Nanotechnology for Rapid Tooling

Producing strong, stiff, high temperature resistant composite parts on conventional stereolithography machines is what NanoTool delivers. A third-generation DSM Somos ProtoComposite material, NanoTool is heavily filled with non-crystalline nanoparticles, allowing for faster processing and superior sidewall quality. This reinforced composite material – with a heat deflection temperature >500°F, after thermal post-cure, and a flexural modulus value of 10,000MPa – features very low linear shrinkage (<0.001") and allows for production of extremely accurate and highly detailed parts.

Not only does better sidewall quality make NanoTool an easy product to finish, but it is also easy to clean the parts once they are built. Unlike other composite resins that require more extensive time and care to remove residue, a simple water-honing process removes any particles left on the surface.

NanoTool gives the high precision physical properties and surface qualities required for a wide range of rapid tooling and rapid prototyping applications, generating significant savings in both lead times and costs. The smooth surface quality and high initial modulus make it an excellent resin for metal plating – saving time and money as an alternative to fully metal prototypes – while another application area is rapid tooling for injection molding.

Working together with the molding company Pichot, Axis has used NanoTool to make production tools for the injection molding of pill dispensers for the medical industry. Conventional metal tools would have taken four to six weeks to produce, but by using stereolithography (SL), the complete process from CAD drawing to fitted injection molds took just eight working days.

Ludovic Martin, technical manager at Axis, believes that tooling produced on SL systems offers a number of key technical advantages. "SL offers more opportunities than conventional routes for building complex geometries and tight tolerances. In the case of rapid tooling, this is significant for the design of the part as well as for the technical aspects of the mold. For example, with SL we can really optimize the design of the cooling channels, allowing them, if necessary, to follow the contours of the part. This helps to optimize quality and productivity."

More than 1,000 parts in both ABS and POM (Polyoxymethylene) have been produced, and the mold is still working perfectly. "SL rapid tooling with NanoTool is the ideal system approach, especially for applications where low series, small parts and precise tolerances are required," Martin says.

More Than Medical

Axis also uses NanoTool for applications beyond medical. "NanoTool is the best material for higher temperature prototypes such as automotive lamp assemblies including a base for metal coating – a process developed together with Thierry Fleurence, prototype manager at Valeo Lighting Systems, Signal Lamp Europe Division in Sens," Martin says.

"The surface quality of the NanoTool parts we produce on our SLA 250 is so good that there are absolutely no visible build lines. For anyone who knows rapid prototyping processes, this is truly amazing. We also have SLS (selective laser sintering) processes in-house, but prefer NanoTool for complex shapes."

In addition to NanoTool, they also use the high-impact material DMX-SLT100. With these new materials, Axis is able to offer service from design concept to finished part, selecting from a palette of the most advanced SL polymers.