formlabs Form 3BL, Manual, Page: 33 / 63

Printing | 29
5.3.2.4 Uploading a print
After orienting and supporting your model(s), and saving your FORM file, upload your print job
to the printer. Both the printer and the computer running PreForm must be connected via USB
or on the same network in order to upload a print job. Refer to section
4.6 Connecting the
printer to a network for more information. Once transferred, print jobs must be confirmed on
the printer’s touchscreen to begin. Refer to section 5.4.2 Starting a print for more information.
To upload a print job from PreForm to the printer:
1. Click the orange printer icon on the Home screen. The Print window opens.
2. Click the Select Printer arrow to select a printer. The Printer List window opens.
3. Click the name of a printer you wish to select. The Printer Details window opens.
° If the printer does not automatically appear in the
Printer List , click Add to manually
enter the printer’s IP address.
4. Click Select . The Job Setup window opens.
5. Click Apply . The selected printer appears in the Job Info dialog box.
6. Enter or update the Job Name .
7. Click Upload Job to send the print job to the printer. Once the progress bar fills and the
Print window closes, the upload is complete.
5.4 Preparing the printer for printing
Before a print job can begin, the Form 3BL must be set up to match the correct material
settings. Insert the resin tank, build platform, and resin cartridge(s). Confirm the print job on
the printer’s touchscreen and wait for the print chamber inside the Form 3BL to preheat. For
detailed guidance and visual assistance, visit
support.formlabs.com.
5.4.1 Automatic consumables checks
The Form 3BL checks the following before each print:
• Accessories: Sensors check for the proper installation of the build platform, resin tank,
and resin cartridges.
• Temperature: The print chamber and resin heat to around 35 °C (95 °F). Two heating fans
blow air across the heater into the resin tank to heat the resin.
• Resin: Resin flows from each resin cartridge into the resin tank when the cartridge dispense
arm squeezes the bite valve of each resin cartridge open. The Form 3BL regulates the
volume of resin in the resin tank through a sensor called the LevelSense, which is located
above the rear right-hand corner of the resin tank. The printer begins to fill the resin tank
once a print starts and maintains the level of resin in the resin tank during the print. Printing
begins automatically when LevelSense detects the proper amount of resin in the resin tank.
5.4.2 Starting a print
Once a print job is uploaded to the Form 3BL, the printer’s touchscreen displays the next print
job in the queue. To start the print, tap
Print on the printer’s touchscreen. If the file is not the next
print job in the queue, tap the collapsed menu icon from Home to access the Queue screen.
To start a print on the printer’s touchscreen:
Tap the print job on the Home screen, or from Queue . The print job screen appears.
Tap Print to confirm. A new screen appears.
Follow the prompts on the touchscreen to check the resin tank and cartridge(s) are inserted correctly,
then tap
Confirm . The print starts once the print chamber has reached around 35 °C (95 °F).