Roland DGA: MDX SRP Mills, LPX Laser Scanners

Roland DGA Corporation is the U.S.-based marketing, distribution and sales arm of Roland DG Corporation of Hamamatsu, Japan, a worldwide leader in the sign, graphic arts, fine art, vehicle graphics, UV, photography, engraving and 3D modeling industries. Founded in 1981 and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Roland DG is the world’s number one provider of wide-format inkjet printers for the durable graphics market. Roland DG is also affiliated with Roland Corporation, renowned in the music world for developing MIDI technology and for producing sophisticated digital music equipment including keyboard synthesizers, recording equipment and other related technologies.

Roland DG finds its technology roots in the music industry as well; the company’s advanced plotting technology was originally used to record the sound waves for Roland Corporation’s line of music synthesizers. This precision plotting technology quickly garnered widespread acceptance during the CAD/CAM revolution of the 1980s and provided the basis for new generations of digital input and output technologies to follow.

Within a few short years, Roland DG began introducing a wide variety of groundbreaking products including vinyl cutters, thermal transfer printer/cutters, wide-format inkjet printers and printer/cutters, 3D scanners and milling devices, and engravers. The products blazed new trails for entire industries and earned Roland DG a reputation for innovation, quality and reliability.

Roland is proud to be a SolidWorks Solution Partner. Available in desktop and benchtop models, Roland MDX milling machines enable engineers to quickly and easily generate rapid prototypes in-house. By starting with a solid object and removing unwanted material, engineers enjoy several advantages over traditional rapid prototyping. Called Subtractive Rapid Prototyping (SRP) technology, the process cuts time, costs less, offers a greater variety of materials and requires no finishing.

The Roland MDX-540 SRP® System combines precision desktop milling with powerful CAM software, making it easy to produce prototypes with industry leading speed and accuracy. The MDX-540 mills a wide variety of nonproprietary materials and popular engineered plastics such as ABS, Delrin, and nylon. The desktop device produces functional prototypes ideal for structural, thermal, and electrical testing. It even produces non-ferrous metal rapid injection molds and EDM electrodes for production tooling. MDX-540 work volume is 19.6” x 15.7” x 6.1”.

The Roland MDX-40 SRP™ System can mill a wide range of low cost, non-proprietary materials including ABS, delrin, nylon, and tooling board. This lets engineers create functional prototypes to test how well products will actually work. Handled by market focus groups, these prototypes must perform like the final manufactured product and survive a barrage of physical tests, including thermal and structural trials. With its 4th rotary axis, the MDX-40 performs both unattended two- and four-sided milling. When one side is completed, the part is automatically rotated until all four sides have been milled. This saves engineers the time and reduces errors associated with rotating objects by hand. MDX-40 work volume is 12" x 12" x 4.12".

Capable of scanning and milling, the Roland MDX-15 and MDX-20 are ideal for a variety of product design tasks, including reverse modeling, rapid prototyping, jewelry and model making, and small lot production. Select the spindle tip for state-of-the-art CNC milling, or select the Roland Active Piezo Sensor for precise 3D scanning. By testing and modifying your virtual 3D designs, the MDX-15/20 will save time and money. As full-featured CNC (computer numerical control) mill, both machines are capable of cutting jeweler's wax, resins, chemical wood, acrylic, and even light metals such as brass and aluminum. MDX-15 work volume is 6” x 4” x 2 3/8”. MDX-20 work volume is 8”x 6” x 2 3/8”