New additive manufacturing technology
Driving microproduction forward
With the new process of projection micro stereolithography (PµSL), Boston Micro Fabrication is opening up alternatives to injection molding and CNC machining, especially in micro production - for prototypes as well as end products in series quality.
In additive manufacturing with polymers and composites, the microArch 3D printers from BMF produce high-precision components with 2 μm print resolution and +/-10 µm scale accuracy.
The trend towards miniaturization of components is increasing in all industries. The demand for very small, yet very complex components is increasing in consumer electronics, medical devices and MEMS, life sciences and many other areas. To accommodate advanced functions and various wireless technologies, electronic devices are becoming more densely packed with a variety of small components. For medical applications, tiny components and very small devices are being produced that can even be implanted directly into patients.
Development flexibility, quantities and costs
At the same time, manufacturers are looking for new ways to produce these small but highly detailed products and components. This is because the demand for small, high-precision parts is increasing, but conventional manufacturing processes are associated with high investment costs and long lead times.
Small plastic or polymer components are usually manufactured using cost-intensive micro injection molding or equally expensive micro CNC machining. The production of molds and tools for these tiny components is more expensive because special, complex tools and devices are required. The up-front costs in tool and mold making are between tens and hundreds of thousands of euros, which drives up the unit costs, especially for relatively small series.
This is why 3D printing is the obvious solution. However, additive manufacturing methods have so far been unable to meet the requirements for resolution, accuracy and speed. Now there is a new technology with the flexibility of additive manufacturing that is suitable for many manufacturing scenarios in terms of price. With micro 3D printing, highly detailed components can be produced without costly tool and mold making. Because 3D printing for micro manufacturing is much more economical than printing larger components, it opens up more cost-effective manufacturing options than injection molding, with the added benefit of greater flexibility.
Cost comparison: Microfabrication using injection molding or 3D printing
For companies that produce conventional parts and components, the choice between injection molding and 3D printing becomes a simple calculation task: with increasing quantities, the manufacturing costs of 3D printing will quickly exceed the costs of injection molding in most cases. Some applications reach the intersection point with just a few hundred parts.
This is because the components are made from normal plastics. The low material costs partially offset the high up-front costs, making the components cheaper compared to 3D printing. This is why 3D printing has so far only been able to establish itself for relatively small batch sizes. For larger quantities, it remained more economical to build a tool and produce conventionally. This is why 3D printing of series parts has been most successful for small quantities or for certain customer-specific requirements, for example in aerospace, medical technology or dental technology.
New starting position in microproduction
But these standard rules do not apply to micro-production; the profitability calculation is almost turned on its head. Why? On the one hand, toolmaking for very small components incurs significantly higher costs. On the other hand, the material costs in 3D printing only make up a very small proportion of the manufacturing costs because only small quantities of material are used. Even if the material for 3D printing costs ten times as much as conventional granulate, this has little impact on the overall costs. Under these conditions, 3D printing can be used sensibly for small, high-precision components, even for quantities in the tens of thousands. It is true that the use of additive manufacturing technology requires the purchase of one or more 3D printers, which can be a costly investment. However, this purchase is amortized over time and, unlike moulds and special tools, the printers can later be used to produce other parts without additional costs (and moulds).
The new projection micro stereolithography
Boston Micro Fabrication (BMF) is commercializing a 3D printing process called projection micro-stereolithography or PµSL. PµSL is similar to other technologies such as SLA or DLP on the market, but with some important differences. Although the process is based on the principle of stereolithography, the technology uses a flash of UV light to rapidly photopolymerize an entire resin layer in micro-resolution. As a result, the process achieves ultra-high accuracy, detail and resolution that are simply not possible with other methods.
BMF's microArch series of 3D printers feature a high-precision lens between the light source, a DLP projection and the resin bath. The printers also precisely control the XYZ movements, using high-precision stages similar to those found in coordinate measuring machines. The combination and coordination of these systems enables an optical resolution of 2 to 10 µm, depending on the system, achieving a tight tolerance in the +/-25 µm range. In combination with the high speed of the DLP, this approach results in the high performance and throughput required for industrial applications.
The highlight: The new microArch S230
The line of microArch 3D printers from BMF comprises three series, categorized according to the achievable resolution. The P150 is the entry-level model in BMF's micro precision 3D printer series. With a resolution of up to 25 µm and lower investment costs, it is perfect for small, detailed parts that do not require ultra-high resolution. The second series comprises printers with a high resolution of up to 10 µm and a large installation space for industrial applications.
The highest resolution down to 2 µm is offered by the printer series to which the new top model microArch S230 belongs. The microArch S230 offers unprecedented design freedom and detail resolution to research laboratories and manufacturers who require micro parts with tight tolerances as prototypes or series parts. It enables a larger build volume of 50 x 50 x 50 millimeters and up to five times faster printing than previous models in the 2μm series. Other key features of the microArch S230 include active layer leveling, automatic laser calibration and the ability to process higher molecular weight materials with a viscosity of up to 20,000 Cp, enabling the production of stronger functional parts.
Open material system has been expanded
BMF offers an open material system for all printers. Users can work with specially defined liquid polymers from BMF as well as other materials of their choice. The BMF line of photopolymers includes hard, stiff, high temperature resistant, biocompatible and durable materials for functional end-use parts. The range of materials has just been expanded:
● AL (aluminum oxide) ceramic - A biocompatible and chemical-resistant ceramic resin for applications with high temperatures, high strength and high rigidity, such as in toolmaking (injection molding), housings and medical devices.
● HT 200 - A durable, high temperature resistant and high strength resin that can be soldered and is intended for end use in electrical connectors and electrical components.
● MT (magnesium titanate) ceramics - The combination of high dielectric constant and low dielectric loss makes MT ceramics suitable for millimeter wave applications such as antennas, waveguides and other electronic components.
The advantages of micro 3D printing
Micro 3D printing opens up a number of potential benefits, particularly for manufacturers producing batches of very small and accurate parts or products in relatively low volumes. These include:
Flexibility
3D printers can be used for a wide variety of different applications. Manufacturers can react quickly to design changes, customer requests or market requirements without having to produce new molds and tools.
Low material and chemical requirements
Conventional 3D printing requires more expensive materials than injection molding or CNC machining. Users print additional support structures, which represent expensive waste. However, micro parts have low material and cleaning chemical requirements due to their size and process. As a result, even thousands of printed parts have low material costs.
Saving costs for molds and tools
The development and production of special tools and molds for micro components causes significantly higher costs than for components in standard sizes. As soon as new requirements or developments arise, they can very quickly become obsolete. Although 3D printing requires an investment in equipment, it saves on the ongoing need for molds and tools. Even for components that can only be produced by injection molding, printers can be used to economically produce new micro molds. This makes them ideal when different manufacturing techniques have to be used anyway.
Micro-precision 3D printing opens up a cost-effective way to meet the challenges of miniaturization in many industries. Without the high costs of special molds and tools, this approach brings a high degree of flexibility to production. For micro-scale applications, which are becoming increasingly common in electronics, medical technology and other industries, the ability to 3D print hundreds or thousands of parts leads to real economic savings, better responsiveness to changes in product design or market conditions.
Due to the advantages of micro-precision 3D printing, lower costs can be achieved for standard industrial series than with injection molding or micro CNC machining.
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