3D printing is often referred to as rapid prototyping with its ability to quickly and cheaply manufacture small volumes of components, in particular those with complex geometries. With no need to produce expensive tooling or moulds 3D printing it is vastly more economical, especially during the development phase when compared to processes such as injection moulding. However, making the jump to industrial-scale production has been an issue ….. until now.
For those needing to fabricate parts with high-resolution (better than ~0.3mm) and a surface finish akin to injection moulded parts, resin-based 3D printing using light-based technologies is the solution. At the top end of the scale is the UpNano NanoOne Green which can achieve feature sizes as fine as 100nm using 2-photon polymerisation (2PP) technology, making it the ultimate tool for rapid prototyping. Even with it’s industry-leading printing speed, print times can be relatively long and production volumes are limited.
For those needing to fabricate parts with high-resolution (better than ~0.3mm) and a surface finish akin to injection moulded parts, resin-based 3D printing using light-based technologies is the solution. At the top end of the scale is the UpNano NanoOne Green which can achieve feature sizes as fine as 100nm using 2-photon polymerisation (2PP) technology, making it the ultimate tool for rapid prototyping. Even with it’s industry-leading printing speed, print times can be relatively long and production volumes are limited.
At the recent Formnext show in Frankfurt (November 2024), UpNano unveiled the NanoPro VT, the world’s first 2PP 3D printer built for industrial-scale production, offering high-volume production of microparts on a scale that has never previously been possible. The NanoPro VT utilises the same 515nm green laser used in the recently released NanoOne Green that yields 30% higher precision compared 780nm lasers, as well as the ability to work with an even broader range of materials, including transparent materials. The machine uses extremely efficient and cost-effective mechanisms, finally allowing 2PP 3D printing of polymeric microparts at a mass-production scale.
Having lead the industry in terms of speed and resolution, UpNano have also made the path to commercialisation more economical for producers by offering the first fully integrated 2PP-based service for production of microparts. Now designers can directly translate their refined designs and processes from the NanoOne platform to the NanoPro VT, and utilise the NanoPro service for production, without the capital outlay required to buy the system.
Peter Gruber, CTO of UpNano explained that using the NanoPro VT, “makes it possible to print a million identical parts, or a million parts with individual modifications. In addition, the resolution of the printer allows structures and tolerances below 100 nm. The ability to print the entire surface of 200x200mm substrates is also unique. An automatic lens changer increases flexibility and enables optimised production cycles with the extremely robust NanoPro VT, which operates under ISO 5 cleanroom conditions, is temperature-stable and vibration-isolated.”
Another advantage of using the NanoPro service is that UpNano are ISO 9000 and ISO 14001 certified. This ensures that any service offered fulfills the latest industry and environmental standards.
The NanoPro service enters the market at a time when the miniaturisation of production parts has often reached the limits of existing technologies such as DLP, μSLA, SLA, MIM or FDM. Designs are getting increasingly intricate and complex while production tolerances are getting more stringent. In addition, the global economy is driving fierce competition, making economies of scale through high-volume production even more necessary than ever. NanoPro offers scalable solutions that can’t be found elsewhere on the market.
