nTopology and EOS team up to reduce file size

nTopology and EOS have partnered to address a major bottleneck in the additive manufacturing workflow. They have developed a new capability called “Implicit Interoperability” which aims to reduce the size of 3D design files and speed up the manufacturing process. Traditionally, 3D design files for printing can be extremely large, often exceeding tens of gigabytes. However, nTopology and EOS claim that their new nTop implicit file can reduce file sizes by up to 99 percent, generate files 500 times faster, and load files 60 percent faster.

This breakthrough has garnered enthusiastic responses from nTopology partners and customers, which were showcased during the Formnext industry event. To demonstrate the efficiency of their technology, the companies presented a proof of concept: an industrial heat exchanger designed by Siemens Energy. Converted to an implicit nTop file in a matter of seconds, the design required less than 1 megabyte of storage space and effortlessly imported into EOSPRINT for 3D printing.

To further promote the adoption of implicit interoperability technology, nTopology and EOS are collaborating with the 3MF Consortium to standardize the implicit file format. It is anticipated that this integration will be included in a future update to the industry standard 3MF 3D printing file format.

nTopology CEO Bradley Rothenberg stresses the importance of his partnership with EOS, which enables engineers to design and produce more complex parts. Alexander Bockstaller, software product line manager at EOS, recognizes the increasing complexity of part geometries and highlights the need for standardization to handle large and intricate meshes effectively.

Siemens Energy’s head of engineering services for additive manufacturing, Ole Geisen, commends nTopology and EOS for their technical development and urges the rest of the additive manufacturing ecosystem to catch up with these advances. As topology optimization, generative design, and design for additive manufacturing advance, exchanging complex geometries using traditional data formats becomes increasingly challenging, hindering innovation in thermal management.

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