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• This system again utilizes photo polymerizing resins and UV


light. This is a complicated process developed by the Cubital
Corporation in which thermoset part material is imaged using an
ultraviolet light to form layers of a part.

• To build a layer, a thin coating of ultraviolet-curable


photopolymer is spread over the bottom of the build chamber.
An electrostatically-charged roller is used to apply toner to a
mask. The mask itself is a sheet of glass.

• The mask will shield all the undesired areas of photopolymer.


The mask is then placed over the resin surface and the entire
layer is illuminated with a powerful UV lamp to cure the desired
portion of this cross-section of the part.

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• The uncured photopolymer is then removed and hot wax is filled in


areas where cured part material is not present. A cooled platen is
then used to solidify the wax, which acts as a support material for
undercut features.

• Finally, the unwanted wax and photopolymer on the top of the


layer is planed by a milling cutter to a desired height.

• This cycle is repeated for each layer to ultimately build the entire
part. The part is taken out from the chamber at the end of this
process, and the support material is removed manually by heating.

• A distinct feature of this technique is the capability to produce


numerous parts in a timely fashion in a single batch. Because the
processing time for each layer is independent of the part size or
geometry, multiple parts packed into a single batch can be
fabricated in the same time as is required to build a single part.
This reduces the average cost and time required to build parts.

• The disadvantage of this system is that it is noisy, large and heavy,


needing constantly manned. It wastes large amount of wax which
cannot be recycled. The mask is produced by raster scanning the
image, which sometimes causes steps in x-y plane, affecting
accuracy. This machine is a very complicated rapid prototyping
machine hence this machine is not available commercially since
1999.

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In place of layer by layer solidification, a holographic


image is projected into the resin, causing an entire
surface to solidify. The imaging data are still obtained
from the CAD model, although not in the form of slices.

THERE ARE NO COMMERCIAL SYSTEMS AVAILABLE.

• A conductive material such as aluminium is used as


electrodes on to which the layer cross-section is printed.

• After printing of all the layers, they are stacked onto each
other, immersed in a bath of electrosetting fluid and
energized.

• As a result, the fluid in between the electrodes solidifies to


form the part. The composite is then removed and drained.

• The unwanted aluminium is trimmed from the part.

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• This technology is advantageous due to the control


available over certain material properties. This is done
by adjusting the voltage and current applied to the
aluminium electrodes which may result in the control
of part density, compressibility, hardness and
adhesion.

• Parts can be made from silicon rubber, polyester,


polyurethane or epoxy by this technique.

• The hardware for such a system may be inexpensively


bought off the shelf.

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