Dental 3D printing helps clinics and labs turn digital scans into models, surgical guides, splints, dentures, restorations, and more with less manual work. The value is not only speed. A controlled dental 3D printing workflow can improve consistency, reduce remake risk, support a smoother patient experience, and enhance clinic reputation.
So, how to use a 3D printer step by step? Here is a guide.
The dental workflow begins with intraoral scanning to capture the precise patient's oral model, including the teeth, soft tissue, occlusal surfaces, and preparation areas.
There are several handheld scanners available on the market, such as the SHINING 3D Aoralscan Elf (lightweight yet fully featured) and the Aoralscan Elite series (specifically designed for All-on-X implants). To obtain an optimal scan, the operator should pay close attention to:
Clear dental margins
Detailed occlusal anatomy
Dry surfaces.
Blood, saliva, soft tissue movement, and unclear finish lines can affect scan accuracy, especially for traditional IOS equipment. If you need higher accuracy, upgrade to an IPG (Intraoral photogrammetry) dental scanner.
Once you complete the scan, the software exports the data into file formats. Three standard file formats are:
STL: Represents shapes purely as a mesh of triangles with no color or texture data.
OBJ: Stores geometry along with color and texture data.
PLY: Captures highly detailed per-vertex color, texture, and material data.
Please note: STL files are widely used, but only some scanners support export in OBJ or PLY formats. Therefore, before purchasing a scanner, carefully verify the specific requirements of your CAD software and your lab.
After acquiring intraoral scan data, CAD software (such as exocad) or the SHINING 3D DENTAL CLOUD DESIGN system is used to design dental models or appliances, including orthodontics models, surgical guides, splints, gingival masks, temporary crowns, denture bases, etc.
Once the CAD design has been verified, the operator exports it as an STL file and imports it into CAM software. The CAM software slices the CAD model into 2D layers based on the printing layer thickness and generates the specific path data to be executed by the 3D printer.
In dental 3D printing, DLP and LCD are two common resin-based technologies.
DLP (Digital Light Processing) uses a projected light source to cure each resin layer. It can deliver consistent light exposure and efficient layer curing with high precision, no matter how complex each layer's structure is.
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) printing uses a UV LED array as the light source and an LCD screen as a mask to cure resin layer by layer. LCD systems are often cost-effective, but lower-end models may experience light leakage and shorter screen life.
How to choose a Dental 3D printer:
Accuracy and Repeatability: It’s better to achieve a ±25μm accuracy to ensure snug-fitting restorations.
Build Volume: It depends on your clinics’ daily needs.
Open vs. Closed System: An open system allows the use of third-party resins (consult the manufacturer), giving the clinic flexibility.
Print Speed: Affects your clinic workflow and turnover time. For example, printing temporary dentures and bridges should take less than 20 minutes.
Each dental printing material must match the intended application. Resin works well for models, guides, trays, splints, dentures, and temporary restorations. Metal powders are used for frameworks, implant-related parts, and durable restorations.
Take the SHINING 3D DENTAL dental materials as an example:
Temporary crown and bridge resin - CB11/CB12/CX100
Permanent restoration resin - LumiCera
Dental model resin - DM03, DM12
Surgical guide resin - SG01
Orthodontic model resin - OD02
Custom tray resin - TR01
Denture base resin - DT02
Gingiva mask resin - GM12
Occlusal Splint - SH01/ SS01
Indirect Bonding Tray - IBD
Expect for your specific applications, key considerations when choosing dental printing materials include mechanical strength (tensile, flexural, impact resistance, wear resistance), accuracy and dimensional stability, water absorption rate, biocompatibility, aesthetics, and heat resistance.
Before starting printing, you may also need to optimize your 3D model. This includes checking the model for defects or errors, optimizing the printing orientation to reduce stress and preserve details, generating support structures, and finally selecting a layer thickness between 50 μm and 100 μm. A thinner layer improves printing accuracy but increases printing time.
Now, you can start the dental 3D printing!
First, check that the resin tank film has no perforations, cloudiness, or cured debris.
Then shake the resin well and pour it into the resin tank.
If the machine includes a heating element, allow it to reach the operating temperature to optimize the viscosity of the resin or ceramic-containing material.
Unprocessed parts carry liquid resin on their surface and are not fully polymerized. Post-processing is essential in the 3D printing step-by-step workflow to ensure the material achieves its mechanical properties and biocompatibility. These include:
Wash: Dissolving uncured liquid resin from the surface.
lDrying: Let the parts air dry completely or use compressed air.
Support Removal: Remove the support structures. Pay attention to critical margins.
Post-Curing: Place the dry parts inside a UV curing unit. The unit applies specific light wavelengths and heat to cure resins, reaching high mechanical properties and biocompatibility.
If you use SHINING 3D's new Ceramix-Nano capsule 3D printer, it integrates printing and curing functions, thus eliminating these post-processing steps and enabling permanent restoration fabrication within 30 minutes.
It’s the last step. Before delivery, the dental part must be checked.
For models, check surface completeness, margins, occlusal anatomy, and dimensional stability. For surgical guides, check the guide fit and seating stability. For splints, check thickness, smoothness, occlusion, and patient comfort. For crowns or denture parts, check fit, shade, strength, and surface quality.
Integrating additive manufacturing into your clinics improves your dental workflow:
Faster turnaround times: It enables chairside dentistry. A patient can receive a temporary crown within a single appointment.
High customization capability: Every single 3D printing run can contain various models, allowing a mix, low-volume production without increasing unit costs.
Improved accuracy and fit: Eliminating physical impression materials removes errors caused by material shrinkage or expansion, resulting in higher consistency.
Reduced manual labor: Automation and simplified workflow decrease technician workload in repetitive processes.
Cost efficiency for labs and clinics: Over time, clinics reduce lab costs and material waste.
For clinics and labs building a complete dental 3D printing workflow, SHINING 3D DENTAL offers a one-stop solution:
AccuFab series 3D printers are designed for chairside and lab use.
The Ceramix-Nano capsule 3D printer facilitates same-day permanent restorations.
SHINING DENT printing materials cover crowns, guides, models, splints, etc.
The AccuFab-F1 is a high-performance 3D printer engineered specifically for the dental industry. It utilizes the DLP technology to deliver high-dimensional accuracy.
Dual Heating Platform: A unique heating system for both the build platform and the resin tray. This ensures good resin flow and enables fast print speeds even in cold climates.
High Precision: The printer achieves an accuracy within ±25μm, ensuring tight, repeatable margin fits for complex implant restorations and crowns.
Intelligent Sensing: The resin tank, printing platform, and optical machine feature automatic detection to monitor missing components or residues, ensuring error-free operation.
The Ceramix-Nano is a capsule 3D printer designed for chairside production of permanent restorations. It is a compact DLP 3D printer.
Same-day restorations: Prints a permanent ceramic crown in as little as 8-11 minutes.
SHINING flow: Completes the full scan-to-delivery workflow in under 30 minutes.
Patented APS technology: Designed for high-viscosity ceramic-filled materials, improving reliability and speed.
Printing and curing 2-in-1: Eliminates the need for separate post-processing equipment.
Capsule-based material: FDA Class II 510(k) cleared, supporting up to 3 crowns per capsule.
Power bank compatible: Supports printing through a 10000mAh+ power bank, completing 5 print + cure cycles.
SHINING DENT materials are developed for various applications and optimized for the AccuFab series. The materials for intraoral use all have verified biocompatibility. They are also resistant to impact, fracture, and fatigue, and are not prone to deformation. The model materials are pressure-resistant, wear-resistant, and have high hardness, accurately reproducing dental anatomy.
This is an open system that supports certified third-party materials. If you have any needs, feel free to contact SHINING 3D DENTAL.