The Carbon DLS™ process combines versatile printers, advanced software, and best-in-class materials to deliver functional parts with end-use performance and aesthetics, helping engineers and designers to create products that outperform. From prototyping and low-volume production to production-at-scale, hundreds of global organizations, including adidas, Ford, and Becton Dickinson, use the Carbon process to create a wide range of functional end-use parts and print them reliably wherever and whenever they need them through our production network partners.

My Role At Carbon

I design post processing solutions for 3D printed parts. Once the parts come out of the printer, there is a layer of of uncured resin that needs to be removed. There are many ways of removing this resin; the trick is doing it without damaging the uncured part. One of the ways this is done is with a centrifuge that applies an even force across the part, removing the resin. In order for a centrifuge to function well, balance must be achieved, ideally without the need for counterweights. One of the ways this is accomplished is using a hydrodynamic balancer.

A hydrodynamic balancer works by allowing the centrifuge to translate on its initial rotations while it is coming up to speed. This translation sloshes water or ball bearings around a race based off their momentum and friction. This mass will move itself opposite the eccentric force, balancing the system passively. This passive system saves on reliability and cost, improving the product.