Stratasys Object500 Connex3 Color Multi-Material 3D Printer Unveiled

There are several 3D printers on the market today that are designed to be used on your desktop. There are also a bunch of 3D printers that are designed for the office and industrial realms that are as large as or larger than many office copy machines. The new Objet500 Connex3 Color Multi-Material 3D printer falls into the latter category of large machines.

The big 3D printer is able to print objects that use a variety of colors and materials in one item. Stratasys says that its new printer is the only 3D printer on the market that can print in color with nearly unlimited combinations of rigid, flexible, and transparent materials in a single print run.

The glasses in the image at the top are a good example. They are printed with frames of multiple colors and even the yellow tinted lenses are 3D printed. The earpieces of the glasses use flexible materials that can stretch to fit on a user's head. The printer has triple jetting technology that can combine three base materials into one part.

The printer has print media available in several colors. The printer can also work with high temperature materials to simulate standard and high temp engineered plastics. The Objet500 also uses materials that have improved tensile strength allowing for the printing of complex prototypes with moving parts.

SOURCE: Stratasys