Stereolithography

Schematic representation of Stereolithography: a light-emitting device a) A laser or DLP selectively illuminates the transparent bottom c) of a tank b) filled with a liquid photo-polymerizing resin. The solidified resin d) is progressively dragged up by a lifting platform e)
An SLA produced part
An SLA printed model of a circuit board with various components to simulate the final product.

Stereolithography (SLA or SL; also known as vat photopolymerisation,[1] optical fabrication, photo-solidification, or resin printing) is a form of 3D printing technology used for creating models, prototypes, patterns, and production parts in a layer by layer fashion using photochemical processes by which light causes chemical monomers and oligomers to cross-link together to form polymers.[2] Those polymers then make up the body of a three-dimensional solid. Research in the area had been conducted during the 1970s, but the term was coined by Chuck Hull in 1984 when he applied for a patent on the process, which was granted in 1986.[3] Stereolithography can be used to create prototypes for products in development, medical models, and computer hardware, as well as in many other applications. While stereolithography is fast and can produce almost any design, it can be expensive.[citation needed]

  1. ^ ISO/ASTM 52900 Standard. Additive manufacturing. General principles. Fundamentals and vocabulary.
  2. ^ U.S. Patent 4,575,330 (“Apparatus for Production of Three-Dimensional Objects by Stereolithography”)
  3. ^ "US Patent for Apparatus for production of three-dimensional objects by stereolithography Patent (Patent # 4,575,330 issued March 11, 1986) - Justia Patents Search". patents.justia.com. Retrieved 2019-04-24.