Maciej Ralowski / ralowski.pl
open-innovation-vshaper
Verashape, a Polish manufacturer of 3D printers, has launched an Open Innovation Program which will look to drive the adoption and application of its VSHAPER 5-axis machine.
The company wants to provide the platform for industrial players to create new ideas and harness additive manufacturing technology to impact their production processes. It is pushing forward the VSHAPER 5-axis system as a tool that can be used for a range of applications in a range of vertical markets.
Verashape presented the machine at formnext powered by TCT 2017 for the first time. Developed in-house, with support from The National Center for Research and Development, the VSHAPER 5-axis platform is inspired by the Fused Deposition Modelling method and allows the user to work with multiple materials in a single process. Available for purchase next year, the machine features a workspace in the shape of cylinder with a 300mm diameter and 300m height. The machine boasts a tool store which allows the use of multiple different heads, and thanks to a consistent temperature inside the working chamber, the printer can support most thermoplastic materials.
Work continues to be done on the VSHAPER platform ahead of its commercial release next year, but through the Open Innovation Program, potential end-users will be able to make their contributions.
“Our machine enables 5-axis printing, enhancing the conventional model printing method allowing to transfer the print plane to another surface that was printed earlier,” said Marek Kantowski, R&D Lead Engineer from VERASHAPE. “It also allows simultaneous 5-axis printing that moves away from the conventional layer-by-layer printing method and allows creating spatial models on a three-dimensional surface, by using all the machine axes simultaneously.”
“As part of the VSHAPER Open Innovation program, we will do our absolute best to make sure that the R&D work we conduct on the 5-axis machine supporting additive manufacturing are beneficial to specific recipients of this innovative technology,” said Tomasz Szymanski, the founder and CEO of VERASHAPE. “Companies interested in the implementation of 5D printing technology, as they are a reality today, have a direct and real impact on the functionality of the machine, which will eventually help their production processes.”
