The Omnifire 1000 4D printer

 

A larger direct-to-shape printer, capable of printing onto objects of up to a cubic metre in size will be launched by Heidelberg in November at InPrint, the industrial print show in Milan. 

It has rebranded its direct-to-shape portfolio replacing the Jetmaster Dimension name with Omnifire. The new machine will be known as the Omnifire 1000, while the Jetmaster Dimension 250 will now be known as the Omnifire 250.

In addition to the larger printable area the Omnifire 1000 has added flexibility to handle complex shapes and objects thanks to its six-axis control system, up from four on the 250. The robotic system needed to manipulate the objects under the printheads was developed in house by Heidelberg.

‘We tried several off-the-shelf systems but nothing was precise enough, so we developed our own,’ said recently appointed Heidelberg general manager of 4D printing Frank Janssen. He added, ‘These machines serve new markets that don’t know Heidelberg but do know the quality of German engineering.’

The machine, like the 250, is designed to be easy and clean to use, making it suitable for retail environments.

At drupa Heidelberg will show examples produced on the 1000 ‘in conjunction with a number of big industrial partners’. The 250 will be demonstrated live at the show.