Formlabs SLA printers feature a resin handling system that automates resin dispensing during a print and tracks resin consumption. When a print begins, the printer checks that the resin type in the cartridge and tank match each other and that these consumables match the current print settings. It also ensures that there is enough resin in the tank and cartridge to complete the current print. The result is a printing process that is cleaner, more consistent, and leads to fewer errors than refilling resin tanks manually.

Formlabs resins come in cartridges that allow the printer to track and dispense resin during a print without additional monitoring.

On the bottom of each resin cartridge is an ID chip with two rectangular silver pads. The ID chip is programmed with the resin type for the cartridge. The ID chip also contains information about how much resin remains inside.

When you insert a resin cartridge into a Formlabs SLA printer and start a print, the printer reads the ID chip to check that the resin in the cartridge matches the resin in the tank and the resin type of the FORM file.

When printing, the resin dispensing system writes data to the ID chip as it dispenses resin from the cartridge. This allows any printer that prints with the cartridge to know how much resin is left and whether there is enough to complete the print job.

Adjacent to the ID chip is a bite valve. When compressed, the bite valve opens slightly. If the cartridge vent cap at the top of the cartridge is also open, resin flows from the cartridge into the tank.

Maintain the ID chip and bite valve to ensure that the cartridge dispenses resin properly throughout its lifetime.

Form 4 and Form 4L generation resin cartridges do not use ID chips, but contain RFID stickers that should not require maintenance. Contact Formlabs Support or your authorized reseller if the printer is unable to detect the cartridge.

When you insert a resin cartridge into a Formlabs SLA printer and start a print, the printer reads the sticker to check that the resin in the cartridge matches the resin in the tank and the resin type of the FORM file.

When printing, the resin dispensing system writes data to the RFID sticker as it dispenses resin from the cartridge. This allows any printer that prints with the cartridge to know how much resin is left and whether there is enough to complete the print job.

Adjacent to the ID chip is a bite valve. When compressed, the bite valve opens slightly. If the cartridge vent cap at the top of the cartridge is also open, resin flows from the cartridge into the tank.

Resin tanks store resin to be used during a print. Each successive layer of a print uses up some of the resin in the tank. The printer refills the tank with resin dispensed from the resin cartridge.

Like resin cartridges, resin tanks have an ID chip that stores the tank’s resin type (if the tank has been used) and usage history. If the resin tank is new, the printer will program the ID chip with a resin type when the tank is used for the first time.

Formlabs SLA printers have a component known as LevelSense, that measures the amount of resin in the resin tank during a print. By monitoring the resin level, the printer can automatically dispense resin from the cartridge into the tank whenever the resin in the tank begins to run low. As long as the cartridge isn’t empty, the print won’t pause or fail because there isn’t enough resin in the tank.

The cartridge floor contains a set of spring fingers that read the cartridge ID chip and a motorized dispense arm attached to a spring.

Using measurements from the LevelSense system, the printer determines if the resin tank needs to be refilled and activates the dispense arm underneath the resin cartridge.

The dispense arm, driven by a motor underneath the cartridge floor, squeezes the bite valve on the bottom of the resin cartridge. Once the tank is refilled, the spring attached to the dispense arm pulls it out of the way so that no resin is dispensed inadvertently.