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How SLS 3D Printing is solving challenges in Eyewear Industry

How SLS 3D Printing is solving challenges in Eyewear Industry

Eyewear industry is a unique industry posing several challenges that led to companies exploring new possibilities with 3D printing. From the customer’s perspective, there are 3 aspects: The need for newer designs and looks, the demand for customized eyewear solutions, and quality. From the manufacturers’ and retailers perspective there are again 3 aspects: the need for having to maintain stock of eyewear frames, managing the inventory, and ensuring quality and timely delivery. Let’s see how 3D printing is solving these challenges in each stage.

Technology

3D Printing is a generic term but the printing technology has to be capable of achieving top notch surface quality, strength, light in weight and aesthetic look to the frame. For prototyping purpose or for direct use, any 3D printing technology out of FDM, SLA, SLS can be used for making the frames but most companies are making use of Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) machines that fuse Nylon powders under a laser that offers reliability,  accuracy and speed. Marcus Marienfeld AG, a Swiss eyewear company has been using Nylon11 powder and Formlabs Fuse1 printers. Due to the large build volume of this printer, they were able to produce a series of batches for selected design models. Although SLS prints leave a matte rough finish on them, the company pioneered a proprietary post processing technique to give high quality surface finish to the frames after they are printed.

So far we have seen the frames getting 3D printed but it cannot be said that printing lenses as per the prescription is not possible and Luxexcel, a company that is working on lenses has patented the micro droplet technology to 3D print ophthalmic prescription lenses.

Design Freedom to evaluate newer models

3D printing has opened design freedom for both designers and modelers to innovate new models that look great. Once the concept is convincing enough, the relevant tooling can be developed for producing in mass scale. Marienfeld said it is leveraging the SLS printed tools to bend titanium frames saving them both development and manufacturing costs for steel tool dies. And innovation has helped to eliminate screws and have 3d printed hinges instead!

Selection Options for Customers

Companies like Hoet, Specsy and Monoqool are offering a new form of service where the customer can talk to the design experts and can get a new design that suits best for him/her or can select 3D printed models from a catalog. 3D scanning is used to obtain the shape of the face and then a suitable design is then developed. Then that frame is offered to be 3D printed in any of the company’s partnering facilities

Hybrid Designs

Companies are making hybrid designs possible where some areas of the frame are made out of Titanium, gold, platinum metals (that are used in conventional eyewear) and are joined with 3D printed structures made out of Nylon. This gives a new look and also reinforcing the frame while keeping it extremely light.

Cost Saving

This is a new where the companies are working with logistics and inventory management models where various 3d printing partners who can 3D print the designs for them are identified. Based on the location of the customer, the design is printed and delivered without having to maintain an inventory stock thus saving both transportation and stock keeping costs.

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Not just suits that you wear, your eyewear deserves to be tailor-made – Boulton Eyewear

Boulton-promo-slogan
Boulton-promo-slogan

3D printing technology has been effectively utilized as a medium by artists, hobbyists and various aspirants to give shape to their imagination and in turn showcase their talents. And everyday young 3D printing entrepreneurs seem to be getting lot of exposure and financial support for their dreams through different crowd-funding websites, like kickstarter.

Boulton Eyewear, a Dutch company that believes that since every individual has a unique face structure, not to forget their own sense of style, they deserve to wear eyewears that are customized. Boulton Eyewear company reaches this mission with the help of, none other than, 3D printing technology.TD-measurements-nbg“Eyewear today is still mass manufactured and sold in standard sizes,” says the company. “But our heads, noses and ears are not standard at all. They are unique. So are our personal styles and wishes. That’s why we started Boulton Eyewear, the most personal eyewear brand in the world.”Boulton EyewearThe company uses a particular process to design those custom-tailored eyewear. They scan the face of every customer with their own phones (and not any fancy 3D scanner) and use the photos to create a digital model of the customer’s face. And that is how they get the frame size of the individual customer.

The team spent countless hours refining the designs and since a typical desktop 3D printer had design flaws (visibility of the printed layers) they chose to go for SLS 3D printer. However even that wasn’t meeting their requirements. So they switched to DLP-SLA 3D printer.

The team: Merijn, Tim and Rutger
The team: Merijn, Tim and Rutger

“We did a lot of prototyping on materials and types of finishings,” says the team. “This time we were successful (with DLP-SLA); the material is strong and endures all conditions you will expect from any good quality frame (sweat, heat, flexibility, impact-resistance). The frames we sell today have a state of the art finishing by hand; some good old craftsmanship.”  Needless to say that the DLP-SLA 3D printed eyewears had far better quality. The company understands that today consumers are as much worried about about quality as they care about style. Therefore Boulton Eyewear doesn’t compromise on the quality of the lenses they use for their eyewear section. So they choose to outsource the lenses from a premium lens manufacturing company.

“After production we assemble your tailor-made frame and custom-cut lenses at our office,” explains the company.   “At this time we also include a set of strong conventional hinges and add some artwork. The assembling process ends with our final quality check. Once that is done your eyewear is ready for shipping.” After 2 years of R&D Boulton Eyewear launched themselves at Kickstarter and their goal is to reach $39,000 by the end of this month.

“We are ready to show the world that eyewear can truly be personal, comfortable and accessible. Doing so we can definitely use your help battling some of the largest competitors in the world,” the company said. “With your support we can actually change the way eyewear is made today!”Previously we have seen such entrepreneurs who’ve utilized 3D printing technology to bring range of interesting eyewear segments that are supposedly far more simplistic in design. And hopefully we are to see more innovative and at the same time useful designs.

Point to be noted: Boulton Eyewear’s case is a clear indication to that fact that 3D printing technology is already disrupting traditional manufacturing procedure and manufacturing reliable and cheaper products.

Image: Kickstarter, Boulton Eyewear website.