Holographic Techniques Could Make 3D Printing Almost Instantaneous

Here at Hackster, we frequently report on 3D printing advancements that are driving the industry forward. However, as the industry has matured, those advancements have become more evolutionary in nature than revolutionary. But, a new breakthrough from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory may give us a big leap forward.

The technique they came up with uses holographic projections to 3D print objects almost instantly. Traditional 3D printing works by layering plastic or resin to create a part. The process is time-consuming because only one layer can be completed at a time. The breakthrough here is the ability to cure the entire model all at once, instead of layer by layer.

Usually resin-based printers used a top-mounted laser or projector that is strong enough to cure each layer of resin in one go. This technique, instead, uses three weaker light sources projected from the top, front, and side. Each individual source is too weak to cure the resin, but the three together are enough to cure the resin just at the point where they intersect.

That intersection is the key to printing the whole part at once, as opposed to in layers. The printer can project the complete part from each angle, and cure the entire part at the points where the projections meet. Theoretically, this means that the part can be completed in just the time it takes to cure the resin, which could be as little as a few seconds.