3D printing from flexible light-cured resins: advantages over other additive manufacturing methods

3D printing from flexible light-cured resins is one of the main advantages over other additive manufacturing methods. Photopolymer 3D printers have much wider production capabilities in this area, especially in terms of flexibility and accuracy, unavailable for other techniques such as FDM / FFF or powder technologies.

3D printing using light-cured resins enables the production of parts with high accuracy and surface smoothness. It is also ideal for the production of flexible parts with complex geometries. The FDM/FFF method, although very popular, has significant limitations in terms of surface accuracy and smoothness, as well as in the choice of flexible materials. 3D printing with elastomers is very difficult and requires low speeds so that the filament is smoothly introduced into the 3D printer’s printing system and does not curl or block. It looks much better in powder technologies – SLS and MJF, where TPU is used. However, there are also some limitations in terms of the flexibility and extensibility of the finished parts compared to what light-cured resins offer.

Flexible light-cured resins offer a variety of hardnesses, measured on the Shore scale. From super soft Shore A resins, ideal for applications requiring flexibility, to harder Shore D resins, which are suitable for more rigid but still flexible applications. On 3D printers of this type, it is possible to reach a level of 50-60 D on the Shore scale, while in FDM / FFF technology, going below 85 D on the Shore scale is very problematic and most printed applications have a flexibility of only 90 -95D.

3D printing with flexible light-cured resins offers significant advantages over other additive manufacturing methods. They provide greater flexibility, accuracy and surface smoothness, enabling the creation of complex, flexible parts that are difficult to achieve using traditional 3D printing techniques. Technology Applied – the largest Polish company providing 3D printing services, uses these production methods to create applications that are impossible to produce using other additive methods.

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