Metatooth tuned into this year’s Formlabs User Summit last week. There was a fun keynote with CEO Max Lobovsky and YouTuber Matt Stanton. Stanton trained as an aerospace engineer, but now entertains 1.4M subscribers with his creative content.
Here are some topics that caught our attention. Don’t take our word for it! Watch the entire summit here.
Dental Industry Update
The update was primarily a review of the new Form 4B. The Form 4 generation of machines are MSLA instead of SLA technology. The difference being Masked SLA uses an LED array to cure an entire layer at once, as opposed to SLA relying on a single laser that must be moved across the platform.
The result is faster print times, Formlabs claims 11 dental models in 9 minutes with 99% of print surface within +/-100 microns. Updated resins for fast model production are needed to achieve these speed & accuracy improvements.
Resins for temporary and permanent restorations continue to improve, in strength and aesthetics. In particular, a resin from BEGO was highlighted, indicated for permanent single and multi-unit crowns.
Software
New PreForm features of particular use to dental products fabrication were reviewed. PreForm functionality continues to expand so that users can complete all steps of file preparation. It’s not just for slicing!
For dental models in particular, PreForm provides the ability to produce hollow or honeycombed models. Vent or drain holes can now be applied. Labeling, either embossed or engraved can be completed using the PreForm software.
In the “coming soon” department, native CAD file import is on its way. CATIA, Creo, SolidWorks, and STEP were listed. CAD file conversion used to be an industry in itself! PreForm still uses a mesh-based model internally, it will be interesting to learn customer response to PreForm’s approach to meshing from boundary representations.
Developer Tools
The discussion of the Formlabs Web & Local API should spark the interest of those needing to integrate their fleet of printers with other software.
The Web API requires a connection to the Internet and enables communication of the data rendered by the Formlabs Dashboard to workflow management or so-called Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software. Many companies use Google Sheets as their MES! This sort of integration… from Web API to Google Sheets was demonstrated. Lean manufacturing requires visibility of each work unit and Google Sheets is far better than other desktop-bound systems.
The Local API works completely on-premises which is certainly of interest to users with HIPAA or ITAR constraints. It was suggested that developers could create their own dashboards using data retrieved from the Local API. This is another example of tech developed for cloud-native systems providing benefits in a “local only” setting.
The Local API is not just for reporting printer fleet state! While the PreForm application continues to expand it’s capabilities, certain manufacturers may need to adjust print settings dyanamicaly, or apply geometrical changes that PreForm does not support. Using the Local API, a “post-preform” layer can be developed so that users can make use of proprietary methods in their print preparation workflow.
Did you watch this year’s summit? Tell us about it in the comments!
