EnvisionTEC’s Largest Dental 3D Printer Prints Dental Models within 20 Minutes

EnvisionTEC unveiled the new Vida cDLM dental 3D printer with a larger build volume and faster speed than all its predecessors.

EnvisionTec, the global leader in high-accuracy resin 3D printers, unveiled its largest dental 3D printer till date, the Vida cDLM. The latest addition to the EnvisionTEC family of 3D printers is a continuous high-speed dental 3D printer which prints at a speed of 20-50 mm per hour, subject to the materials. The company claims to print night guards in FDA approved materials in less than 20 minutes.

The new Vida cDLM dental 3D printer was unveiled at, recently concluded, LMT Lab Day, Chicago 2018. It is the gathering of dental companies, entrepreneurs, managers, clinicians and manufacturers from more than 40 countries. A large number of companies exhibit their latest technological devices related to the dental market. The same event was also host to new dental product launches by 3D Systems and Stratasys.

Also Read: 3D Systems Unveils Grand Dental Portfolio; Targets Multi-Billion Dollar Dental Market

Vida cDLM

Above: EnvisionTec’s largest Dental 3D Printer Vida cDLM / Image Credit: EnvisionTec

Vida cDLM is the largest 3D printer built by EnvisionTec and has a big build volume of 145 x 81.5 x 100 mm with an XY resolution of 76 microns. The company claims to 3D print:

1. 3-4 horizontal orthodontic models in 100-micron layers in about 15-30 minutes
2. 3-4 full crown and bridge arches in 50-micron layers in about an hour
3. 10-12 vertical orthodontic models in 100-micron layers in about 90 minutes

(Above claim is subject to the use of EnvisionTEC’s premium E-Model Light material)

In addition to the above claims, the dental 3D printer is capable of printing night guards and bite splints within 20 minutes using FDA-approved E-Guard material, and it can print as much as six denture bases in about 80 minutes, at a speed of 47 mm per hour.

The new dental 3D printer is not only big but also faster than most competitors considering the average printing speeds for many comparative dental 3D printer.

The cDLM technology also offers benefits like printing with high wax content for jewellery models, this helps during investment casting. The cDLM printed parts exhibit properties similar to parts manufactured via injection moulding.

The Vida cDLM will be leading the dental portfolio for EnvisionTec. The complete printing and material technology will be aimed at establishing a solid platform in the dental 3D printing market.

Continuous 3D Printing

Continuous 3D Printing is a patented technology by EnvisionTec. It can simply be called as the next evolutionary step of the well-known Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology. Apparently, DLP was commercialised by EnvisionTec in 2002. The Continuous 3D printing process is similar to DLP but it has a continuous motion of the build platform in the Z-direction. The continuous movement allows for faster speeds and fewer supports along with few other benefits.

EnvisionTec has a patent for this technology since 2011. However this patented technology has a drawback while printing across large build areas and as a result, the printers had smaller build volumes. But the company now has introduced a new patent-pending technology which enables printing over large build areas.

EnvisionTec has eliminated a crucial drawback and is now growing its fleet if continuous 3D printers. The company now boasts of the below range of 3D printers:

Continuous 3D printing has boosted the speeds of the printers enabling faster results in the already competitive dental market. The competition for a big market share in the multi-billion dollar dental market is getting fierce by the day as large corporations entering the industry.

More News on LMT Lab Day: Stratasys Announces a Series of AM innovations for Dental Laboratories

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