses an array of nozzles, allowing it to simultaneously jet different materials, achieving multi-material and multi-color printing.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingArray Nozzle Working Process40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingPolyJet Printing Process5. FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling)FDM, or Fused Deposition Modeling, utilizes high temperatures to melt materials, extruding them through a print head to form filaments that accumulate on the build platform. FDM is the simplest and most common 3D printing technology, typically used in desktop 3D printing devices.Below is the working principle of FDM technology.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingModel Processing40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingMaterial Extrusion and Molding40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLayer-by-Layer Printing Process40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingSupport Removal40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingSurface TreatmentMetal 3D printing technology can be directly used for the rapid prototyping of metal parts, with broad industrial application prospects, and is a key area of development for 3D printing technology both domestically and internationally. Below, we will share the principles of five metal 3D printing technologies: NPJ, SLM, SLS, LMD, and EBM.6. NPJ (Nano Particle Jetting)NPJ technology is a metal 3D printing technology recently developed by the Israeli company Xjet. Compared to conventional laser 3D printing, it uses nano liquid metal, deposited in a jetting manner, achieving a printing speed five times faster than ordinary laser printing, with excellent precision and surface roughness.Below is the working process of Xjet equipment.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingMetal Particle Refinement 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingMetal Particles Distributed in Droplets 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingDroplet Jetting Molding Process 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLiquid Phase Discharge Process 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingSintered Parts7. SLM (Selective Laser Melting)SLM, or Selective Laser Melting, is currently the most common technology in metal 3D printing. It uses a finely focused laser beam to rapidly melt pre-placed metal powder, directly obtaining parts of any shape with complete metallurgical bonding, achieving a density of over 99%.The laser scanning system is one of the key technologies of SLM. Below is the working diagram of the scanning system from SLM Solutions.40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing Laser Emission40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLaser Transmission40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing Scanning Galvo 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingLaser Scanning and Melting 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingMetal Powder Melting ProcessDuring the metal 3D printing process, due to the complexity of the parts, support materials are usually required. After the parts are completed, the supports need to be removed, and the surface of the parts needs to be treated. 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingRemoving the Parts 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingRemoving the Supports 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingPost-Processing8. SLS (Selective Laser Sintering)SLS, or Selective Laser Sintering, is a technology similar to SLM, with the difference being the laser power used, typically applied for 3D printing of polymer materials.Below is the process of preparing plastic parts using SLS. 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingModel Layer Slicing 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingRemoving the Parts40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingPost-ProcessingSLS can also be used to manufacture metal or ceramic parts, but the resulting parts have low density and require subsequent densification treatment before use. 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingSLS Manufacturing of Metal Parts9. LMD (Laser Metal Deposition)LMD, or Laser Metal Deposition, is a technology with many names, as different research institutions have independently studied and named it. Common names include: LENS, DMD, DLF, LRF, etc. The main difference from SLM is that the powder is gathered to the work surface through a nozzle, where it converges with the laser at a point, melting and cooling to obtain a deposited overlay entity.Below is the working process of LENS technology. 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingCoaxial Powder Feeding 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingBuilding Process10. EBM (Electron Beam Melting)EBM, or Electron Beam Melting, has a process very similar to SLM, with the difference being that the energy source used in EBM is an electron beam. The output energy of the electron beam in EBM is typically an order of magnitude greater than the laser output power in SLM, and the scanning speed is also much higher than that of SLM. Therefore, during the building process, the entire build platform needs to be preheated to prevent excessive residual stress due to high temperatures during the forming process.Below is the EBM working process. 40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingOverall Preheating40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingForming Process40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D PrintingChanges in Powder During Melting40 Animated Images to Understand the Principles of 3D Printing

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