Design and Fabrication of DLP 3D Printer

Abstract

Digital light processing (DLP) 3D printing is an additive manufacturing (AM) process which is used to produce parts via photopolymerization process in which resin is cured by UV light. Vat photopolymerization is a form of AM. It has a liquid bath of a polymeric resin which is cured layer by layer through precise control with help of stepper motor and projection of a light source of DLP projector. Printing time, layer thickness, and lumens of the projector play an important role in the printing process. A series of specimens was designed, printed, and tested. Total printing time, layer thickness, and layer exposure time were analyzed. We used 365 nm wavelength photopolymer resin, BENQ MP515 projector having 2500 ANSI lumens. This paper shows the design and fabrication of DLP 3D printer with low cost and good accuracy.