3D Printing for the Jewellery Industry
3D Printers are a kind of of Rapid Prototyping (RP) technology, which are positioned as a design tool to produce inexpensive models early in the design procedure. Physical models created by 3D printers make it possible for the design team to review the concepts. In turn, this guarantees that the manufacturer gets better feedback, therefore resulting in a superior product. Additionally, 3D printing offers manufacturer the scope to realize real-time teamwork on a global scale. In recent times, the use of 3D printing has increased drastically with many industries adopting this technology.
The jewellery industry is no exception. It was amongst the first industries to utilize 3D printing in their 'investment casting’ procedure. Instead of metal printers, they use wax here, that is, the piece of jewellery is printed or sculpted out of wax. Afterwards, Plaster is poured on both sides, while liquefied metal is poured on the wax, which melts, leaving behind a metallic version of the wax sculpt in the plaster. Finally, the jewellery piece is polished by the jeweller. To date, this is the basic procedure several independent jewelers have been using 3D printers for in their businesses. However, there are many intricate processes involved in 3D printing, as will be illustrated.
In the jewellery industry, Computer Aided Design (CAD) has opened up a new period of creativity that some may argue is still in the nascent stage largely due to the traditional attitude of many jewellers. However, because of the benefits of CAD there has been an increasing trend to embrace 3D printing technology. This technology has brought in many jewellery manufacturing service providers who are now offering CAD and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) facilities at more affordable prices. CAM is software that connects CAD in such a way that the output from CAD is carried out directly by machines that are connected to the system in a production line. The CAM system is classified into two types Additive Prototyping and Subtractive Prototyping. Additive Prototyping is the process used in jewellery production.
Additive Prototyping - In this technique, the jewellery design part is built up by attaching layers of material on each other directly connected with a 3D model (CAD) – The process is called Growing or 3D Printing.
The jewellery industry is no exception. It was amongst the first industries to utilize 3D printing in their 'investment casting’ procedure. Instead of metal printers, they use wax here, that is, the piece of jewellery is printed or sculpted out of wax. Afterwards, Plaster is poured on both sides, while liquefied metal is poured on the wax, which melts, leaving behind a metallic version of the wax sculpt in the plaster. Finally, the jewellery piece is polished by the jeweller. To date, this is the basic procedure several independent jewelers have been using 3D printers for in their businesses. However, there are many intricate processes involved in 3D printing, as will be illustrated.
In the jewellery industry, Computer Aided Design (CAD) has opened up a new period of creativity that some may argue is still in the nascent stage largely due to the traditional attitude of many jewellers. However, because of the benefits of CAD there has been an increasing trend to embrace 3D printing technology. This technology has brought in many jewellery manufacturing service providers who are now offering CAD and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) facilities at more affordable prices. CAM is software that connects CAD in such a way that the output from CAD is carried out directly by machines that are connected to the system in a production line. The CAM system is classified into two types Additive Prototyping and Subtractive Prototyping. Additive Prototyping is the process used in jewellery production.
Additive Prototyping - In this technique, the jewellery design part is built up by attaching layers of material on each other directly connected with a 3D model (CAD) – The process is called Growing or 3D Printing.
3D Printers for the Jewellery Industry
Some commonly used 3D printers in the jewellery industry are:
Modela Pro II MDX-540
The Modela Pro II MDX-540 is an affordable, fast and accurate Subtractive Rapid Prototyping (SRP) machine. This desktop 4-axis CNC machine is an extremely versatile device that can produce just about any prototype from functional parts and snap-fit right through to custom-designed jewellery. Jewellers appreciate that prototypes need to look like the real thing. The Modela Pro II MDX-540 can produce jewellery that survives structural, thermal and physical tests. That is why it is so popular in the jewellery industry. It can mill the most intricate detail as well as create prototypes from a wide range of popular engineered plastics (like ABS and Delrin) and non-proprietary materials. Additionally, the Modela Pro II MDX-540 can mill non-ferrous moulds and prototypes made from copper, aluminium and brass, enabling the manufacture of metal moulds for EDM electrodes for production tooling or rapid injection molding. It features a completely interlocked USB connectivity and safety guard, and is supplied with its own CAM software making it possible for jewelers to turn CAD scanned or generated 3D files into finished parts in minutes.
EnvisionTEC Aureus RP Machine
The EnvisionTEC is a prime choice for 3D printing jewelry because of the range and precision of materials offered from the machine for molding and casting. Accurate settings and highly detailed filigree are characteristically produced with little or no tuning of the machine. This machine’s throughput has been proven to be unparalleled in the jewellery industry. The accuracy possible is beyond printing or laser alternative technologies with 15-micron resolution capacity as standard. The EnvisionTEC is easy handling because of pre-adjusted material modules and it ensures the best possible hardening of materials before molding.
T76+
The T76+ is from the Solidscape’s BENCHMARK line of 3D printers. Targeted at jewellery manufacturers, the T76+ is able to produce hiT76 Plus SolidScapegh-quality, non-toxic, fully castable wax masters for the most elaborate jewellery designs. With the new SCP technology, the T76+ is truthfully the jeweler’s standard for quality. It uses the common Windows interface, making it possible to use with all of the commonly used 3D jewellery design software. The T76+ uses SCP (Smooth Curvature Printing), a new printing technology which delivers excellent precision as well as a perfect surface finish. This machine is formulated to produce the best quality casting yields as well as low cost-per-master produced two extremely important factors in the jewelry business.
ProJet 3510 CPX
The ProJet 3510 CPX creates micro-detail wax patterns with extremely fine features and exceptional surface quality. It is ideal for complex direct investment casting applications, like jewellery. The ProJet 3510 CPX produces accurate, mirror standard wax casts within an 11.75 x 7.3 x 8 inch build platform for improved productivity. With its ProJet, Jewellers can concurrently print as many as 50 distinctive wax designs, which are ready for casting in 10 hours. The ProJet 3510 CPX features a 60% increased high definition build envelope with up to 20% increased print speed. A new 20-micron high-resolution option offers exceptional wax patterns with fine feature detail and smooth surface quality in less time.
Modela Pro II MDX-540
The Modela Pro II MDX-540 is an affordable, fast and accurate Subtractive Rapid Prototyping (SRP) machine. This desktop 4-axis CNC machine is an extremely versatile device that can produce just about any prototype from functional parts and snap-fit right through to custom-designed jewellery. Jewellers appreciate that prototypes need to look like the real thing. The Modela Pro II MDX-540 can produce jewellery that survives structural, thermal and physical tests. That is why it is so popular in the jewellery industry. It can mill the most intricate detail as well as create prototypes from a wide range of popular engineered plastics (like ABS and Delrin) and non-proprietary materials. Additionally, the Modela Pro II MDX-540 can mill non-ferrous moulds and prototypes made from copper, aluminium and brass, enabling the manufacture of metal moulds for EDM electrodes for production tooling or rapid injection molding. It features a completely interlocked USB connectivity and safety guard, and is supplied with its own CAM software making it possible for jewelers to turn CAD scanned or generated 3D files into finished parts in minutes.
EnvisionTEC Aureus RP Machine
The EnvisionTEC is a prime choice for 3D printing jewelry because of the range and precision of materials offered from the machine for molding and casting. Accurate settings and highly detailed filigree are characteristically produced with little or no tuning of the machine. This machine’s throughput has been proven to be unparalleled in the jewellery industry. The accuracy possible is beyond printing or laser alternative technologies with 15-micron resolution capacity as standard. The EnvisionTEC is easy handling because of pre-adjusted material modules and it ensures the best possible hardening of materials before molding.
T76+
The T76+ is from the Solidscape’s BENCHMARK line of 3D printers. Targeted at jewellery manufacturers, the T76+ is able to produce hiT76 Plus SolidScapegh-quality, non-toxic, fully castable wax masters for the most elaborate jewellery designs. With the new SCP technology, the T76+ is truthfully the jeweler’s standard for quality. It uses the common Windows interface, making it possible to use with all of the commonly used 3D jewellery design software. The T76+ uses SCP (Smooth Curvature Printing), a new printing technology which delivers excellent precision as well as a perfect surface finish. This machine is formulated to produce the best quality casting yields as well as low cost-per-master produced two extremely important factors in the jewelry business.
ProJet 3510 CPX
The ProJet 3510 CPX creates micro-detail wax patterns with extremely fine features and exceptional surface quality. It is ideal for complex direct investment casting applications, like jewellery. The ProJet 3510 CPX produces accurate, mirror standard wax casts within an 11.75 x 7.3 x 8 inch build platform for improved productivity. With its ProJet, Jewellers can concurrently print as many as 50 distinctive wax designs, which are ready for casting in 10 hours. The ProJet 3510 CPX features a 60% increased high definition build envelope with up to 20% increased print speed. A new 20-micron high-resolution option offers exceptional wax patterns with fine feature detail and smooth surface quality in less time.
Software for Jewellery Design
Rhinosceros (Rhino)
Rhino is 3D Design software that works on the NURBS based technology. It is simple to learn and use. It can create, analyses, edit and translate surfaces, solids, curves and has infinite possibilities with respect to angles, complex designs and sizes. Complex shapes can be directly acquired and modeled through 3D digitizers and works with a full range of geometric data. Regardless of whether you make an intricate necklace or a simple ring, this software assists you develop your ideas in 3D, animate and render them and gives you the liberty to control and keep absolute accuracy in your model.
RHINO is non-parametric software. Parametric drawing means each dimension in a design is interconnected. Every time one dimension is modified, the other dimensions in the design are automatically changed to reflect the change. Non-Parametric - This approach means whenever one dimension is altered the rest of dimensions remain the same. With RHINO, two-dimensional sketches can be turned into three-dimensional views. It is also compatible with other designs, for example CAM (rapid prototyping and CNC, and animation and rendering software. With RHINO, complex IGES-MESH files can also be repaired and read. When using this software, an IGES (Initial Graphics Exchange Specification) is a standard that describes a neutral form for the exchange of information among unlike computer-aided design (CAD), computer visualization systems and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM). Different plug-in can be used with this software, for instance Maxwell Render, Flamingo, and V-Ray for ray-trace rendering. The tool path can be generated directly in RHINO with the assistance of extra plug-in for CNC and CAM milling.
JewelCAD
It is a 3D free-form surface based solid modeler. It is a non-engineering of jewellery designing. It offers powerful free-form modeling tools that allow freedom in creating stylish and artistic designs with intricate sizes and shapes. These tools are intuitive and flexible and they can easily be learned and used by any non-technical person. Its file format isn’t based on NURBS technology or any other commonly used geometry for 3D modeling. It can’t export to *.STL format, but the file size is extremely huge and difficult to use with other programs like prototyping machines as well as other 3-D modeling programs. JewelCAD is commonly used in most jewellery manufacturing companies. Users are enjoying the effectiveness and price performance offered by the system. However, JewelCAD Pro is a lot more enhanced in its photo quality rendering, automatic tools for diamond setting and STL data export. JewelCAD Pro is also extremely suitable for design studios and jewellery designers to create custom jewellery, as well as publish marketing materials on the different internet sites. In JEWELCAD it is now possible to perform Parametric mapping onto surfaces and curves. Projection mapping onto surfaces and curves and Deforming and Transforming individual CV's of surfaces and curves can be picked for deformation and transformation operation.
With 3D printing, model editing is fast. Software like RHINO will not contain specific jewellery related designing tools such as JewelCAD and Matrix software, but it is still a good 3D designing tools for jewellery. When it come to 3D printing for jewellery making, capital investment is extremely low in comparison to other methods. In this industry, 3D printing is expanding its horizons, a trend that is likely to continue in the future. As costs reduce and materials improve, other applications that we can hardly envisage today will become a reality. 3D printers for jewellery industry hold the promise to create less complex components and may help make cutting-edge final products. This industry is likely to see the rise of Rapid Prototyping to the extent that it may replace many other several machining operations for the better.
Rhino is 3D Design software that works on the NURBS based technology. It is simple to learn and use. It can create, analyses, edit and translate surfaces, solids, curves and has infinite possibilities with respect to angles, complex designs and sizes. Complex shapes can be directly acquired and modeled through 3D digitizers and works with a full range of geometric data. Regardless of whether you make an intricate necklace or a simple ring, this software assists you develop your ideas in 3D, animate and render them and gives you the liberty to control and keep absolute accuracy in your model.
RHINO is non-parametric software. Parametric drawing means each dimension in a design is interconnected. Every time one dimension is modified, the other dimensions in the design are automatically changed to reflect the change. Non-Parametric - This approach means whenever one dimension is altered the rest of dimensions remain the same. With RHINO, two-dimensional sketches can be turned into three-dimensional views. It is also compatible with other designs, for example CAM (rapid prototyping and CNC, and animation and rendering software. With RHINO, complex IGES-MESH files can also be repaired and read. When using this software, an IGES (Initial Graphics Exchange Specification) is a standard that describes a neutral form for the exchange of information among unlike computer-aided design (CAD), computer visualization systems and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM). Different plug-in can be used with this software, for instance Maxwell Render, Flamingo, and V-Ray for ray-trace rendering. The tool path can be generated directly in RHINO with the assistance of extra plug-in for CNC and CAM milling.
JewelCAD
It is a 3D free-form surface based solid modeler. It is a non-engineering of jewellery designing. It offers powerful free-form modeling tools that allow freedom in creating stylish and artistic designs with intricate sizes and shapes. These tools are intuitive and flexible and they can easily be learned and used by any non-technical person. Its file format isn’t based on NURBS technology or any other commonly used geometry for 3D modeling. It can’t export to *.STL format, but the file size is extremely huge and difficult to use with other programs like prototyping machines as well as other 3-D modeling programs. JewelCAD is commonly used in most jewellery manufacturing companies. Users are enjoying the effectiveness and price performance offered by the system. However, JewelCAD Pro is a lot more enhanced in its photo quality rendering, automatic tools for diamond setting and STL data export. JewelCAD Pro is also extremely suitable for design studios and jewellery designers to create custom jewellery, as well as publish marketing materials on the different internet sites. In JEWELCAD it is now possible to perform Parametric mapping onto surfaces and curves. Projection mapping onto surfaces and curves and Deforming and Transforming individual CV's of surfaces and curves can be picked for deformation and transformation operation.
With 3D printing, model editing is fast. Software like RHINO will not contain specific jewellery related designing tools such as JewelCAD and Matrix software, but it is still a good 3D designing tools for jewellery. When it come to 3D printing for jewellery making, capital investment is extremely low in comparison to other methods. In this industry, 3D printing is expanding its horizons, a trend that is likely to continue in the future. As costs reduce and materials improve, other applications that we can hardly envisage today will become a reality. 3D printers for jewellery industry hold the promise to create less complex components and may help make cutting-edge final products. This industry is likely to see the rise of Rapid Prototyping to the extent that it may replace many other several machining operations for the better.
