Construction

WASP wows with new pellet, filament and clay 3D printing lineup at Formnext 2021

Italian construction system manufacturerWASP在其大型3D打印产品组合中添加了不少于八种新产品formnext2021 trade show.

Of WASP’s six new printers, five are polymer machines which have been newly-optimized for depositing specific types of filaments or pellets, in a way that could enable medical or architecture users to slash their costs and lead times.

To help unlock the potential of its existingDeltawasp 40100system, the firm has also launched a continuous feeding unit and robotic arms for the machine, alongside an ‘Industrial Clay’ variant. Together, these new products are said to provide adopters with a more consolidated, automated workflow, whether that be in the deposition of fluidic concrete and plastics, or the creation of precise clay automotive prototypes.

黄蜂的新工业粘土40100 3D打印机的GIF。
WASP’s new Industrial Clay 40100 3D printer in-action at its Formnext 2021 booth. Gif by Paul Hanaphy.

WASP’s buzzing AM business

Founded in 2012, WASP is a company dedicated to the development of circular 3D printing technologies that unlock sustainable construction at scale. Since the launch of its initial PowerWASP system, the firm has gone on to establish a strong portfolio of Liquid Deposition Modelling (LDM)-powered DeltaWASP 3D printers, including its most recent3MT,4070 TECH2040iterations.

尽管这些机器中的每台都具有相同的三角坐标设置,但步进电动机以三角形的形式运行以密切控制其喷嘴的XYZ坐标,但它们分别针对3D打印混凝土,PEEK和ABS进行了优化。

除了其“ Delta”机器外,黄蜂还销售其陶瓷和高级材料,以“粘土”和“工业”系统以及模块化的“起重机”建筑单元。与Mario Cucinella ArchitectsDior, the firm continues to deploy the latter to scale new heights in sustainable housing, first 3D printing a‘TECLA’ eco-house, then abeachside pop-up storein Dubai.

另一方面,在其粘土投资组合中,该公司推出了独特的hybrid prototyping approachlast year, with which it claims that automotive users can reduce their products’ time to market without losing any of the artistry in their vehicle design, thus at Formnext it has now released a spate of new products that are designed to allow users to explore this potential application even further.

A WASP-3D printed clay motorbike model.
A WASP-3D printed clay Honda motorbike model. Photo by Paul Hanaphy.

Sculpting clay auto-applications

WASP dedicated one of its Formnext booths to its latest LDM advances, including the launch of a new edition of its 40100 machine. Known as the ‘40100 Industrial Clay,’ the 400 x 450mm system features an auger-driven extruder which is compatible with 4, 6 and 8mm nozzles, and capable of printing 1mm layers at up to 150mm/s.

该公司将其描述为“协作3D打印机”,该工业粘土是与Honda, specifically to target automotive prototyping and product design applications. At its Hall 12.0 booth, WASP showed how the technology had enabled it to work with the Japanese automotive firm, to create practical models in a way that allowed for “an unprecedented freedom in manufacturing.”

According to WASP’s Lorenzo Filipponi, its displayedclay-printed motorbike modelwas built as part of an ongoing project between the companies using a condensed process that cuts out the need for milling, reducing its lead time by around a third.

Filipponi also said that one of the main drawbacks to using its 40100 machine in the past had always been its limited powder capacity, which meant that users often had to refill it multiple times when printing larger parts. In doing so, manufacturers were not only forced to spend their valuable time completing a laborious manual task, but they risked compromising the integrity of models with air bubbles.

To help tackle this refilling issue, WASP launched a continuous powder feeding system at the show too. Weighing in at 30kg, the titanium 11-liter smart-tank features compatibility with nozzles up to 8mm wide, controllable material dosage and nylon wheels at its base, allowing adopters to conveniently top up their machine in an space-efficient way.

On the theme of automation, the firm also unveiled a robotic arm system at its LDM booth, capable of depositing fluid-dense materials such as concrete and plastic granules, which Filipponi said is designed to accelerate the prototyping of large-format parts, and has previously been used within maritime R&D to optimize yacht components.

黄蜂的Flex和PEEK-optimized机器展出at Formnext 2021.
WASP’s new Flex and PEEK-optimized machines on display at Formnext 2021. Photo by Paul Hanaphy.

刷新的工业FDM阵容

At its other stand on floor 12.1, meanwhile, WASP revamped its FDM offering with five new Industrial-line systems: the 3MT HDP, 4070 HDP, 4070 TX, 4070 FX and 4070 ZX. With the former two, the company has launched two large-volume pellet-extrusion machines, which are designed to process recycled polymer granules, in a fast, precise, cost-effective and ultimately more sustainable way.

In essence, the 3MT HDP and 4070 HDP printers are able to achieve this thanks to their built-in HDP extruders, that rely on a capacitive sensor to continuously deposit granules where needed. The machines are also able to reach 250° without overheating due to their integrated Firecap systems, while their Vacuum Active Control plates enable parts to be rapidly replaced without disrupting build quality.

Speaking to 3D Printing Industry at the booth, WASP’s Camilla Bruno explained that these features allow the machines to produce enormous eco-friendly architecture, and the 3MT HDP was displayed creating a chair in live-action during the show.

在其他地方,布鲁诺(Bruno)建议该公司的其他四个FDM 3D打印机是“更简化”其工业X机器的“更简化”版本的。鉴于每个系统现在旨在处理特定类型的碳,颗粒,窥视或聚碳酸酯,因此她补充说,“不再需要调整”以在材料之间切换,从而使其非常适合满足特定的医疗或建筑应用。

实际上,这意味着工业FDM机器包含单个专用挤出机,而不是工业X的双脱位器。此外,虽然每个系统都包含相同的印刷床,但它们的布局已对某些材料进行了优化,例如,4070 TX具有内联丝干燥系统,而4070 FX能够以50a的岸上硬度打印软材料。

有关黄蜂最新发布的更多信息,请通过其最新发布store page.

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Featured image shows WASP’s new Flex and PEEK-optimized machines on display at Formnext 2021. Photo by Paul Hanaphy.

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