TIME COMPRESSION 77
drivers behind the work of design engineers and their prototyping partners. A team of engineers and chemists have been working
closely together to develop this brand new machine and complementary photopolymer. Combined with a strong history in UV chemistry this integrated system enhances the total offering to customers.
New exposure system
At the heart of Araldite Digitalis are the MLS MicroLightSwitch modules. Based on entirely new MEMS (micro-electro mechanical system) technology, which is neither based on lasers nor on light reflecting MEMS technology as used in 3D printers, the MLS MicrolightSwitch makes Araldite Digitalis superior to any other radiation curing technique on the market. A laser is only able to expose one point at a time,
drawing line by line with the illuminating angle varying depending on where the laser irradiates. The MLS MicrolightSwitch operates at 90°, which makes it able to expose 40 000 light pixels at a time with high accuracy, thus offering the potential of much faster manufacturing of even very complex parts and making it fundamentally different from any existing stereolithography technology. The MLS MicroLightSwitch module enables micron-
size spots of radiation to be selectively irradiated onto a resin surface via a shuttering mechanism built into silicon MEMS chips. The exposure system traverses across the build in x direction and the building plate goes down and the recoater applies the fresh resin onto the surface to build parts layer by layer. The key benefit of this system is that it enables a large
surface area of radiation curable resin to be selectively exposed via a computer controlled micro shutter system MLS MicroLightSwitch is a transmissive technology, making it different to other MEMS systems.
The width of y
axis of the build is determined by the numbers of MLS MicroLightSwitch modules used. Araldite Digitalis consists of the16 modules which give 370 mm y build. Bigger or smaller
build envelopes are obtained by increasing or decreasing the number of MLS MicroLightSwitch modules still maintaining same resolution and accuracy all over the building platform due to the 90° vertical exposure angle. This transmissive modular exposure technology
offers a great flexibility in the resolution, the size and the complexity of the build, as compared to lasers and reflective technologies.
Table 1. Machine specifications: Build envelope
xyz
Exposure System Resolution
Head speed 650x370x600mm
2 UV light bulbs 16 MLS MicroLightSwitch
X Y Z
10, 50 or 125 µm 10 µm 50, 100, 150 µm
3 – 50 mm/s Araldite Digitalis opens the way to a much greater
range of applications and what will be a new era in the development of rapid manufacturing. It has the potential to reduce production times and thereby costs and further it is also easy to use and maintain. The competitive benefits of Araldite Digitalis grow exponentially as the number, size and complexity of parts produced increases. Initial tests at customer sites have
proven the enormous potential of the new AralditeDigitalis technology. It is not just a machine, but a complete development philosophy, combining the best of chemistry and physics. Experts estimate that the rapid manufacturing market is currently worth around US$1.2 billion. n
Enter 77 or ✔ at
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Fig. 4. MLS MicroLightSwitch modules are at the heart of the Araldite Digitalis.
Ole Hangaard is Project Manager for Araldite Digitalis, Huntsman Advanced Materials, Basel, Switzerland.
www.huntsman.com
www.engineerlive.com
Fig. 3. SEM picture of one of the shutters.
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