Xaar and Quantica have partnered to manufacture Quantica’s NovoJet printheads, enabling ultra high viscosity printing for 3D printing.
High viscosity enables flexibility in creating functional components, which Quantica explains as better products and more efficient manufacturing processes.
Unlike most legacy inkjet printheads that print around 20mPa•s, NovoJet is capable of handling a wider range of fluids around 380mPa•s at jetting temperature, equating to approximately 4000mPa•s at ambient temperature.
As a result, the new printheads can jet the same high-property materials used in Stereolithography (SLA) and Digital Light Processing (DLP) without modification. Quantica explains that the crucial difference is that SLA and DLP are intrinsically single material technologies, while inkjet is capable of using multiple materials simultaneously and combine them at voxel level, thus elevating the properties of the printed objects to be photorealistic or exhibit complex functional behaviours achieved through using fluids of different colours or combining materials with different physical properties.
The deal will combine Xaar’s expertise in inkjet printhead manufacturing with Quantica’s technology for jetting highly viscous materials at up to 400cP at jetting temperature, which in an existing system can print 3D parts with up to 7 different materials in one single process.
Manufacturing will take place at Xaar’s high-tech facility in Huntingdon, UK, with both companies expecting the initial NovoJet printheads to be shipping in Quantica’s first 3D printers from the end of 2023.
Founded in 2018 in Berlin, Quantica has dedicated its R&D efforts to both the novel NovoJet printhead technology and advanced multi-material 3D printers, with the deal allowing it to further focus on the development of its 3D printing systems for applications in dental, medical, electronics, R&D, and more.
Quantica CTO, said: “Our mission is to give customers the full freedom of production, and this partnership is instrumental in helping us achieve this.
“Xaar is widely recognised for the quality of its printheads, and this agreement enables us to focus on delivering the roadmap of innovative NovoJet 3D printers for high performance multi-material parts with full confidence the printheads will deliver for our customers and partners.”
