Lesson 4 | 3D Printing

Assignment for the week:

- make a 3D design suitable for 3D printing

- generate the GCode of the model

- 3D print the 3D model

- create a page to document your progress of week 4,what did you do, in which order, what are your experiences (problems, solutions, etc.), and add the download of the 3D model you printed    to it


Used Software:

    - Autodesk Fusion360

    - Cura

Downloads:

    Software:
             - Fusion360

            - Cura 3.5.1

     3D Files
             Download

             This zip-File include the .stl File, the .f3d File and the .step File of my holder

     Profile
             Download

             This zip.File include the .curaprofile File of my Profile

Idea:

My PS4 controllers are currently lying around in a drawer. This week I'm designing a stand for them so I can put them next to my TV and print it on a 3D printer.


3D Design:

I drew the stand using Fusion360. I explained how to do this in week 2. I downloaded the controller from Grabcad.com.

The final Prototyp with a Dualshock 4 Controller

The final Prototyp with a Dualshock 4 Controller


The final Prototyp without a Dualshock 4 Controller

The final Prototyp without a Dualshock 4 Controller




To be able to print a body or a component, it must be available as a .stl file. By clicking on "Create" and then "3D Print" Fusion360 opens the export menu. After a click on "okay" the file can be saved.

Export the Prototyp as an .stl-File

Export the Prototyp as an .stl-File


Slicer:

A .stl file describes the surface of a 3D body using many triangles. A slicer converts this file into machine code. It considers parameters like temperature, thickness of the filament and other values. I will go into a few more parameters later.

Snippt of a .gcode file

Snippt of a .gcode file


I slice with the FOSS tool Cura (Version 3.5.1) Since we use Ultimaker as our printer, Cura is the best choice as both things are developed by Ultimaker. To load a file, click on the folder icon in the upper left corner. Then you can freely arrange the object on the print area.

Loading the stl into cura

Loading the stl into cura


Rotating the object

Rotating the object


Since I already have experience in 3D printing, I don't use the standard parameters of Cura, but adapt them to my needs. The settings can be accessed by clicking "Custom" on the right side of "Print Setup".

The first thing I did was to see which Nozzel was built into the printer. The bigger the hole is, the more material the printer can extrude. The Ultimaker 2 Extended had a 0.8 Nozzel built in.

Without adjustments the printing takes about 8 hours at the beginning. Since this was too much for me and I did not want to occupy the printer unnecessarily long, I played with some settings. First I changed the layerheight from 0.15mm to 0.2mm. The higher the layerheight, the more visible the individual lines are and the less detail the object has. Since I don't attach so much importance to the optical appearance of such an object, I'm well advised to use 0.2mm. Since a controller does not weigh so much, I have adjusted the thickness of the outer walls (wall thickness) to 1.5mm and the infill (filling of the object) to 15%. This way the printer has to print less material and the printing time is reduced considerably. The speed indicates the maximum print speed. The default setting is 30mm/s but an Ultimaker still delivers very good results even at 60mm/s. Since there are cavities in the part, I have to set "Support" in certain places. If I activate this option, Cura automatically sets the required support. So that the component does not come loose during printing, I also have a brim printed. This increases the adhesion of the object to the glass plate. By changing the settings I could reduce the printing time from almost 9 hours to 4 hours and 11 minutes. After a click on the button "Save to file" the file is saved.

You can download my Profile here.

My printing settings Part 1

My printing settings Part 1


My printing settings Part 2

My printing settings Part 2


My printing settings Part 3

My printing settings Part 3







Printer:

The Fablab has besides several Ultimaker 2 and 2 Extended also several Makerbots, Felix Printer and UP Minis. There are also SLA printers from Formlab. As a special feature there is a printer named BigRep with a print area of 1m*1m*1m. I print my prototype on an Ultimaker 2 Extended with a 0.8 Nozzel using Verbatin's white PLA

Ultimaker 2 Extended

Ultimkaer 2 Extended



Printing:

After I saved the file to an SD card, I could put it in the Ultimaker. After selecting the file, the printer heats up its nozzel and print bed. Once this process is complete, the printer starts printing.

Printing the brim


While printing

While printing


While printing

While printing


While printing

While printing


While printing

While printing



My Prototyp

My Prototyp


My Prototyp

My Prototyp


Issues:

The pressure bed was not uneven at the back. The first pressure failed because the extruder could not extrude enough material in the rear part. Since I didn't find a map to calibrate, I simply moved the model in the slicer and sliced it again.

Not enough extrusion

Not enough extrusion