The 3DUJ-2207 model comes equipped with Mimaki's Waveform Control Technology (WCT)
A new dimension
It was back in 1450 when Johannes Gutenburg revealed an automated development to the Chinese technology of printing and in doing so produced the world’s first printing press. It could be said he lit the fuse on a number of processes that have come under the umbrella term ‘printing’.
The word ‘print’ comes from the Latin ‘premere’ which means ‘to press’. From the early wood block printing of the Tang dynasty, for many years printing was primarily the process of pressing an impression onto a substrate.
The word ‘print’ comes from the Latin ‘premere’ which means ‘to press’. From the early wood block printing of the Tang dynasty, for many years printing was primarily the process of pressing an impression onto a substrate”
Throughout this intervening time, there was never an idea that the output of any printing devices would be anything but two dimensional. In fact, a number of the printing processes rely on the inks being absorbed into the substrate and we pride ourselves on the fact the printed materials are ‘flat’.
Realistically, this had not changed even into the mid-eighties when solid ink printing was invented resulting in entry- level colour printers for home computers becoming available to all.
However, in recent times things have changed and the term ‘printing’ has literally taken on a new dimension – a third dimension. 3D printing is now a mainstream technology and is breaking through into media markets.
To the traditionalist, seeing 3D objects as the outcome of the printing process is not really printing, but regardless of the purist view, the world has adopted a name for this technology which is not going to be shaken off.
New technologies can be a little like the Emperor’s new clothes when it comes to understanding what sits behind it and how it works, so maybe I am going to be stating what is taken as common knowledge, but for clarity here is some background behind 3D printing.
3D printing is one of a number of new technologies which is covered by the umbrella term: Additive Manufacture (AM). The premise of AM is a polar difference from typical manufacturing processes where you remove materials to produce the desired component. With AM you actually add material (hence the process title) and as such you have no waste.
Layering material on material
There are a number of AM processes which use different techniques and materials and it is important to know the limitations of each. Selective Laser Sintering, Direct Metal Laser Sintering and Selective Laser Melting are all types of AM that are typically used for metals and components that need to be durable and are subject to loading. But if you want a cheaper and quicker outcome of an AM process, then 3D Printing is the process needed.
This works in one or two different variations of process, but all are very similar and can be used to produce a full size or scaled reproduction of an object. The process most used for plastic components is one of the seven processes of AM called Material Jetting.
With Material Jetting, you use one of three techniques to drop or jet material onto a modelling tray and then cure it with either UV or heat depending on the material you are using to produce your component. Typically, with Material Jetting, as each of the layers of material are deposited and cured, the modelling tray drops incrementally and as it does so, the component is literally developed layer by layer until it is complete.
With regard to traditional printing, you could think of it as printing one layer of ink on top of each other, and as a stack of paper in the delivery of a printing press, with all those dots placed on top of each other, you have a finished product.
So, if you consider the Material Jetting process (UV cured coloured droplets) there is one name that leaps at you – Mimaki. It would be no surprise that the company has brought to market the 3DUJ-2207 3D printer, which can produce some of the most detailed and colourful components or models you could think of.
When you think of the core technologies Mimaki has on its inkjet presses, all this can be applied to produce a world-beating 3D printer.
Market leading technology
The 3DUJ-2207 model comes equipped with Mimaki’s Waveform Control Technology (WCT). With this system the print heads are able to round nearly perfect circles of ink (or modelling material) droplets rather than the deformed circles that can form once the ink is deployed. The benefit is to allow the 3DUJ-2207 to produce high quality almost perfect sized dots and layer them on top of each other.
Some of the inks used for 3D printing can suffer from separation which tends to end up deposited in various parts of the machine, normally in the inkjet heads which then affects quality and production.
The 3DUJ-2207 overcomes this issue with the use of Mimaki Circulation Technology (MCT). MCT agitates the inks by recirculating them through a device prior to passing them onto the print head. In doing this, the materials that may be inclined to drop out of the carrier medium, stay in place as required.
Finally, there is a Nozzle Check Unit (NCU) which checks and cleans each nozzle automatically and ensures the cleaning process has been successful. This allows Mimaki to keep production stable as it builds up the model layer after layer.
In this process, Mimaki can easily deploy the UV drying technology it has developed over the years on each layer setting the material ready for the next. This process is not overly different in principle as with a 2D printer.
What is quite outstanding with the 3DUJ-2207 is the depth and variation of colour available. Mimaki claims users can reproduce over 10 million shades of colour with the printer, the widest gamut on the market, supporting ICC profiles found on many of its 2D printers.
According to Mimaki, over 10 million shades of colour can be produced with its 3D printers
The colour reproduction is cited by Mimaki as ‘photo-realistic’ and you can easily see this demonstrated through the standard CMYK process set along with white and clear inks. The other benefit of the use of clear material is that the outcome of the component is varying levels of translucency. Print your model, then back light it and it comes to life with outstanding colour detail.
The other major benefit of clear inks and the combination of 3D printed materials is that you can encapsulate the solid detail with clear material so that the detail within the model can be seen when it is complete.
Each layer is only 28µm (0.028mm) thick when the press is in standard mode, which means it is not only colour which is a highlight for this printer, the 3DUJ-2207 can produce components or models with very fine detail.
Each layer is only 28µm (0.028mm) thick when the 3DUJ-2207 is in standard mode meaning models with very fine detail can be produced
In line with this, Mimaki has recently launched a new, pure clear material for 3D printing, with the aim to support customers in a range of industries.
The material has been designed for the company’s 3DUJ-553 flagship full-colour 3D printer and is available in a 4.8L ink bottle size. A new addition to the pre-existing MH-100CL product (which is compatible with the 3DUJ-2207 model), the MH-110PCL offers increased transparency.
Clear and translucent colour models can be useful in industries such as medical education as they can be used to visualise internal organ structures as models. Colour variations allow for medical conditions to be more accurately depicted.
One example of this was when doctors and researchers from the University of Florence used the 3DUJ-553 to produce 3D anatomical models back in 2021. The project was a collaboration between the university and Bompan, Mimaki’s exclusive Italian importer.
Paintings and photographs have traditionally been used to demonstrate the colours and details of parts of the human body, but 3D printing allows for more accurate and lifelike representations. Dr. Giacomo Gelati was part of the project and developed a patented algorithm for producing a realistic representation of the internal structures of the body.
One this had been produced, the team used the Mimaki 3D printer to produce a 3D-printed heart. Using colour profiles and the UV LED curing method mentioned in this article, the machine enabled the researchers to achieve a high level of colour quality.
3D printing is now a mature and embedded production process used for medical models, architectural models, rapid product prototyping and manufacturing, art and jewellery and even interior decorations. Mimaki can provide a printer that has all the attributes of being able to produce the colour and detail needed, all for a price tag well within the reach of any printer.
Brian Sims Principal Consultant, Metis Print Consultancy, www.metis-uk.eu
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