There is now a new way of creating 3D objects “in record time”. Researchers from Switzerland's Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have developed this new method. The method uses the principle of tomography, displaying a representation of a cross section through a solid object via x-rays or ultrasound. An object to be created using this new method would form a solid structure in a photosensitive resin in one go, unlike the traditional 3D printing method, which prints an object segment by segment. Engadget has more details:
"It's all about the light," explains Paul Delrot, CTO of Readily3D, the company that has been set up to develop and market the system. "The laser hardens the liquid through a process of polymerization. Depending on what we're building, we use algorithms to calculate exactly where we need to aim the beams, from what angles, and at what dose."
The technology could have a wide range of uses, but its advantages over existing methods may assist medical experts. Researchers believe the process could be used, for instance, to make soft objects such as "tissue, organs, hearing aids and mouthguards." What's more, printing can take place inside sealed, sterile containers, preventing contamination.
"The system is currently capable of making two-centimeter structures with a precision of 80 micrometers, about the same as the diameter of a strand of hair," EPFL News adds. However, the team believe that could be increased to 15 centimeters in the future. "The process could also be used to quickly build small silicone or acrylic parts that don't need finishing after printing," says Christophe Moser, head of EPFL's Laboratory of Applied Photonics Devices.
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