CLIP – a new kind of 3D printing

The one problem with printing ‘layers’ of material is that it leaves ridges. Those ridges can be seen quite clearly in this example of super large scale 3D printing:

 

But 3D printing is still in its infancy. Allow me to introduce CLIP, a new kind of 3D printing invented by ‘…two chemists and a physicist, ..[who].. came in with a different perspective.’ That perspective is ‘continuous liquid interface production technology’, CLIP for short.

‘To create an object, CLIP projects specific bursts of light and oxygen. Light hardens the resin, and oxygen keeps it from hardening. By controlling light and oxygen exposure in tandem, intricate shapes and latices can be made in one piece instead of the many layers of material that usually make up a 3-D printed object.’

That’s the gist of it, but if you go to the Washington Post article here, you can get a much better understanding of the process. You can also watch two amazing time-lapse video clips that show the magic of CLIP at work [pun intended]. 😉

cheers

Meeks

 

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/03/16/this-new-technology-blows-3d-printing-out-of-the-water-literally/?noredirect=on&pi_adid=48343&pi_clickid=91b86c6b5b584f2fa25fee579eacd5b5&pi_creativeid=173761&utm_medium=email&utm_source=powerinbox-revenuestripe&utm_term=.62c51a7e2952