Laminated Object Manufacturing Research Articles

Mechanical property characterizations of woven natural fiber-reinforced polymers 3D printed through a laminated object manufacturing process

ABSTRACT The mechanical properties of woven natural fiber reinforced polymers additively manufactured through Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM) technology are investigated in this paper. The benefits of both the material and manufacturing process were combined into a sustainable practice, as a potential alternative to traditional synthetic composite materials made from nonrenewable crude oil with limited end-of-life alternatives. Woven jute fiber reinforcements are used to strengthen both synthetic and bio- thermoplastic polymers in creating highly biodegradable composite structures. Such materials, as one of the prospective alternatives for synthetic composites, can be used in many engineering fields such as automobile panels, construction materials, and commodity and recreational products including sports and musical instruments. A LOM 3D printer prototype was designed and built by the authors. All woven jute/polymer biocomposite test specimens made using the built prototype in this study had their mechanical (both tensile and flexural) properties assessed using ASTM test standards and then compared to similar values measured from pure polymer specimens. Improved mechanical characteristics were identified and analyzed. Finally, SEM imaging was performed to identify the polymer infusion and fiber-matrix bonding conditions.

Additive Manufacturing: A Comprehensive Review.

Additive manufacturing has revolutionized manufacturing across a spectrum of industries by enabling the production of complex geometries with unparalleled customization and reduced waste. Beginning as a rapid prototyping tool, additive manufacturing has matured into a comprehensive manufacturing solution, embracing a wide range of materials, such as polymers, metals, ceramics, and composites. This paper delves into the workflow of additive manufacturing, encompassing design, modeling, slicing, printing, and post-processing. Various additive manufacturing technologies are explored, including material extrusion, VAT polymerization, material jetting, binder jetting, selective laser sintering, selective laser melting, direct metal laser sintering, electron beam melting, multi-jet fusion, direct energy deposition, carbon fiber reinforced, laminated object manufacturing, and more, discussing their principles, advantages, disadvantages, material compatibilities, applications, and developing trends. Additionally, the future of additive manufacturing is projected, highlighting potential advancements in 3D bioprinting, 3D food printing, large-scale 3D printing, 4D printing, and AI-based additive manufacturing. This comprehensive survey aims to underscore the transformative impact of additive manufacturing on global manufacturing, emphasizing ongoing challenges and the promising horizon of innovations that could further elevate its role in the manufacturing revolution.

Mechanical properties of additively manufactured polymeric composites using sheet lamination technique and fused deposition modeling: A review

AbstractNowadays, it is possible to produce products with complex geometries, thanks to the experts who have continuously explored the advancements in additive manufacturing (AM) techniques. This review helps readers understand the opportunities and difficulties associated with developing parts for various industries, including aerospace, tooling, electronics, and biomedicine. The present work describes the landscape of polymeric composites using laminated object manufacturing (LOM) and fused deposition modeling (FDM). This paper discusses recent publications in the realm of AM related to composite fabrication, materials, techniques, functionality, and future scope. The effects of nanofiller reinforcement on the mechanical properties of composites have been thoroughly investigated. Furthermore, FDM process parameters such as layer thickness, infill speed, nozzle temperature, and raster angle have also been considered. Finally, the challenges and potential applications of LOM and FDM of additively manufactured composites have been summarized.

Full-Combinatorial Concentration Gradient Array with 3D Micro/Nanofluidics for Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing.

Recent advancements in micro/nanofluidics have facilitated on-chip microscopy of cellular responses in a high-throughput and controlled microenvironment with the desired physicochemical properties. Despite its potential benefits to combination drug discovery, generating a complete combinatorial set of concentration gradients for multiple reagents in an array format remains challenging. The main reason is limited layouts of conventional micro/nanofluidic systems based on two-dimensional channel networks. In this paper, we present a device with three-dimensional (3D) interconnection of micro/nanochannels capable of generating a complete combinatorial set of concentration gradients for two reagents. The device was readily fabricated by laminating a pair of multilayered monolithic films containing a Christmas tree-like mixer, a cell culture chamber array, and through-holes, all within each single film. We assessed the reliable generation of a full-combinatorial concentration gradient array and validated it by using numerical analysis. We applied the proposed device to test the antibiotic susceptibility of bacterial cells in a convenient one-step manner. Furthermore, we explored the potential of the device to accommodate the arrayed complete combinatorial set for two or more drugs, while extending the capabilities of our laminated object manufacturing method for realizing 3D micro/nanofluidic systems.

Biomass 3D Printing: Principles, Materials, Post-Processing and Applications.

Under the background of green and low-carbon era, efficiently utilization of renewable biomass materials is one of the important choices to promote ecologically sustainable development. Accordingly, 3D printing is an advanced manufacturing technology with low energy consumption, high efficiency, and easy customization. Biomass 3D printing technology has attracted more and more attentions recently in materials area. This paper mainly reviewed six common 3D printing technologies for biomass additive manufacturing, including Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), Direct Ink Writing (DIW), Stereo Lithography Appearance (SLA), Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM) and Liquid Deposition Molding (LDM). A systematic summary and detailed discussion were conducted on the printing principles, common materials, technical progress, post-processing and related applications of typical biomass 3D printing technologies. Expanding the availability of biomass resources, enriching the printing technology and promoting its application was proposed to be the main developing directions of biomass 3D printing in the future. It is believed that the combination of abundant biomass feedstocks and advanced 3D printing technology will provide a green, low-carbon and efficient way for the sustainable development of materials manufacturing industry.

Fabricating and Laminating Films with Through-Holes and Engraved/Protruding Structures for 3D Micro/Nanofluidic Platforms.

Micro/nanofluidic devices have become popular for delicately processing biological, material, and chemical samples. However, their reliance on 2D fabrication schemes has hindered further innovation. Here, a 3D manufacturing method is proposed through the innovation of laminated object manufacturing (LOM), which involves the selection of building materials as well as the development of molding and lamination techniques. Fabrication of interlayer films is demonstrated with both multi-layered micro-/nanostructures and through-holes, using an injection molding approach and establishing strategic principles of film design. Utilization of the multi-layered through-hole films in LOM allows reducing the number of alignments and laminations by at least two times compared to conventional LOM. Using a dual-curing resin for film fabrication, a surface-treatment-free and collapse-free lamination technique is shown for constructing 3D multiscale micro/nanofluidic devices with ultralow aspect ratio nanochannels. The 3D manufacturing method enables the development of a nanochannel-based attoliter droplet generator capable of 3D parallelization for mass production, which implies the remarkable potential to extend numerous existing 2D micro/nanofluidic platforms into a 3D framework.

Mechanical and Morphological Characterizations of Laminated Object Manufactured 3D Printed Biodegradable Poly(lactic)acid with Various Physical Configurations

Mechanical behavior of 3D-printed poly(lactic) acid material is an open topic for research on the reliability assessment of structures in marine and offshore industries. This article presents the mechanical and morphological properties of poly(lactic) acid specimens using the laminated object manufacturing technique. The effect was experimentally investigated on 3D-printed discs joined together to make a laminated test specimen. The specimen was prepared and tested under different infill patterns, viz. linear, triangular, and honeycomb structure, 50–90% infill density, and under varying disc thickness ranging from 3.4–5.6 mm. The maximum compressive strength of 42.47 MPa was attained for the laminated specimen with 70% infill, honeycomb pattern, and disc thickness of 3.4 mm (six discs), whereas the linear infill pattern has shown the least compressive performance of 22.40 MPa. The result of the study suggested that the honeycomb infill pattern with 90% infill density and six discs provides the optimum set of parameters for the 3D printing of PLA samples for maximization of compressive strength, especially for laminated object manufactured specimens. The Taguchi L9 orthogonal analysis (OA) suggested a significant influence on the infill pattern and the number of discs, contributing 51.60% and 48.29%, respectively, towards the compressive strength. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and toolmaker microscopic images have supported the observed experimental mechanical results for the laminated object manufactured specimens. The used technique of laminated object-manufactured components in the current study may have effective usage in marine and structural engineering fields.

On Laminated Object Manufactured FDM-Printed ABS/TPU Multimaterial Specimens: An Insight into Mechanical and Morphological Characteristics.

Fused deposition modeling (FDM) printing of commercial and reinforced filaments is a proven and well-explored method for the enhancement of mechanical properties. However, little has hitherto been reported on the multi-material components, fused or laminated together into a single specimen by using the laminated object manufacturing (LOM) technique for sustainable/renewable polymers. TPU is one such durable and flexible, sustainable material exhibiting renewable and biocompatible properties that have been explored very less often in combination with the ABS polymer matrix in a single specimen, such as the LOM specimen. The current research work presents the LOM manufacturing of 3D-printed flexural specimens of two different, widely used polymers available viz. ABS and TPU and tested as per ASTM D790 standards. The specimens were made and laminated in three layers. They were grouped into two categories, namely ABS: TPU: ABS (ATA) and TPU: ABS: TPU (TAT), which are functionally graded, sandwiched structures of polymeric material. The investigation of the flexural properties, microscopic imaging, and porosity characteristics of the specimens was made for the above categories. The results of the study suggest that ATA-based samples held larger flexural strength than TAT laminated manufactured samples. A significant improvement in the peak elongation and break elongation of the samples was achieved and has shown a 187% increase in the break elongation. Similarly, for the TAT-based specimen, flexural strength was improved significantly from approximately 6.8 MPa to 13 MPa, which represents a nearly 92% increase in the flexural strength. The morphological testing using Tool Maker’s microscopic analysis and porosity analysis has supported the observed trends of mechanical behavior of ATA and TAT samples.

Development of an Adaptive Slicing Algorithm of Laminated Object Manufacturing Based 3D Printing for Freeform Formwork

Recently, as “Freeform buildings” have increased in number, studies on ways to increase productivity in the construction of freeform buildings are increasing. In the case of 3D printing in construction, many studies are being conducted using the material extrusion method; among the 3D printing methods, manufacturing freeform forms using laminated object manufacturing (LOM) can overcome the limitation presented above. However, there is a lack of cases used in LOM construction sites, so it is necessary to increase the productivity of construction work and study the slicing method suitable for construction. Therefore, in this paper, we propose using study criteria and adaptive slicing methods to combine both the shape error and the manufacturing time of freeform construction. A case study was conducted to verify the results of this study; the freeform concrete form manufacturing with the algorithm that proposed this study could save 66.1% of the manufacturing time compared with CNC milling, and it needs 19.8% less manufacturing time than the existing uniform slicing method. This is a result of the production of one freeform form, and it can be expected to have a greater effect if applied to many freeform forms used in construction sites. In addition, the results of this study can be used as a decision-making tool that can determine the shape and manufacturing time of production according to the on-site situation.

Evaluation of material reuse degree in additive manufacturing by the improved resolution coefficient grey correlation method

With the rapid development of additive manufacturing (AM), materials used in AM increase year by year, generating a large amount of discarded waste materials. Some of these waste materials are hazardous to the environment and the human body. Facing this problem, it is crucial to reduce material usage in AM technologies by recycling. Up until now, extensive attentions have been attracted on material reuse/recycling in AM technologies, however, comparisons of material reuse degree (MRD) are still lacking. Aiming at addressing MRD issues, we developed an improved resolution coefficient grey correlation (IRCGC) method to evaluate MRD in four representative AM technologies, including fused deposition modeling (FDM), stereolithography (SLA), selective laser sintering (SLS), and laminated object manufacturing (LOM). In such an IRCGC method, a grey correlation optimization model was established and a combined analytic hierarchy process and entropy weight method was employed to obtain weights. Afterwards, MRD in 4 AM technologies were assessed by an evaluation system and then were clustered using data analysis software. Experimental results show that among the 4 AM technologies, the FDM technology demonstrated the highest MRD, whereas, the SLA technology exhibited the lowest MRD. The SLS and the LOM AM technologies are classified into the good level.

Experimental analysis on waterjet-guided Nd: YAG laser thin wood machining

Waterjet-Guided Laser (WJGL) machining is an advanced technique providing efficiency and precision for wood machining. The present study investigates the practical demonstration and analysis of laminated object manufacturing (LOM) WJGL for thin wood machining. A theoretical process of wood laser cutting was established, expressing relations between the cut kerf width and the influencing parameters. WJG Nd: YAG laser system was utilized for machining Korean pine and Northeast China ash specimen of 3 mm thickness, each with 7.21 and 7.13% of water content, respectively, under different machining conditions. The effects of process parameters and influences on woodcut surface geometry were analyzed via analysis of variance (ANOVA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The investigated parameters include the laser cutting speed, power, kerf width, heat-affected zone (HAZ), and cut surface roughness. The study shows that the kerf width and surface were significantly influenced by WJGL power, followed by the cutting speed. For both wood specimens, at a fixed laser cutting speed of 2.36 mm/s, the kerf width increases significantly with laser power, affecting the cut surface quality accordingly. At 6 W and 8 W, the cut kerf geometry and surface quality were excellent for the Pinus Koraiensis, with kerf widths of 0.79 and 0.852 mm, respectively. At a fixed laser power of 8 W, the kerf width decreases with the cutting speed, affecting the cut surface quality. At a cutting speed of 4.33 mm/s, an excellent cut surface of Fraxinus mandshurica was observed with 0.808 mm of kerf width. Depending on the machining conditions, the kerf width variations of Korean pine were more significant than the Northeast China ash. LOM-WJGL is an efficient and eco-friendly technique for thin wood processing.Graphical abstractArticle HighlightsPractical modeling demonstration of waterjet guided laser (WJGL) wood machining.Experimental investigation of different wood specimens under influenced process parameters and machining conditions.Characterization and identification of suitable wood types for efficient and eco-friendly applications.

3D printing of gun propellants based on laminated object manufacturing

ABSTRACT The preparation of complex geometry gun propellant to improve combustion progressivity by conventional extrusion processes has been a challenge. An efficient and scalable 3D printing approach based on laminated object manufacturing (LOM) for gun propellant was proposed. A demonstration of the rosette-shaped 61-perf double-base gun propellant using conventional sheet double-base gun propellant and volatile solvent ethyl acetate was printed by a self-developed printer. The printed gun propellants were characterized in terms of printing qualities, mechanical properties, and combustion performances. The standard deviations of inner diameter and web thickness were 0.031 mm and 0.023 mm respectively. Moreover, its density (1.623 g·cm−3) was comparable to that of conventional double-based gun propellants. The tensile strength, compression strength, and impact strength were 10.37 MPa, 74.13 MPa, and 5.60 kJ·m−2, respectively. Importantly, the dynamic vivacity curve tested by the closed vessel matched the theoretical curve well, with a dynamic vivacity increment of 0.23 MPa−1·s−1. This indicated that printed grain has the highest progressive combustion (35% improvement) of the multi-perforated gun propellants to date. Hence, the gun propellant LOM process offers an attractive route to prepare complex geometry gun propellants with higher progressive combustion, breaking the technological bottleneck in the field of gun propellant manufacturing.

Research and applications of additive manufacturing technology of SiC ceramics

<p indent="0mm">Silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic material shows significant application prospects in engineering and technical fields, such as aerospace, nuclear energy, and automobile industry engineering, due to its excellent mechanical, thermal, and optical properties. It is also key to the breakthrough of national scientific research and important strategic equipment. In recent years, the requirement of high-performance SiC ceramic components with complicated shapes, such as lightweight space optical mirrors, is becoming increasingly stringent, pushing the need for ceramic processing techniques. Traditional manufacturing techniques for SiC ceramic components include slip casting, isostatic pressing, and injection molding, etc. However, these processing methods have certain restrictions, including the requirement of molds and tools, time-consuming steps, high cost, and incapability to prepare SiC ceramic parts with complex shapes and arbitrary geometries. Additive manufacturing (AM) technology has provided a new development direction for the preparation of SiC ceramic. Different from the conventional processing methods, AM is performed in a layer-by-layer fashion to fabricate the components from a computer-aided design model. It theoretically allows the production of complex-shaped SiC ceramic parts without the requirement of molds, thus overcoming the shortcomings of the conventional methods in fabricating complicated ceramic components. The AM technique has become an effective way to achieve lightweight SiC ceramic formation and integration of complex SiC ceramic components. Currently, the AM of SiC ceramics has become a research hotspot in this field. In this review, the recent advances in the research and applications of SiC ceramics prepared by AM are systematically summarized and discussed, including the material design and fabrication methods, processes and equipment, post-processing technology, finite element simulation, performance evaluation, and desired applications. After briefly introducing the general research ideas and expected results of SiC ceramics via additive manufacturing, the design and preparation methods of AM-based SiC materials, including SiC powder, slurry/paste, filament, and laminate, are described in detail. Subsequently, the common AM process of SiC ceramics is introduced, including selective laser sintering, three-dimensional printing, stereolithography, direct ink writing, fused deposition modeling, and laminated object manufacturing. Further, post-treatment processes of the green body for AM-based SiC ceramics are presented, including carbonization, liquid/gas silicon infiltration, chemical vapor infiltration, and precursor impregnation and pyrolysis. In addition, this paper summarizes the finite element simulation of AM and post-treatment process for SiC ceramics and illustrates the performance evaluation methods of SiC ceramic components, including their mechanical, thermal, and optical performances. Typical applications of AM-based SiC ceramic components are elaborated as well. Finally, the outstanding challenges, future directions, and potential perspectives related to AM-prepared SiC ceramics are proposed. In the future, the AM-prepared SiC components will develop toward the advanced directions, such as the SiC ceramics with micro- or macroscale structures, lightweight SiC ceramics, the application of SiC composite material, and the material-structure-function combination for SiC ceramics. The purpose of this paper is to provide a significant reference for the research of complex SiC ceramic components fabricated via AM.

Selection for additive manufacturing using hybrid MCDM technique considering sustainable concepts

PurposeIn the present scenario, the demand for additive manufacturing (AM) has increased. Taking into account environmental problems and sustainability, manufacturers are now also considering the environmental and sustainability criteria in their decision-making process. The sustainability concept is known as the triple-bottom line, namely, economic, social and environmental perspectives. Sustainable concept selection in the manufacturing organisation can be considered as the selection of sustainable material, product design, process, method and technology. This study aims to select an appropriate AM process by considering sustainability from various available techniques.Design/methodology/approachAppropriate sustainable performance indicators for the AM were identified based on literature as well as in discussion with experts and decision-makers. The model addresses all the major dimensions of sustainable concepts of AM such as material/product quality, machine performance, market stability, total cost and ecological values. A hybrid multi-criteria decision-making approach, i.e. stepwise weight assessment ratio analysis and complex proportional assessment methods, have been used to select the best AM technique. While selecting criteria affecting AM machines and processes, criteria based on the sustainable concept are considered.FindingsAmong the four selected AM processes, i.e. fused diffusion modelling (FDM), laminated object manufacturing (LOM), stereolithography apparatus (SLA) and selective laser sintering (SLS), the best alternative was found to be FDM.Research limitations/implicationsThe present study highlights some limitations in the selection of AM process and methodology used in this research. This study considers only four AM processes, i.e. FDM, LOM, SLA and SLS. Future work may include considering other AM processes and criteria that affect the sustainability of AM.Practical implicationsThe present work will help researchers and production managers to decide the best AM alternatives to fabricate desired parts. Hence, AM can help in maximum energy utilisation, optimal consumption of resources, minimum material wastage and reduction of CO2 emission.Originality/valueThe study considers some important criteria, including energy consumption, eco-friendly and wastage-free production, that help sustainable AM. This study can result in a good economic efficiency of AM industries and, therefore, positively impact customers using green products.

A bioinspired, electroactive colorable and additive manufactured photonic artificial muscle.

Structural coloration in biomimetic nanostructures has remarkable application potential in vivid display devices, but their color change effect is still insufficiently competitive towards biology. Inspired by the feather color change of a hummingbird, a new methodology for coloration is proposed. A structure-colorable flexural artificial muscle (FlexAM) is developed by integrating a view-angle dependent photonic diffraction grating pattern and voltage-actuated dielectric elastomers as an electroactive entity via laminated object additive manufacturing. A multi-physics model is developed which guides the FlexAM to harness the view-angle dependence for the new coloration strategy. The electro-mechanochromic performances are experimentally characterized to verify the prediction of the multi-physics model. An ultrafast coloration in the FlexAM with an advancing figure-of-merit at a color-shift rate of 2.814 nm ms-1 is realized, in addition to an excellent fatigue resistance up to 10 000 cycles. A photonic display with arrayed FlexAM elements is designed, which can be used to display numbers and letters. The current research offers an advanced artificial muscle towards active photonic and visible strain sensing.

Additive manufacturing of continuous carbon fiber reinforced epoxy composite with graphene enhanced interlayer bond toward ultra‐high mechanical properties

AbstractContinuous carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites (CFRPCs) exhibiting superior mechanical properties have emerged as high‐performance engineering materials for various industrial applications. Additive manufacturing (AM) of CFRPCs enables production of customized structures with superior mechanical properties at a low cost and has gained tremendous popularity. In the present study, a novel AM technique namely laser‐assisted laminated object manufacturing (LA‐LOM) is proposed for producing CFRPCs using prepreg sheets with continuous carbon fiber reinforcement. The interfacial properties of the bonded prepreg sheets are critical for the performance of the additively manufactured CFRPCs. We further introduce graphene as a modifier between the prepreg sheets to improve the mechanical properties of the CFRPCs. It is shown that low porosity (0.38%), high concentrations of continuous carbon fibers (63 wt. %), and improved interfacial bonding strength contribute to excellent mechanical properties. For the composite structure ([0°]s fiber arrangements), in which 0.5 mg/ml graphene is introduced as interface modifier, the lap shear strength, tensile strength, and tensile modulus are 18 MPa, 2940 MPa, and 170 GPa, respectively, and the flexural strength and modulus are 1310 MPa and 140 GPa, respectively. The tensile strength and modulus outperform all AM‐produced structures reported in literature, including carbon fiber composites and metals and metal alloys. Meanwhile, the increases are observed in the lap shear strength by 25%, flexural strength by 10%, and flexural modulus by 27%, as well as tensile strength by 7% and modulus by 6%, compared to specimens without graphene reinforcement. This composite architecture design, involving laminated continuous carbon fiber reinforced prepreg sheets and graphene‐modified interfaces, provides a readily scalable manufacturing method toward excellent properties and this method can be further explored in industrial applications.

A finishing process via ultrasonic drilling for additively manufactured carbon fiber composites

PurposeAdditively manufactured objects have layered structures, which means post processing is often required to achieve a desired surface finish. Furthermore, the additive nature of the process makes it less accurate than subtractive processes. Hence, additive manufacturing techniques could tremendously benefit from finishing processes to improve their geometric tolerance and surface finish.Design/methodology/approachRotary ultrasonic machining (RUM) was chosen as a finishing operation for drilling additively manufactured carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites. Two distinct additive manufacturing methods of fused deposition modeling (FDM) and laser-assisted laminated object manufacturing (LA-LOM) were used to fabricate CFRP plates with continuous carbon fiber reinforcement. The influence of the feedrate, tool rotation speed and ultrasonic power of the RUM process parameters on the aforementioned quality characteristics revealed the feasibility of RUM process as a finishing operation for additive manufactured CFRP.FindingsThe quality of drilled holes in the CFRP plates fabricated via LA-LOM was supremely superior to the FDM counterparts with less pullout delamination, smoother surface and less burr formation. The strong interfacial bonding in LA-LOM proven to be superior to FDM was able to endure higher cutting force of the RUM process. The cutting force and cutting temperature overwhelmed the FDM parts and induced higher surface damage.Originality/valueOverall, the present study demonstrates the feasibility of a hybrid additive and subtractive manufacturing method that could potentially reduce cost and waste of the CFRP production for industrial applications.

Assessing the Economic Effectiveness of Additive Sheet Lamination

Methodological aspects of assessing the economic efficiency of an additive manufacturing technology are discussed; specifically, the production of metal components by additive sheet lamination is considered. A model is proposed for cost calculation in laminated object manufacturing.

A contemporary review on additive manufactured biomedical implants

Three dimensional (3D) printing is the favoured technique in contemporary manufacturing firms, that facilitates the solid 3D model from any modelling software to the real-time application in aerospace, automobile, construction, and lately, tissue engineering and medical implants that have gained traction with ongoing research studies. This review shows the emerging printing technologies such as Stereo lithography (SLA), Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM), Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), and Laminated object manufacturing (LOM). Based on these methods, suitable characterization materials like biopolymer and natural polymers were used for medical implants and tissue engineering. This review emphasizes the materials used, manufacturing methods with a keen focus on 3D printing techniques, and various applications in tissue engineering and medical implants.

Z-axis limit switch 3D printer

Not much time has passed since the appearance of the first 3D printer. Today there are many different printers. They differ in various 3D printing technologies, namely: Stereolithography – SL, Selective Laser Sintering, Fused Deposition Modeling – FDM, Laminated Object Manufacturing – LOM, Polyjet and Ployjet Matrix.&#x0D; In recent years, the spread of 3D printing technology has become and continues to be used more and more today. Of course, in the future we will see a large-scale spread of additive methods, but the practical application of 3D printing today is available to everyone. Melting deposition modeling technologies have become widespread and available.&#x0D; The authors in this article consider possible options for upgrading the mounting of the end sensor of the Z Axis and automating the process of calibration of the zero gap of the extruder nozzle relative to the working surface of the printer. This calibration is important. This affects the accuracy and printing process of the future plastic model.&#x0D; During the operation of the 3D printer, it is often necessary to service the extruder, which forces the process of calibrating the zero gap of the printer nozzle. Optimally correct selected nozzle clearance affects the accuracy, geometry of the model and printing as a whole. It also allows you to get rid of peeling off the model from the desktop surface and the destruction of the model during printing.