FABRICATION OF FDM BASED LOW

COST OPEN SOURCE 3D PRINTER

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
 INTRODUCTION

 3D printing is a form of additive manufacturing technology where a three-dimensional object is created by laying
down successive layers of material.
 The main purpose of the project is to develop a low cost 3D Printer using easily available materials and
conventional methods for fabrication which can be used to print objects confined within 300 x 300 (in mm) Printing
Area.
 After thorough market survey, we came to a conclusion that 3D Printers available in the Indian market are priced
around Rs.50,000 to 4 lakhs due to type of supporting material used.
 The demand of 3d printer has grown rapidly due to following reasons;
Production runs are inexpensive investment.
Print prototypes in hours
Wide range of products
Identify design error easily and rectify in 3d model file.
Elimination of waste materials
 Our project supports the government project titled “SKILL INDIA”. We make low cost 3D printer so that it
can be easily available to school students as a result they can enhance their knowledge about this flourish
manufacturing method and also learn how to operate it.
 Electronic components used in fabrication of 3D printer, are based on open source platform which makes our
project to be low cost while the mechanical structure is prepared by us.
 3D printer is based on cartesian system. cartesian 3D printers are named after the dimensional coordinate
system-the X, Y, and Z-axis -which is used to determine where and how to move in three dimensions.
 Cartesian 3D printers typically have a nozzle which moves only in the Z-axis. The extruder sits on the X-axis
and Y-axis, where it can move in four directions on a gantry.
 Applications are prototype production, Aerospace & Marine, Bio-printing, Fashion & Jewellery etc.
 TYPES OF 3D PRINTERS
3D printers are based on following technology;
1. Stereolithography( SLA)
2. Fused deposition modeling (FDM)
3. Selective laser sintering (SLS)
4. Laminated object manufacturing (LOM)
5. Material jetting (MJ)
Technology which we use is FUSED DEPOSITION MODELING (FDM). FDM PROCESS
• Initially a 3d model of a required object is made on CAD software and is converted into .Stl format which is
understandable by FDM system.
• After transferring this .Stl format file to system, build up process take place.
• A spool of thermoplastic filament ( PLA, ABS, NYLON) is loaded into the printer and is allow to fed to extrusion head and
in the nozzle where it melts.
• The melted material is extruded in thin strands and is deposited layer by layer in predetermined location where it cools and
solidifies.
• When one layer is finished, the build platform moves down and new layer is deposited and bonded with layer beneath it.
• This process is repeated until the part is complete. Objects may also be sanded, grinded, painted or plated to improve their
 Electronic components in 3D printer
1. Arduino mega 2560 rev3.0
It takes commands given it to by computer in the form of G-code and coordinates with other electrical
components to produce desired effect and interprets the data.
• Open source design based on the larger atmega2560
2. Stepper motors
They are used to move extruder and build platform in X , Y and Z axis.
Specifications:
• A NEMA 17 stepper motor is used which has 1.7 x 1.7 inch (43.2 x 43.2 mm) faceplate.
• 1.8 degrees per step.
3. Mk8 extruder
This is the core of the printer. It is where the plastic gets drawn in, melted, and pushed out.
An extruder consists of a stepper motor and knobbled gear that clamps and pulls filament through the system.
Specification
•Normal working temperature: 190°- 230°
•Material of print: 1.75mm or 3mm PLA/ABS
4. Stepper motor drivers-a4988
These chips are responsible for running the stepper motor .
• The driver features adjustable current limiting, overcurrent and overtemperature protection.
5. Hot end E3D-V6
• It consists of heat sink , heat sink fan , thermistor & nozzle.
• The liner inside hotend is never subjected to high temperatures so there is no risk of damaging the liner through overheating.
 FABRICATION OF 3d PRINTER

 The printer is fabricated using three kind of structural material ,

1. Aluminium extruded section
2. Ply wood
3. Aluminium bonded sheet
 All the joints are temporary and made up of gypsum screw
bolts & nuts of various sizes.
 Print bed is made up of 5mm glass sheet
of dimension 11x11 inches.
 Firstly , we made plywood base structure fastened by gypsum
screw and then attach gantry structure of alumunim section
using bolts and nuts.
 PROCEDURE OF FABRICATION

1. Fabrication of base structure

It consists of 6 plywood pieces of dimension (20 x 6 x .75 inches) that form base of dimension (20 x 20 x 6 inch)
and mount print bed on it.

2. Fabrication of gantry structure

It consists of 3 aluminium extruded section of dimension (20 x ) that form gantry structure of dimension
(20 x 20 x 3 inches) .

3. Fabrication of carriage
Thin aluminium bonded sheet is precisely mounted on leadscrews which are properly aligned with stepper motors
of z-axis by coupler.

4. Providing linear motion channels

We have used kitchen drawer channels made up of
Aluminium which provide good strength and rigidity
for motion in X-axis and Y- axis direction.
5. Fabricating electronic controller board
• Hardware
Open source Arduino mega 2560 controller, RAMPS 1.4 shield and A4988 stepper motor drivers are used to
control the linear movements of printer.
• Software
Open source & customised MERLIN 1.8.1 firmware has been used which is compatible with Arduino board and
RAMPS 1.4 shield.
• Connections on RAMPS 1.4
6. Setting up of LCD controller 12864 for offline use
• The USP of our printer is it’s ability to operate without the online computer.
• The commands such as loading STL file, preparing file, initializing movement etc. to the printer can
be given through onboard LCD controller facility.

7. Connecting power supply

• Based on literature survey and requirement of electronic components at least 20 A current is required.
• As per standard, Arduino mega 2560 and RAMPS 1.4 requires 12V voltage.
Therefore,
P = VI
P = 12 x 20 = 240 Watts
A 240 Watts CCTV power supply of CP Plus is used.

LCD controller Power Supply

7. Installation of auxiliary software packages
In addition to arduino firmware, some software required are as follows:
i. SLIC3R - It is the tool you need to convert a 3D model into printing instructions for our 3D printer. It cuts the
model into horizontal slices (layers), generates toolpaths to fill them and calculates the amount of material to be
extruded.

ii. 3D model software ( CATIA, SOLIDWORKS, PRO E, SKETCH UP, FUSION 360) - 3D modelling is the
process of using software to create a mathematical representation of a 3-dimensional object or shape. The created
object is called a 3D model.

8. Transfer STL file to 3D printer

STL file can be uploaded into memory card and put in SD card reader of LCD controller.
Directly transfer file from computer to RAMPS 1.4 controller through USB cable.
 CONCLUSION

 After doing literature survey of 3d printer we figured out different electronic components used
in it and prepared bill of material.
 Based on bill of material, different components are ordered online & in local market wherever
cost found minimum.
 After receiving all components , we fabricated mechanical structure with plywood & aluminium
and placed all required electronic components on it.
 Fitting of coupler to extruder is under process due to size mismatch.
 Calibration of carriage with leadscrew and testing of 3D printing is remaining which will be
completed within one week.
 Arduino board and LCD display has to be mounted at right location on the structure.