Abstract
Some of the most promising distributed recycling and additive manufacturing (DRAM) technical systems use fused particle fabrication (FPF) or fused granular fabrication (FGF), where compression screws force post-consumer waste plastic through a heated nozzle for direct 3D printing. To assist the technical evolution of these systems, this study provided the details of an invention for a low-cost, easily replicable open-source grinding machine for compression screw manufacturing. The system itself can be largely fabricated using FPF/FGF following the self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) methodology. This grinding machine can be made from a cordless cut-off grinder and < $155 in parts. The new invention is demonstrated to be able to cut custom screws with variable (i) channel depths, (ii) screw diameters, (iii) screw lengths, (iv) pitches, (v) abrasive disk thicknesses, (vi) handedness of the screws, (vii) and materials (three types of steel tested: 1045 steel, 1144 steel, and 416 stainless steel). The results show that the device is more than capable of replicating commercial screws as well as providing makers with a much greater flexibility to make custom screws. This invention enables the DRAM toolchain to become even more self-sufficient, which assists the goals of the circular economy.
Highlights
The proven effectiveness of the free and open-source software movement [1,2] is being replicated by the open-hardware community [3] with an approximately 15-year lag [4]
This study provided the details of an invention for a low-cost, replicable open-source grinding machine for compression screw manufacturing
The designs followed the replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) methodology, as many of the components of this grinding machine can be fabricated using fused particle fabrication (FPF)/fused granular fabrication (FGF), which would be enabled by the screws that the system manufactures
Summary
The proven effectiveness of the free and open-source software movement [1,2] is being replicated by the open-hardware community [3] with an approximately 15-year lag [4]. Open hardware is accelerated by platform technologies such as the Arduino electronics rapid prototyping platform [5,6]. Its derivative, the self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) project [7,8,9]. The goal of the RepRap project is to create 3D printers that can 3D print their own components [7,8,9]. Open-source RepRap material extrusion-based 3D printing substantially enlarged access to additive manufacturing (AM). RepRap technology in turn catalyzed millions of free and open-source 3D-printable designs and created a consumer (or prosumer) form of distributed manufacturing [12,13,14]. The business community understands the widespread impact this potential shift in manufacturing represents [27,28,29,30,31,32,33], Inventions 2020, 5, 26; doi:10.3390/inventions5030026 www.mdpi.com/journal/inventions
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