A report published by researchers from UC Berkeley and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, in the journal Science on Thursday, describes the design of a new 3D printer that allows printing objects faster than previous ones, with smoother surfaces.
Researchers Brett Kelly, Indrasen Bhattacharya, Hossein Heidari, Maxim Shusteff, Christopher Spadaccini and Hayden Taylor developed this 3D printer, which can simultaneously create solid materials using light.
This new 3D printing method, officially known as computed axial lithography or CAL, with the nickname “the replicator” inspired by a device in “Star Trek”, could print objects from nothing, according to Heidari.
The printer was built using a video projector and a cylindrical glass container filled with a light-sensitive material that can be rotated. The projector shines light patterns into the material, which determine the shape of the final product. The printer uses a 3D exposure profile that causes certain areas of the material to solidify, leaving the rest of the material for reuse.
The previous 3D printing techniques involved creating an object by building one layer at a time. If a structure has overhangs, it must be supported by additional structures. In comparison, the solid object formed by CAL is smooth and does not require support structures, meaning it uses less material waste.
This new technology also creates the ability to print material around an existing object, something that previous 3D printers cannot do. CAL reduces production time, which, according to Taylor, a teaching assistant in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley and the corresponding author of the document, can contribute to reducing energy usage and production costs.
Bhattacharya adds that there could be many more applications, such as in additive manufacturing and surgical design.
Kelly also stated that this new printer can create very soft structures, which previous 3D printers cannot achieve, as the layering process of older printers could distort such structures. The “the replicator ” could synthesize very soft mesh and be used in fields we have not yet imagined.
