VLM Technology

VLM™ (Viscous Lithography Manufacturing) is a lithography-based AM technique that uses a transparent film to transfer high viscosity resins onto a build platform, where they are cured by light to form 3D printed parts. Unlike conventional DLP, SLA or MSLA processes, which require low viscosity resins, VLM™ can handle resins with up to 100 times higher viscosity, resulting in superior mechanical properties and performance. VLM offers a fast, efficient and scalable way to produce 3D printed objects with thermoplastic-like characteristics.

How does the technology work?

01

First, the resin is picked up by a roller, laminated to the underside of a transparent film, then transferred to the printing area.

02

The build plate rises to come into contact with the recently laminated resin at the desired layer thickness.Then, the UV light engine cures the resin solely in the specified area to create the new layer of the object to be printed.

03

The build plate retreats, peeling the recently cured layer from the film, while the unused resin is recovered and recirculated up to the reservoir.

Multi-material processing

VLM™’s mechanical system allows the resin to be laminated from both sides of the film, making it possible to implement strategies to speed up printing times or even to combine different resins to get multi-material parts and easy-to-remove support structures.

Isotropicity

VLM materials and UV light engine ensure a complete chemical crosslink between layers, resulting in an isotropic behaviour and equivalent properties in XY than in Z, even in layers of up to 200μm.

Surface Finishing

VLM uses a highly precise light engine that together with sophisticated processing algorithms results into an XY resolution of 23μm.

Resolution combined with the ability to laminate thin layers generates a totally smooth surface finish.

High Production Capacity

VLM uses image flashing as a layer fabrication strategy. It uses a high-power light source to cure the entire printing area in a fixed time per layer. This way, the printing time is independent of the number of parts being printed simultaneously, whether it is one or 100.

Room Temperature operations

While some AM technologies adjust the printing temperature to manage high-viscosity resins, VLM systems work at room temperature, avoiding pot-life limitations and the associated material waste.

Why does viscosity matter?

The product ecosystem

Do you want to be an early adopter of the VLM technology?

We work with companies pursuing innovation; willing to improve their products and their manufacturing process, to increase their competitive advantage.

We develop applications in a wide range of vertical markets, offering materials not able to be processed with any other AM technologies, and guaranteeing a process improvement for those short and mid runs where traditional manufacturing methods such as injection moulding are not efficient.

Fill in the form below to register as a candidate for the program.