INTRODUCTION TO 3D

PRINTING
STEVE UNDY, FORT COLLINS CREATOR HUB
OUTLINE

• Overview of Additive Manufacturing

• Details of consumer 3D printers
• Typical flow for creating 3D models and prints
WHY 3D PRINTING?

• Quickly converts an abstract idea into a physical object

• Fast prototyping
• Small scale production
• Can create objects that are difficult or impossible any other way
3D PRINTER HISTORY

• Developed in 1980s
• Many Industrial printers
• Example: Dimension 1200es -
$19,000

• Personal printers since 2009

• Huge growth rate
SUBTRACTIVE VS ADDITIVE

• Subtractive Manufacturing
• Start with a piece of material larger than finished product
• Then remove what isn’t needed
• Additive Manufacturing
• Start with “nothing”
• Then add material only where needed1

1 – with exceptions!
SUBTRACTIVE MANUFACTURING

• Typically called “CNC machining”

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

• Uses plastic or metal raw materials

• Solid, powered, or liquid
• Typically built up layer-by-layer
• Uses heat or chemical processes to bond new material to
previous layers
TYPES OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
 FUSED DEPOSITION MODELLING
• Uses a heated print-head to deposit a narrow strand
of plastic
• Builds up layers over time.
• Generally uses PLA (~200C) or ABS (220C) or nylon
(~265C) plastics
• Most common consumer 3D printer right now
• Pros:
• Cheap printers (> $300)
• Uses cheap materials ($20/Kg)
• Cons:
• Slower than other 3D printers
• Detectable layering requires finishing.
• Lower resolution (~100μm)
• Limited to plastics or plastic+wood/metal
composites
CONSUMER FDM PRINTERS

TAZ 5
Ultimaker
CONSUMER FDM PRINTERS

MakerBot
CONSUMER FDM PRINTERS

Printrbot Simple
EXAMPLES OF 3D PRINTS
 3D PRINTING FLOW
• Download or create a 3D model and
save it in .stl format.

• Printer software takes model (.stl) and

“slices” it into layers for printing and Library
handles
then produces “gcode”
these
parts
• Gcode tells stepper motors X/Y/Z,
temperature and extruder speed.

• Gcode streamed to an Arduino Atmel

microcontroller which directly drives
the motors for X/Y/Z positioning of
the print head, extruder temperature,
bed temperature and extrusion speed
DESIGN

• Many free and non-free 3D design programs

• Free:
• Blender
• Sketchup
• 123D Design
• Tinkercad (web-based)
• OpenSCAD (parametric)
• Many more
• Non-Free:
• AutoCAD
• SolidWorks
• Many more
SLICING

• Converts solid 3D design into slices that can be printed

• Gcode

• Generates “honeycombed” print

• Saves time, material and weight

• Controls quality of print

• Common slicers:
• CURA
• Slic3r
CURA
PRINTING

• Host software: program that sends slicer output (gcode) to 3D

printer
• Printer then executes gcode
• Common host software:
• CURA
• Repetier-Host
 THINGIVERSE.COM

• Biggest repository of
open source 3D models
• 449,400 models and
counting
• Great place to get ideas
REAL-WORLD CONSIDERATIONS

• Size
• Limited by size of printer (obviously)
• Bigger -> Longer time (and expense) to print

• Thickness
• Different printers have differing minimum feature size
• Generally, avoid anything less than 1mm thick
• Orientation
• Pointy sides up 
• Support
• May need to be added by operator when slicing
• May affect overall quality of print – avoid when possible
PROBLEM
SOLUTION
PRINTING THROUGH THE LIBRARY

• https://read.poudrelibraries.org/contact/3dprint/