Wematter Atmosphere provides improved control of build chamber conditions in the SLS 3D-printer Gravity for increased part density, surface finish, and mechanical performance

Wematter Atmosphere is a unit that provides improved control of build chamber conditions in the SLS 3D-printer Gravity for increased part density, surface finish, and mechanical performance

Atmosphere communicates with the 3D-printer Gravity‘s software and creates a more stable thermal environment during the printing process. This results in more durable printed components and at the same time reduces the wear of the material that is not fused in the powder bed inside the build chamber.

Another advantage of the balanced process is a higher number of possible components per print job, that is an increased part density, without the risk of parts fusing together. White prints also become more white as no discoloration of the material can occur.

"It is very fun to see, after several years of development, the results of our hard work and that the response from the market is so positive. Atmosphere will be another part of making our ecosystem scalable. Our customers will be able to modularly upgrade their equipment with the features that suit the company's operations" says founder and CEO Robert Kniola.

Just plug in and stay safe
According to Wematter's vision to make their products as user-friendly as possible, Atmosphere does not require any additional equipment such as ventilation or compressed air. Just plug the device into a standard wall outlet and connect it to Gravity.

Thanks to the connection to Gravity's Deep Space software, Atmosphere starts automatically at each print job for increased reliability. The unit only works by regulating the air that is already in the room and does not add any additional substances to the machine.

"Some manufacturers solve the climate aspect with complicated infrastructure, others solve it with a gas tube, which entails a great safety risk. We have a stand-alone system that is safe for the user from a work environment point of view. It will be a safer alternative than, for example, just connecting a nitrogen generator", explains founder and CEO Robert Kniola.

Increased recycling rate of used material
After each print with the Gravity 3D-printer, the remaining material is collected with the Inertia powder collector and then sent back to Wematter for inspection. As a result of reduced heat variations, the wear on the powder that is not fused decreases, which means that a larger proportion can be recycled. Atmosphere will therefore be an important component in Wematter's work for sustainable manufacturing, where the amount of consumed raw material is reduced while also allowing customers to produce more cost-effectively.

Main benefits with Atmosphere 2021
• Increased mechanical properties of components for large print jobs
• Increased powder recyclability rate of unsintered material
• 70 % improved strain at break of printed parts when using Atmosphere with recycled powder compared to printing without Atmosphere
• Increased aesthetic characteristics for white printing material
• Enables increased efficiency of powder when printing components

Wematter Atmosphere will be available from spring 2021 as an option in the Gravity ecosystem for new and existing customers.