I was wondering if we might be able to get a little more information on these two points from the Form1+ page:
1) A redesigned galvanometer control system for more precise and accurate control
2 ) Re-engineered mechanical components for better wear and durability
For #1:
How will this translate into the prints, would there be any difference in the prints?
Any more information?
For #2:
How does the new tilt mech work (same, but with new parts?) – will it have any effect on prints?
Does the new laser have any other benefit aside from a great speed increase (like the spot size etc)?
And finally:
If the old systems, usually fail after 2 to 3 weeks of solid day/night printing, (in my experience), what sort of improvement (if any) can we expect from the re-engineered components?
Thank you for any information you might be able to add! (specific or otherwise!)
Great questions, Ready Go. I’m going to do my best to answer them as completely as possible – some of them, of course, are a bit challenging, but I’m sitting with Craig, here, one of our mechanical engineers, so we’ll do our best:
To answer #1, the new galvanometer control system is a circuit board that has been entirely designed in-house (no, not by Craig), and incorporates a number of changes which make the calibration and control of the galvanometers themselves much more accurate and reliable: think a better signal-to-noise ratio and refined tuning. This translates to better surface finish in prints, because each layer is more closely aligned with the layer previous, and there is less variance in the path that the laser traces.
For #2, we’ve updated the motor housing to a reinforced construction that’s much more durable. We’ve completely re-engineered the clevis mechanism using better materials and tested it for millions of cycles. You shouldn’t expect this to have any impact on your print quality, but it will certainly reduce machine failures.
As to your third query, of course, making sure that our printers are as robust and reliable as possible is one of our top priorities. This goes for both the Form 1 and the Form 1+. Our printers are designed to last, and we stand behind them completely. If you’re having (or have had) any issues whatsoever, please get in touch with our support team, at support@formlabs.com, who’ll take care of you.
Of course, the most noticeable improvement you’ll see comparing the Form 1+ to the latest Form 1s, is the dramatic reduction in print time, with an average speed-increase of 50%.
Hi Sam. So will the new galvanometer help with more detailed 25 micron prints? For example on very tiny prints like jewelry or miniatures? Are there any high detailed pics (other than the mammoth and sphere) of 25 micron prints done with the form1+ in the new black resin?
In my opinion, the 25 micron setting is a very tricky one. You have to realize that even though that sets the layer thickness to 25 microns, the minimum feature size possible is still remaining at the 300 microns. No matter which layer thickness you chose, that doesn’t change. Therefore, it all depends on what you print, and how you orient the model. If you orient the model in a way that you details are depending on the Z axis resolution, then yes the 25 micron will help a lot, but if your details fall on the X or Y axis, then it won’t make much of a difference. If they fall somewhere in between, then you will see a small improvement in quality.
Well aware, my friend. I was an early adopter of the printer. Right now I'm just trying to decide if its going to be worth paying 750 for the new galvanmeter board for my printer that’s already in the repair shop.
Does the firmware/preform differentiate between 1+ and 1? Since the current 1 parts are deprecated, I presume you’ll only fix the 1s with 1+ parts, does that mean it would have the 1+'s speed in printing? Or is there going to be a software limitation since it was sold and technically still a version 1 machine?
