11-27-2012: Mcor announced availability of the IRIS

It was the world's first true colour 3D printer using paper as build material

On November 27, 2012, the Irish company Mcor Technologies announced the launch of the Mcor IRIS, the world’s first 3D printer capable of producing full-color models. The machine used paper as its feedstock, which was printed with ink, selectively glued, and cut into layer shapes. The resulting models were highly realistic and had a wood-like texture.

The Mcor IRIS stood out for its ability to reproduce over a million shades simultaneously, surpassing competing devices that typically limited colors to a few solid patches. Its key innovation was using ordinary paper as the build material, allowing natural color transfer with ink. Unlike gypsum, which could alter hues by absorbing ink, paper provided high-quality, stable colors. Consequently, models produced by the Mcor IRIS had a visual quality comparable to images seen on a computer screen.

The model creation process with the Mcor was quite complex. Each sheet was first printed in color, then transported to the worktable, glued, pressed, and finally cut into the desired layer shape. This process took considerable time, and removing supports without damaging delicate components was an additional challenge.

The printer offered a build volume of 256 x 169 x 150 mm for A4 paper and 9.39 x 6.89 x 5.9 inches for Letter-size paper. With a 0.1 mm layer thickness, it ensured exceptional detail. The color resolution reached 5760 x 1440 x 508 dpi, and the Mcor IRIS was compatible with popular file formats such as STL, OBJ, and VRML. The Mcor IRIS was priced at €11,300 (£10,200 or $15,866 USD).

Mcor Technologies was founded in 2005 by brothers Conor and Fintan MacCormack, who aimed to make 3D printing more accessible, affordable, and environmentally friendly. In addition to the IRIS, Mcor offered the monochrome Mcor Matrix 300+, which also used paper as its building material. Later, in 2016, the company introduced the Arke series, which used rolls of paper instead of sheets.

Unfortunately, Mcor Technologies couldn't sustain itself in the market. On March 21, 2019, the company announced its closure due to financial difficulties and pressure from competing technologies offering more advanced solutions at lower prices.

Source: www.prnewswire.com