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Ideation
Ideation
As I am interested in mechanical parts I preferred to start with a Gear design, hence its shape and textures play a main rule in mechanical performance; I wanted to try one to be familiar with its design and fabrication.
For the laser cut I thought to make a name sign, So I got the idea of finding a proper coaster design and just add a text on it.
Design/Preparation Process
Design/Preparation Process
Software and Material used:
For 3d preparation we used the UltiMaker Cura software's and Prusa i3 MK3.
For the laser cutting we used RDWorksV8 and Elmalki laser cutter .
The material used in 3D fabrication is the PLA filament
And for the laser cutting a 3mm thickness Plywood.
Design and Preparations:
For the 3d model the research ended up with the this one as it is simple and meets the assignments requirements.
For the laser cutting model the research ended up with the this one as it is simple and meets the assignments requirements.
At the beginning it took me a minute to realize that the file is scaled to a very big dimensions that it is much larger than the machine itself.
The first step wase applying a uniform scaling to make the dimensions reliable and that was a 10% scale.
The second step is to position the shape at the center of the machine bed.
The next step is to set the dimensions to 150mm in x and y and z to 3mm to make it thick enough.
Then I set the layer thickness to 0.2mm to make a good finish for the gear teeth, the infill sat to 5% as the dimensions is not that big, and finally this kind of design needs no supports.
Tinally after slicing the time needed is 84min with he calibration time of the machine it may end at 90min.
At the beginning it took me a minute to realize that the file is scaled to a tiny dimensions that it is around 3mm which is not reliable.
The next step was to apply a uniform scale to the dimensions and rise it to 150mm.
I found that i can use the coaster design to make a name sign by just adding a text.
After adding the text and set the position and size I found that it would be better to make it ellipse shape by applying a nonuniform scale at x direction.
The next step it to separate cut, speed cut and scanning areas to be ready to the next step by select black for cut(speed= 40mm/s & power=60), green for speed cut (speed=350mm/s & power=13) and blue for scan(speed=300mm/s & power=20) and these parameters set up by the Fablab specialist.
Development/Implementation Process
Development/Implementation Process
Implementation done under the supervision of fab lab specialist, for the 3d model the design and parameter were checked to make sure it wont result in any printing issues the I made a copy of the design to the machines memory after set a descriptive name of it showing the duration and the weight of the printed design.
VID_20240106_113923.mp4After a good cleaning for the nozzle the printer worked properly and the "gear" came to be real in about 86mins.
The final result was very satisfying to me and this made me more familiar with gear printing which I may need in my final project.
For laser cut the process is more smooth it just coast me to resize the name sign because I felt it was quiet large.
After choosing "Download" in RDworks to sent the the design file to the machine memory, I had to set the origin where the machine will start and press on "frame" to make sure that the no parts of the design is out of the plywood sheet.
VID_20240106_120037.mp4For the first time it went good except the outer cut did not went all through the sheet so I repeater that part to get it done.
Overcoming Challenges
Overcoming Challenges
For the both 3d printing and laser cutting it need good scaling imagination to relate between the theoretical dimensions and the real ones.
Moreover, dealing with both machines needs good focus to make sure that all parameters are set to correct values to eliminate the mistakes.
When the first time the machine started to print unfortunately it got corrupted, at the first look I got disappointed thinking it was a bad design, but the Fablab specialist told me that it is ok and it happens sometime for the machine, and all it needs is a good cleaning for both the nozzle and the bed.
Final Project
Final Project
The 3d printed part is similar to that one used to rotate the solar panels to face the sun.
I can put the name sign on the final project to make it closer to the real product.
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