3D Printing

Voxel controlled 3d printing lets you manipulate materials to fit your needs

Stratasys (Nasdaq:SSYS), a global leader in applied additive technology solutions, introduced GrabCAD Voxel Print, a new software solution for its J750 3D printing solution which provides true voxel level control during the design and 3D printing process. Manipulating microscopic voxels, which are the building blocks of 3D printing, enables users to achieve 3D printed effects and properties not possible before. This, combined with the full color, multi-material 3D printing capability of the Stratasys J750 3D Printing Solution, opens up a new world of Digital Materials and structures for a range of demanding customer applications, including Academic Research, Product Design, and Biomedical, as well as Art, Design & Animation.

Academic and medical research, as well as training organizations can use GrabCAD Voxel Print to create ultra-realistic anatomical models, such as this cancellous, mesh-like bone, for practicing surgical procedures such as cutting, reaming and drilling.

This machine control utility enables users to manipulate thousands of materials at the voxel level to produce 3D models that fit precise material requirements unachievable any other way. It turns the Stratasys J750 3D Printer into a platform for experimentation, discovery and innovation.

Stratasys’ Digital Materials are achieved by combining PolyJet photopolymers inside the 3D printer. GrabCAD Voxel Print unlocks the ability to manipulate these 3D printed material concentrations, structures and color mapping at the voxel level. This allows users to produce entirely new Digital Materials for their specialized needs – creating advanced structures, gradient color patterns, internal properties and textures to meet precise material requirements for various applications.

“Monkey” from the animated feature “Kubo and the Two Strings,” LAIKA 3D printed using Stratasys multi-material voxel printing capabilities. The resulting accuracy ensures color and detail consistency shot to shot

“With 3D printing, LAIKA is successfully reviving the age-old technique of stop-motion animation. And this sets us off on an amazing journey. The Stratasys multi-material PolyJet technology empowers our animators with the precise, voxel-level control necessary to build the most intricate, creative characters we can imagine. In shot-by-shot, custom animation, this level of detail is critical to bring these films to life. That’s something LAIKA just couldn’t achieve with other technology,” explained Brian McLean, Head of Rapid Prototyping at LAIKA.

Users can use their own model layer slicer tool to assign properties at the voxel level, slice by slice, creating the ability to go beyond boundary representation to volumetric modeling. Stratasys is therefore enabling the user to design and fabricate a part from the inside out. GrabCAD Voxel Print generates a GrabCAD Voxel File (GCVF) that can be directly loaded to GrabCAD and fabricated on the Stratasys J750 3D Printer.

Table designed by Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) was 3D printed using GrabCAD Voxel Print on the Stratasys J750 full color, multi-material 3D Printer. The transparent legs feature aesthetics and strength inspired by wood grain enabled by voxel-level control.

“GrabCAD Voxel Print is a game-changing production technology. For us it’s driving inquiry into new design automation approaches that span and integrate architectural, industrial and engineering design,” said Martin Dunn, Associate Provost for Research and Co-Director, Digital Manufacturing and Design (DManD) Center, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD). “This is leading to new ways to conceive and create products that blur the traditional line between material and structure and traditional boundaries between the digital and physical world.”

GrabCAD Voxel Print is immediately available for use with the Stratasys J750 full color, multi-material 3D Printer and GrabCAD Print.

Stratasys Ltd
www.stratasys.com