User's Manual
Table Of Contents
- About This Guide
- Safety
- Introducing the Alaris 3-D Printing System
- Installing Objet Software
- Using Objet Studio
- Using Job Manager
- Operating & Maintaining the Alaris30 3-D Printer
- Starting the Alaris30 Printer
- Loading Model and Support Cartridges
- Producing Models
- Resuming Production After Printing has Stopped
- Changing the Model Material
- Keeping the Alaris Printer in Idle Mode
- Shutting Down the Alaris Printer
- Maintaining the Alaris Printer
- Routine Maintenance Schedule
- Cleaning the Print Heads
- Pattern Test
- Improving Print Quality
- Cleaning and Replacing the Wiper
- Cleaning and Replacing the Roller Waste Collector
- Aligning the Print Heads
- Replacing Print Heads
- Calibrating the Load Cells
- Replacing the Odor Filter
- Replacing the UV Lamp
- Replacing the Waste Container
- Cleaning the Exterior Panels
- Backing-Up and Restoring Printer Settings
- ReInitiate Wizard
- Handling Printed Models
DOC-24000 Rev. A 3–3
Alaris30 User Guide
TheObjetsoftwarearrangesthejobsitreceivesaccordingtotheirpriorities,
model‐materialtype,andotherfactors.Inmulti‐workstation
configurations,theoperatoroftheserver—typicallytheproduction
administrator—hastotalcontroloverthejobssenttothe3‐Dprinter,and
canprioritizeanddeletejobs,reviewjobhistoryandreprintajob
,andso
on.
Source Files
Alaris3‐Dprintingsystemsproducethree‐dimensionalmodelsdesigned
withmost3‐DCADtoolsandwithotherjob‐specific3‐Dapplications.
Alarissystemsaccept:
• STLfiles
• SLCfiles
Alarissystemsfeaturethecapabilityofproducingbothtypesofmodelfiles
simultaneously.
STL Files
STLisshortforStandardTriangulationLanguage.Thislanguageviewsany
objectasacollectionofsurfaces,anddescribeseachsurfaceoftheobjectas
acollectionoftriangles.
Forexample,asquarecanbedescribedastwotriangles;acube(six
squares)as12triangles.Curvedsurfacesneedmoretrianglestodescrib
e
them.Thehigherthetolerance(forsmoothsurfaces),themoretrianglesare
needed.Theresultisthathigh‐qualityobjectdescriptionsmeanveryheavy
files.
MostCADsoftwarecanexportSTLfiles.TheAlarissystemutilizesthese
filesforbuildingmodels(rapidprototyping),andalsofordirectlymaking
mo
ldsformass‐producingitems.
STLfilesareASCII(text)files.Thecontentofeachfilebeginswith“solid”
andendswith“end‐solid”(bothlowercase).Betweenthesekeywordsisa
listofthetrianglesthatdescribesthefacesofthesolidmodel.Eachtriangle
definesasinglenormalvectordirectedaw
ayfromthesolid’ssurface,
followedbyitsX‐Y‐Zcoordinates.TheseareexpressedasCartesian
coordinatesandarefloating‐pointvalues.Thecoordinatesofalltriangles
shouldbepositiveandshouldfallwithinthevolumeofthemodel.
SLC Files
SLCisshortforStereo‐LithographyContour.SLCfilesdescribetwo‐
dimensionalcontoursofthethree‐dimensionalmodels.Thesecontourlines
arepolylines.
SLCfilesareASCII(text)filesthatsavemodelsasaseriesofslices.This
meansthatmodelsbasedonSLCfilescannotbeorientated;onlytheirscale
(size)andpositiononthebuildtraycanbecontrolled.Fo
rthisreason,the
model’sorientationmustbesuitableforproductionbeforeitissavedasan
SLCfile.BecauseofthenatureofSLCfiles,theappearanceofmodelsin
ObjetStudiomaybedifferentthanthesolid‐objectimagesdi
splayedfrom
STLfiles.
DRAFT 4 - July 11, 2010