All About 3D Printing Techlife Magazine May 2013 How 3D Printing
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
All About 3D Printing Techlife Magazine May 2013 How 3D Printing Works 3IJprinting milkt:!i"'8Ct.ThfngJverSe DASHBOARD EXPLOR E CREATE FROM IDEA lNIIIlf>ll > £nglnnnno Automatic Transmission Model <::1> l'l TO OBJECT: MIN [I ~:~.~ tt 581 41949 81861 HOW 3D l1kr.'$ Oo·.•hlie/<1\l~ Vrt~.'l • PRINTING WORKS P ~ • a m eb l ( krlll lll t e u ...· t t and S&utGeau How does one actually create 1:-t Gttghost f'III COMtdt'fsV) a 3D printed object? We take you llJ emmeu through the steps from start to finish. DARREN YATES Download This Thing I Description Collections Printing an object in three dimensions can be a mind-.boggling Have you ever wonder~d how an automatic transmission wosks? I did, so I looked it up and then designed this desktop model It has six lotward spet>ds and one u!verse. Real automatic concept- well OK, it was for us the first time we heard of it. But transmissions have a h~·dra utic or eleetncal system that engages ddferent clutches and brakes toshingearsdtptndlngonthedrivingsJtuationWrththismodt1youcontro11hosesimplified how exactly do you go from an idea in your mind to holding it bfakesandclutchesyourself. in your hand? With many 3D printers now available, there are a Theclutch isactuatedb}·slidingthedrivtshaltthroughto ddfertntpositions(whlch eachhave two gear m;~rkings) , while thrte stparate brakes each also h;we two gear marldngs. You sel t ct range of options, although the main steps are pretty similar. Once · 1 • .,.,., ~;• • Anl>;t f. o o :,,_.,~----------t you get the hang of it, you'll be well on your way to wanting a 3D printer of your own! ABOVE: THINGIVERSE. STEP 1: A model idea COM IS YOUR FIRST STOP FOR READY Most people start their interest in 3D printing with an idea, an TO-PRINT object that they want to create. The first step is to turn that idea 3D MODELS. into a 3D model- a digital, mathematical representation of your object stored in a computer file . Many 3D modelling LEFT: GRAB applications are incredibly powerful, but they can be equally A ROLL OF daunting to use, too. Thankfully, there are tools galore (including THIS STUFF some online) that cover all user levels, so the great news is FROM YOUR experience is no barrier. HARDWARE STORE AND LEVEL 1- 3D PRINTIN G BEG INNER YOU WON'T The simplest option - and one we use all the time - is to just LOOK BACK. skip the 3D model creation step altogether and look for ready-to print 3D objects created by other users. You need to have sites BELOW: THE like Thingiverse (www.thingiverse.com) on speed dial. Designs SHAPEWAYS' 'CREATE' TOOLS uploaded here are free to download and print on your own 3D ARE EASY printer. And there are thousands of designs to choose from TO USE AND everything from 3D printer spare parts to jewellery and beyond. LET YOU If the idea of wading through 3D modelling software doesn't CUSTOMISE light your wick, Thingiverse is the place for you. U p lo ~ d your design OBJECTS. Sel@ctmater1al Glob~ldollvery Open a s h~ If you're after something that's still easy to use yet allows you arvjordtl JOproots tnlhyOOtrldiyl ~rod'i l l.rtuli a little creative freedom, look at some of the simple 3D design tools available on web sites like Shapeways (www.shapeways. Add a whole new dimension to your 30 designs. com/create). Its online design widgets allow you to create 3D Tum ideas into real products with Shapeways. objects from standard 2D black-and-white (line art) images, Toptlps lorcru.tor' UpiOidf<l lllO I•I n : make customised iPhone cases and more. Normally, you'd • Prepa1tn1JrnodeiSior3DpMl'.ng • Supported 3D .lPp!Ut.ons use Shapeways to print your object and then actually have the • 3DIIe1lgntutona:s • H1re .1 30 mooe:er to (!es.orjn you r Idea company ship it to you, although you can simply save the ready lJPI:e.n<Ji»"'ilf!OIF,>O>•~ ,.,..._.... ..,,.,..""' ""''"' .. ""' ... '""' to-print file it generates instead and print your objects on your own printer. It's pretty easy to do: just sign up to Shapeways, make your Apps for easy creations. design using one of the 'Create' tools and submit it for checking. .- .. ~ The Vibe iPhone Shapeways will email you back, indicating if the design can be c.,. W! I :~:::c: h l orlidl, ! I)·./ '/; JI'G 11\1~" JO moll~l , 30~ M :acu~!Otn powtrtultno~to successfully printed. Log into your account, choose 'My Models', u art p en~U <o\l_ 1Pt!OMC3U"'llii)Wf I:UO)OIJ~illliflg l ;r MJm!j:lr.IU.I~~~ tri'Qt~.t~wrl!:llrom 11Ctm.. $;r,.,ant;n5 click on the design (not the 'Edit' button) and then the 'Download 1 ~/ VIdniOft! sw~actouo on!l! twt !l~ fl!l v~ •• ~rtdl~t~st~ar"'·IP Model' button when it appears. You'll get a file that can be loaded 3Y into most 3D printers, including the Printrbot Jr and MakerBot 3 6 Replicator 2. <New Sketch >" by You YOU WOULDN'T THINK3DTIN WORKED IN A WEB BROWSER JUST BY LOOKING AT IT. .. LEVEL2 -INTERMEDIATE software is Trimble SketchUp (www.sketchup.com, formerly If you're ready to step up and try something more powerful, but Google SketchUp) . By default, the free version only exports to still keep your training wheels on, give 3DTin (www.3dtin.com) its own DAE file format, so grab two plug-ins that are available a whirl. It's a free web-based computer-assisted design (CAD) from 3D Printing Systems, and it'll export directly to print-ready package that works inside the Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox format (tinyurl.com/b3kvmd3) and check the validity of your web browsers. You have to sign up for an account and you can do model (tinyurl.com/b27wdlh). You can find other plug-ins so with your Gmail or Facebook login, and then begin creating available online. 3D models from different shape styles or templates. Once you're done, you can save them online and export them into a number LEVEL3- 3D PRINTING GURU of different print-ready formats. When you're ready to ditch the training wheels, there a number of An alternative that's similar, but comes as downloadable free powerful 3D modelling apps like Blender (www.blender.org), which allow you to perform more complex from-scr<! tch modelling and design. If Blender doesn't do it for you, try Wings3D (www.wings3d. com). It's available for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux computers. It has many of the same features while working slightly differently, ; yet the end result is the same: a 3D model you can export into a 1 3D-printable format. These aren't the only options available, although we think they're a good place to start. The good news is that none of them will cost you anything to try out. STEP 2: Exporting to printable format The most important feature to look for in any design app or tool is the ability to export your design into a standard 3D-printable file format, with the two most common being STL (stereolithography) and OBJ (Wavefront object). Our choice would be to aim for STL format because it's universally supported among personal 3D printer software. All of the options we looked at above provide export to STL file output, so you should be pretty safe in finding INARANGE a workable solution. OF COLOURS, The bottom line is STL files are the intermediate step between INCLUDING GLOW-IN-THE- whatever native fo rmat your 3D modelling software uses to store files and knocking your object irito shape for printing on almost any 3D printer. lill!l Jim:·' · ~ MAKERBOT'S MAKERWARE IS EASIER TO USE THAN ANYTHING ELSE WE'VE SEEN. be needed so it fits within your printer's build area), its positioning on the print bed/build table, plus other options including adding Before you can print out your object, you need to check your STL support structures to hold up hard-to-print areas like cup handles. formatted file is watertight (also known as manifold). If you're a You can also set the print quality, how fast it prints along with gamer, think of 3D models as similar to objects or textures you see many other settings. in your favourite computer game. Each object, shape or texture is Once those settings are made, MakerWare and Pronterface made up of multiple surfaces and a 3D printer requires that all take your settings and turn the STL file into a specific language surface points or edges in your model meet up with one other file your printer's electronics understands. Pronterface, used by surface edge. The simplest way to understand it is to imagine taking most open-source personal 3D printers, turns the STL files into your 3D model and dunking it in a bucket of water- if any of G-eode programming language files. those surfaces don't meet up or there are holes in your model, it'll You may have read us previously saying in the intro to this leak and won't be printed correctly. feature that a 3D printer is like putting a factory on your desk. That said, you're only likely to run into these issues if you make Here's why that's close to the truth than you might realise: G-eode your own 3D models from scratch using professional-grade is the control language used in the manufacturing industry by modelling software and forget to run the app's manifold check to CNC (computer numeric control) machines that process all test for errors or open surfaces.