SLM Solutions has once again made major news that the 3D printing industry cannot avoid, announcing the launch of a super-sized powder bed laser fusion metal 3D printer capable of manufacturing 3 x 1.2 x 1.2 meters, which may be the largest ever developed by this technology. machine.
Undoubtedly, SLM Solutions once again surpassed the limits of this technology. The last time it attracted attention due to technological innovation was its release of the industry's first NXG XII 600 model equipped with a large number of lasers (12) in November 2020.
Perhaps the best feature of the new machine is the flexible system, which conceptually consists of a core unit and a size-flexible build "shell" capable of manufacturing components of various sizes. It can produce cylindrical parts with a diameter of 1.8 meters and a height of 1.6 meters, or long-diameter parts with dimensions up to 3.0 x 1.2 x 1.2 meters. Its manufacturing efficiency can reach 330cm³/h.
From the research and development history of SLM Solutions, this company seems to be one of the representatives of the latest development of powder bed laser melting technology, although it is not an early imitation object of many equipment manufacturers.
This huge forming size has made the whole industry look sideways. Is the traditional SLM technology really going to develop in such a huge direction? Of course, the huge forming space will further bring the possibility of merging parts and making larger parts. In September, the company just announced that it has received indirect funding from the U.S. Air Force to expand the Z-axis to 1500mm based on the NXG XII 600. The former is equipped with 12 lasers and has a build volume of 600 x 600 x 600mm. More noteworthy is. Its already-sold 600 version can upgrade the Z axis, which once again proves the concept of its flexible system.
Regarding the ultra-large-sized SLM metal 3D printer, Suzhou Xidimo launched the XDM2000 with a forming size of 2000×2000×650mm in 2020. It adopts a single-row 6-galvanometer 6-station parallel mobile scanning solution to divide the 2000×2000mm processing table into 6 × 6 areas of equal size, 6 sets of galvanometer systems distributed in 6 areas in a single row, 6 sets of galvanometers work at the same time when processing starts, move the galvanometer platform to the next station after scanning at the current station, and then 6 sets The vibrating mirror scans synchronously, and the scanning of the 6 stations is completed in sequence, and then the scanning of this layer is completed. After the powder coating is completed, it enters the next cycle until the processing of the entire part is completed.
3D printing technology reference believes that research and development due to demand and strength is a more pragmatic approach. The market is so big, and there are still many directions for technological development. Both Vleo3D and Seurat should be the direction we are chasing.