What Is a High-Resolution 3D Printer?

There are various manufacturing techniques used in 3D printing. Even within 3D printing itself, different technologies are used to produce different types of prints, such as high-resolution components. High-resolution components are additively manufactured parts with very small feature sizes in the XY plane and along the Z-axis. Likewise, machines capable of producing additive parts with extremely fine feature sizes in both the XY plane and Z-axis are considered high-resolution 3D printers. However, “low” and “high” are relative terms and do not indicate a specific measurement or range of values. Minimum feature size is also not the same as minimum part size, and dimensions such as accuracy and precision are different from resolution. If you are looking for a high-resolution 3D printer, below are some key definitions and examples you should understand.

Resolution vs Accuracy vs Precision

To understand the term resolution, it is helpful to first understand what it is not. Although these terms are sometimes used interchangeably, resolution is not the same as accuracy or precision. Let us use a dart game to illustrate the difference.

Accuracy refers to how close a measurement is to the true value — in other words, how close the dart lands to the center of the target. If the dart hits the bullseye, the shot is accurate. Precision, on the other hand, refers to repeatability — consistently hitting the same spot on the target every time. These two concepts are not the same.

A group of darts may all land in the same location, but the player will not win the game if that location is only on the outer ring of the target. As shown in the diagram above, there are four possible combinations of accuracy and precision. Hitting the target consistently is important, but only high accuracy combined with high precision delivers the ideal result. Furthermore, neither accuracy nor precision is the same as resolution, which refers to the smallest distinguishable distance between two points or features.

Resolution vs Size: Macro Scale, Micro Scale, and Nano Scale

Resolution is also different from object size or build volume. Here, understanding scale is important. Macro-scale 3D printers produce geometries measured in millimeters (mm) and above, including centimeters (cm). Some macro-scale 3D printers are capable of producing relatively small features compared to the overall component size, but “small” at the macro scale is very different from “small” at the micro or nano scale.

Both micro-scale and nano-scale 3D printers can produce tiny components, but micro-scale geometries are measured in micrometers (µm), while nano-scale geometries are measured in nanometers (nm). These units differ significantly because a micrometer is one thousand times larger than a nanometer.

With high-resolution 3D printers, the ability to achieve extremely fine minimum feature sizes is critical. However, there are also important differences between 3D printing technologies.

In fused deposition modeling (FDM), resolution depends on the smallest movement the extruder can make within a single layer. In stereolithography (SLA), resolution is determined by the spot size of the ultraviolet (UV) laser beam. Projection micro stereolithography (PµSL), a form of SLA printing, uses flashes of UV light to rapidly photopolymerize an entire layer of liquid resin at once. This method is also capable of achieving exceptionally high resolution.

Now that you have a better understanding of high-resolution 3D printers, feel free to contact us if you would like to learn more!

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