Just a few years ago, someone searching for an affordable and desktop-sized SLA 3D printer wouldn’t have many options outside of the Formlabs Form 2. But this has drastically changed as new resin-based 3D printers, such as the Anycubic Photon and Peopoly Moai, have stormed the budget segment of the additive manufacturing market.
The rising popularity of SLA and DLP technology seems to have resin-ated (sorry, we couldn’t help ourselves) with the Polish 3D printer manufacturer Zortrax. They’ve just unveiled the Zortrax Inkspire, a desktop 3D printer that utilizes UV LCD technology to create 3D objects from a vat of resin.
Like the popular Anycubic Photon, the Zortrax Inkspire will use an LCD display and ultraviolet backlight to cure photopolymer resin. The company has stated that it will have a max build area of 74 x 132 x 175 mm.
What We Know So Far...
According to Zortrax, the Zortrax Inkspire works about eight times faster and nine times more accurately than other desktop DLP and SLA 3D printers. We have no way to verify this claim until we receive more information (or the actual printer itself), but it’s worth noting nonetheless.
Rafał Tomasiak, the president of Zortrax, told the Polish tech site Komputer Swiet that a single pixel produced by the Zortrax Inkspire measures 50 by 50 microns, and the minimum layer height is only 25 microns. Therefore, the printer can apparently create incredible details with layers that are only visible under a microscope.
Although Zortrax is planning to release its own resins, the Inkspire will be compatible with any resin material that can be cured by light with a 405 nm wavelength. The printer will be able to reach a print speed of 20-36 mm/h regardless of how the build space is used.
On the Zortrax website, the manufacturer claims that its new resin 3D printer will be capable of serial production.
“With one printer making 50 to 80 parts in 1h 30min, 30 printers working together can offer an approximate monthly output of 360,000 to 500,000 parts. That’s why Zortrax Inkspire can work as a basic production unit in easily scalable 3D printing farms capable of short-series manufacturing,” Zortrax states.
Zortrax seems to be aiming this desktop resin printer at applications that involve precision engineering, dental prosthetics, jewelry, and more.
Released alongside the Inkspire will be the Zortrax Ultrasonic Cleaner, an automated post-processing station that uses high-frequency sound waves propagated in water to clean models. Lastly, the company’s 3D printing slicer and printer management system Z-SUITE will receive new functionalities to make it compatible with the resin 3D printer.
From what we’ve gathered from Komputer Swiat, the Zortrax Inkspire will cost around $2,699 and is scheduled to be released in Autumn 2018. However, Zortrax hasn’t listed this price or release date on its website, so this could potentially change.
If you want to keep up-to-date with the Zortrax Inkspire, you can sign up for more information on the Zortrax website.
Review the Specs
Here are the specs for the Zortrax Inkspire:
Printing
Device
Software
Weight and physical dimensions
Temperature
Electrical
Where to Buy
The Zortrax Inkspire is available at these retailers:
License: The text of "Zortrax Inkspire 3D Printer: Review the Specs" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.