3-D printers are coming with increased number of features, and the materials we can use to make models on them are also being expanded. It is safe to say that within a few years, most of the prototyping and some part of the manufacturing will shift towards 3-D printing due to its amazing features and technique. In the early days, 3-D printing could only be done with one base polymer material, and it was usually an ugly white color or sometimes transparent. As the 3-D technology improved, we got improved printers that could make complex parts and the range of materials improved as well. But, a fully functional colored printer was nowhere in sight as normal colors were given to different parts by using the pre-colored material or painting them after manufacturing. Both these ways proved color schemes impossible to achieve due to limitations. But now Stratasys, the leading developer of 3-D technologies has come up with the World’s first fully colored 3-D printer that can even use different types of substrate materials. How about that?
The all-new Stratasys Object500 Connex 3 uses a triple-jetting technology just like an ordinary Inkjet printer for good effect. It uses three colors, VeroCyan, VeryMagenta, and VeroYellow. The mixture of these three colors can create any color you want in this world including all shades. The ability to build a semi-assembled part directly from the machine with no painting required will surely be a game changer for product design, engineering and manufacturing sectors. The base materials used in the 3-D printing process has also been expanded by the company to include unlimited configurations of rigid, flexible and transparent color material as well as color digital materials. All of these different materials can be used in a single print run as well, so it is a significant improvement indeed.
Stratasys CEO David Reis believes that this new 3-D printing platform will introduce this technology to masses around the world for the first time as well as helping professionals to revolutionize their design and manufacturing process. It will help push the boundaries of 3-D technology further. The use of Polyjet Photopolymer materials will only improve what we can achieve with this technology. The printer also comes up with six palettes for rubber-like Tango colors. They will help the fashion, automotive, consumer and sporting goods of the future. The prototyping part of the design process will never be the same again if you have this beast of a printer in your hands. You can virtually wake up in the morning with a design in your head and have a working model on your desk in the evening. This is truly groundbreaking stuff from Stratasys and will make their hold on the 3-D printing market stronger than ever!