Production Perspectives: What We Learned from Rui Lopes about 3D Automation

Continuing our series of interviews with experts, we spoke with Rui Lopes, an experienced maker and manager at Invicta3D, who works with 3D printing, CNC and laser cutting.

Rui brought a very practical and simplicity-focused perspective, challenging some of our initial ideas.

Here are the highlights and main takeaways.

1. Swap the Build Plate vs. Push the Part

Rui was very direct: for him, the most viable solution is not to push parts off the bed, but rather to swap the build plate.

He explained that very low or thin parts are almost impossible to remove mechanically without a spatula, and attempting to do so can:

• damage the part
• limit the types of prints the system supports

The suggestion was to look at systems like the Jobox, which are cost-effective and efficient at automatically swapping plates.

2. The Challenge of Sorting

On using Computer Vision to separate good from bad parts, Rui warned about the complexity of predicting how a part will fall on a conveyor belt.

According to him, sorting becomes much simpler if the part remains fixed on the plate, because:

• the camera knows exactly where to look
• the part boundaries are consistent
• the algorithm can work with fixed references

If the part falls in a random orientation, the algorithm becomes extremely complex.

3. “Don’t Think Like Engineers”

One of the most striking pieces of advice was don’t overcomplicate what is simple.

Rui encouraged us to use:

• standard hardware
• common screws
• easily sourced springs

instead of custom or expensive components that make:

• maintenance harder
• production harder
• product adoption harder

The philosophy should be clear:

Build something that even someone without technical knowledge can assemble and maintain.

4. Market and Added Value

Like other experts, Rui reinforced an important market point.

Someone who buys €150 printers is unlikely to spend the same amount on an automation kit.

The real target audience is companies or makers doing series production, where machines need to run 24/7.

For these companies, the value of automation is in preventing the machine from stopping overnight just because there is no one to:

• press a button
• remove a part
• swap a plate

5. Software Barriers (The Bambu Ecosystem)

Rui also shared an important technical detail: Bambu Lab uses a closed API, which prevents direct control by external applications for security reasons.

To work around this, he suggested two possible approaches:

Scripts with multiple Gcodes

Create scripts that “stitch” multiple Gcodes into a single long file, causing the printer to run several print sessions back-to-back as if it were just one.

Use of open-source firmware

Use open-source systems like Klipper, which allow full control of the machine and greater flexibility for automation.

Conclusion

The conversation with Rui Lopes was essential to reduce the mechanical complexity of our ideas and focus on what really matters for production.

A focus on:

• automatic plate swapping
• mechanical simplicity
• standard hardware

they are now pillars we will seriously consider to turn our prototype into a truly useful product for those who produce at scale.