According to DELO, the system is suitable for prototype development and small-series production.
DELO has collaborated with Infotech, a Swiss-based company that recently introduced a fully automated system designed specifically for 3D printing liquid materials and multi-material structures, to help with the production of components with different physical property ranges. The core of the new system is reportedly a special dispensing unit that can be equipped with up to three different dispensing valves. Depending on the properties of the printing media and the structures to be dispensed, users can choose from a variety of established dispensing valves, like jet valves, time-pressure valves, or screw dispensing systems. Each valve sits on a separate vertical axis.
Since the dispensing heads can be operated in parallel, it is possible to combine different liquid materials in one printing process. Linear axes and integrated real-time control ensure maximum dispensing precision. The segmentation of the structure and the segments’ allocation to the different dispensing valves are stored in the STL model and correctly implemented in the dispensing pattern by the slicer software. A camera moving along with the robot head detects the exact dispensing position while simultaneously calibrating the dispensing system.