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IPFS News Link • 3D Printing

Novel 3D printer puts continuous printing on the table

• newatlas.com by Paul Ridden

The BlackBelt from Stephan Schürmann replaces the print bed of old with a conveyor belt, which allows for continuous printing.

Currently the subject of a Kickstarter funding campaign, the BlackBelt has been 3 years in development – going for CAD-modeled concept to prototype to production ready. Its carbon fiber composite conveyor belt allows for continuous printing of long objects, with the option of going really, really long by placing a roller module unit in front of the conveyor belt, or continuous batch production of smaller single build parts, which can be collected in a bin at the end.

The build area is given as 340 mm wide, 340 mm high and an infinite length, and the interchangeable print head (it comes with three – 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 mm) can be set at 15°, 25°, 34° or 45° angles, which means creators don't need to rely on support structures for overhangs in complex prints.