Project by: William Connelly (11th Grade)
Project Advisor: Mark Silberberg
Student(s)’s Advisor(s): Jess

Description of the Project:

Final Product (e.g., documents, images, video, audio, poster, display, etc.):

Final Reflection on Learning:

Update 1 (Weeks 1-3):

So far I have completed the building process of the 3d printer. I fully assembled it and recorded most of it which will be edited into a timelapse for my final presentation. The building process was fairly slow because I needed to make sure all the pieces fit together well, because and vibrations that occur will affect the print quality.  After completing the build, I first printed out a new hot end cooling duct to direct the airflow all around the printhead, because the one included points directly at the hot-end, cooling down the piece that is supposed to be hot, and not cooling the printed material.

Original:

After installing this part, the prints were much better at sticking to the hotbed. It also screws into the fan, making it much less likely to fall off or become loose.

New fan duct:

 

I then printed a button cover for the filament extraction button which was just a screw and hurt to press.

 

I also printed an adjustable spool holder with bearings which puts much less stress on the extruder motor.

I also printed a y-belt tensioner, because previously I had to take apart the heatbed every time the belt became loose. I also printed frame support because I noticed that the stepper motors were causing a lot of vibrations in the front.

Small upgrades I printed included dust caps for the Z axis rods because without them, the rods can shake around which translates into a worse print.

I also printed a small spacer for the printed reset button, because it was very easy to hit by accident. I also printed a sound dampener, because the beeping noise it made while navigating the menus was audible throughout the apartment. With this tiny upgrade, I can choose how loud it is depending on how much I tighten it.

I also printed a new fan cover and LCD screen cover because that allows me to route the wires in a way that will cause less stress on the connections and hopefully less vibrations and movement overall.

While these upgrades definitely improved the use and print quality of the printer, an important aspect was learning how to use the software CURA which is the slic3r I used. The slic3r is what makes the route that the hot-end will take, and programs where and when it will extrude at each point. In the software, there are a ton of settings to change, and all of them can have a big effect on print quality. By the end of printing all these parts, the print quality was greatly improved just because of the settings I had changed. After a print, I would go on Reddit or a Facebook group and diagnose problems in the print and change the setting for next time. In the beginning, I was having issues with the infill which is the structure generated inside of parts that are not completely solid. In the beginning, the infill pattern could be seen from outside the print. I realized that the infill structure was getting too close to the edge, so I tweaked that setting and changed how many border layers I was printing. It really surprised me how big an effect changing these tiny setting could have on print quality and print time. I also learned that some parts could be printed much faster, and using a larger resolution, while other parts had to be printed slowly and very precisely because they had moving parts or friction fit parts. I have now fine-tuned the print setting pretty well for this printer, however, before each print I have to change some settings like infill and resolution and print speed which vary part to part. Because the printer is upgraded and dialed in, I feel confident exploring more complicated prints, including face shield pieces which I hope to start printing soon!

Update on Progress from Weeks 4-6 (include any photos or video if relevant):

In the beginning of this project, I began with understanding how 3d printing works and how to make successful prints, including upgrading many parts of the original printer. I have now shifted to fine-tuning and testing the limits of 3d printers, and observing the small things that influence a print. This is all in preparation for printing masks for New York medical workers on the front-lines. To ensure a quality print for this important cause, I have to be certain that standards are upheld and prints will be successful and useful. I began with exploring new materials to print in like ABS.

Using different materials requires completely different settings, and slight modifications to the printing setup, such as removing fan ducts and turning up the heated bed and hot end and lowering fan speeds and making layer times longer. This lead to the issue of printing in a different material because if not all the settings were switchback, there could be big issues.

These are examples of failed starts to prints, and some 3d printed fabric I experimented with. One of the upgrades I changed was the fan cover which I believed was to restrictive of airflow and too heavy.

The second design was much thinner and better for airflow, Resulting in a more stable extrusion amount.

This was a torture test to test the minimum clearance on this printer.

After fine-tuning the setup, I printed a lattice cube which is extremely hard given the fast tiny layers and steep angles, however, the printer was able to successfully complete this without much stringing.

One thing I printed was a camera mount so that I could take time-lapses of the thing printing, and the camera would be mounted to the bed, so the timelapse would come out better. I will include time lapses in this post soon, however, I am still figuring out how to edit and upload the footage.

Another small upgrade I added was a filament guide to make the filament come into the extruder from the correct angle to take pressure away from the stepper motors.

My final test of the printer for this part of the project was printing in vase mode, which is a single outer layer, and really highlights the cooling and consistency of extrusion among other things.

Printing demanding prints demonstrates the ability of the printer, but scaling them up and printing larger focuses on the actual consistency which is so important, especially in printing PPE for healthcare workers in the future.

*Time Lapses of prints and of the initial assembly build will be added as soon as they are edited and can be uploaded

In addition to actual printing, I have been reaching out and researching places and designs to donate PPE to.

Update on Progress from Weeks 7-9 (include any photos or video if relevant):