SnowWhite Sharebot’s 3-D printer uses a 14-watt carbon-dioxide laser to sinter objects from a wide range of thermoplastic powders, including polyamide and TPU, into any desired shape without supports. The printer, which can be used to make prototypes, also can handle powders with reinforcing materials, such as glass, aluminum and carbon.
What’s new? An upgraded version, called the SnowWhite2, that can be ordered with or without a special module that uses oxygen-presence sensors to regulate the flow of inert gas and control the atmosphere inside the printing chamber. The SnowWhite2 also can be retrofitted later with the module, which uses nitrogen or argon.
Benefits Economical, easy-to-use sintering, resulting in detailed, high-quality, repeatable 3-D prints. The reliable, low-maintenance printer is easy to set up, and users can load materials and begin printing the first layers of an object within 10 minutes. Average energy consumption is less than 1.5 kilowatts per hour, and all unused material can be collected and reused by the printer.
Sharebot U.S., Ventura, Calif., 805-521-3505, http://sharebot.us
Vital Statistics
| Printer | SnowWhite2 |
| Dimensions | 4.9 feet by 2 feet by 1.7 feet |
| Weight | 264.6 pounds |
| Printing volume | 3.9 inches by 3.9 inches by 3.9 inches |
| Scan speed | 11.5 feet per second |
| Maximum build-chamber temperature | 374 degrees Fahrenheit |
