The new service uses high-precision two-photon polymerisation
UpNano launches its new high-precision two-photon polymerisation (2PP) 3D printer for serial production of microparts with nanometer-resolution, the NanoPro VT. The service was presented at Formnext, Germany, highlighting its printer as the engine of the service.
The printer has high levels of precision, speed, and flexible prototyping and can be applied to a range of industries. Previously, long production times and materials prevented prototyping and batch production. These problems have now been remedied by the NanoPro VT.
Bernhard Küenburg, CEO of UpNano, said: “With the development of the NanoPro VT, UpNano is now in the position to offer the first fully integrated 2PP-based service for industrial microparts. With over 20 years of experience in 2PP technology, our team is available to collaborate closely with customers to deliver tailored solutions from design via prototyping to serial production including delivery worldwide.”
High resolution and tolerance along with high levels of throughput allows for scalable production of complex designs. The printing system can achieve a performance of 32 megavoxels (million volume pixels) per second, higher than projection-based technologies which produce two megavoxels in three to 10 seconds.
The printer can achieve a throughput of several thousand mm3 per house depending on configuration.
Peter Gruber, CTO of UpNano, said: “This outstanding performance makes it possible to print a million identical parts, or a million parts with individual modifications. In addition, the resolution of the printer allows structures and tolerances below 100 nm. The ability to print the entire surface of 200x200mm substrates is also unique. An automatic lens changer increases flexibility and enables optimised production cycles with the extremely robust NanoPro VT, which operates under ISO 5 cleanroom conditions, is temperature-stable and vibration-isolated.”
The market is shifting towards increasingly intricate designs whilst production tolerances are becoming more stringent, with the limits of certain existing technologies being reached. UpNano is ISO 9001 and 14001 certified.
Küenburg added: “In essence, the service we now offer reduces costs for customers by eliminating the need for clean room facilities, post-processing equipment, metrology, and inspection. On top of that, NanoPro also stands for continuous development. While we already offer state-of-the-art production technologies today, the platform will continue to set new standards in the future. The NanoPro service means dedicated partnership, guaranteed excellence, and continuous innovation.”
