3D Printers

Large-Scale Atlas Looks to Hold 3D Printing World on Shoulders

The large-format extrusion 3D printer market is just beginning to take off, with only a handful of entrants on the market.  Among them are the BigRep ONE.2, 3DP Unlimited line, Hans Fouche’s Cheetah 3D printer, and a few others.  Soon, we may even see the large-scaled Printrbot Pro custom made for individual clients.  As the world grows thirsty for large-format 3D printers, this market will diversify further and the need to stand out will become increasingly important. Colorado-based Titan Robotics has just entered the space with a name they believe represents their greatness, the Atlas.

atlas 3D printer large scale from titan roboticsThe Atlas, which has a welded and machined steel with profiled linear rails, has been developed over the course of a year and Titan says that it has already been placed in manufacturing facilities.  With a moving table, raised bridge, and a heated bed, the Atlas has a build volume of 30”X x 30”Y x 45”Z, but its scalable frame makes it possible for Titan to customize orders up to 6’ x 6’ x 4’ in size.  The Smoothie-board controlled Atlas, featuring open loop NEMA 23 stepper motors and closed loop servo controls, prints standard 3 mm filament and can be outfitted with a second extruder.  This, the manufacturers claim, allow the Atlas to achieve “guaranteed repeatability of +- .002”.”

Titan suggests that their printer is sturdier and more precise than large-scale printer relying on aluminum extrusion frames, with the company’s CEO, Clay Guillory, saying, “We are excited to introduce such a high quality 3D printer. We fully expect this printer to be a game changer in the 3D printing industry.” In addition to the Atlas, Titan Robotics has already one large 3D printer, the Hyperion, which measures 20″X x 18″Y x 22″Z.  They also perform 3D printing services, via 3D Hubs, and CEO Clay Guillory is volunteer for e-Nable, 3D printing prosthetics for those in need on a regular basis.

Whether or not the Atlas really will be a game changer remains to be seen, but the existence of the Atlas suggests that the large-scale 3D printer game is starting to build and the Atlas could be a promising addition to the scene.  The industry is still young, however, and though it will be important to 3D print large items now, to push the technology further, it may be sometime before large-scale 3D printing fully matures.