Welcome back to Vision Miner 3D Printing News! Today, we’re diving into a groundbreaking innovation in the world of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) 3D printing. Researchers at USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering have introduced an ingenious solution that significantly reduces the need for support structures in FDM printing, making them almost obsolete.
The Dynamic 3D Printing Bed
Professor Yang Chen and his team have developed a low-cost, reusable support method that utilizes a dynamic 3D printing platform. This platform is a game-changer because it features a programmable build plate with movable metal pins, which drastically cuts down on the required support material for complex FDM parts.
The results of their work were recently published in the Additive Manufacturing journal. You can find the full research paper in the description below if you want to explore it in more detail.
Material and Cost Savings
The current prototype of this dynamic 3D printing bed demonstrates impressive results. It can save over 35% of the material used in a print, with the most significant savings happening in support structures. While this might seem like overkill for standard filaments that cost around $25 per kilogram, it’s a game-changer for specialty sectors of FDM.
Chen explains, “I work with biomedical doctors who 3D print using biomaterials to build tissue or organs. Many of the materials they use are very expensive, costing between $500 to $1,000 per small bottle. For standard extrusion printers, the material cost is around $50 per kilogram, but for bio printing, it’s more like $50 per gram. If we could save 30% on material that would have gone into printing the support structures, then that’s a huge cost saving for 3D printing in biomedical areas.”
Environmental and Time Benefits
Besides cost savings, this innovative approach reduces the environmental impact by minimizing waste materials. It also saves a significant amount of time by eliminating unnecessary material from the process, ultimately reducing print times by up to 40%.
Chen’s team managed to achieve these remarkable results with a relatively simple and cost-effective design. Unlike previous dynamic print beds that required motors for each pin, resulting in high costs, this prototype uses a single motor to raise the required pins simultaneously. The custom slicing software guides users on where to insert metal tubes into the platform and raises them at the right moment during the printing process.
Expanding the Horizon of 3D Printing
This innovative approach has the potential to revolutionize 3D printing, especially in sectors where materials come at a premium. Imagine its application in large-scale projects like car and ship bodies, as well as in consumer products such as furniture. Cutting printing times in half can double manufacturing efficiency, making it a game-changer in the industry.
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