Development, implementation and optimization of a mobile 3D printing platform
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FULL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Development, implementation and optimization of a mobile 3D printing platform Andreas Sauter1 · Aslan Nasirov1 · Ismail Fidan2 · Michael Allen3 · Amy Elliott4 · Mel Cossette5 · Ed Tackett6 · Thomas Singer7 Received: 16 January 2020 / Accepted: 23 October 2020 © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract One of the biggest challenges to 3D printing is that typical desktop printers are stationary with a limited workspace. A mobile 3D-printing platform, which has omnidirectional wheels that allow for unrestricted movement along x- and y-axes, can alleviate that restriction. The research team in this project performed a series of preliminary material tests with such a fully constructed platform. The system was tested with materials from three different industries that could benefit from mobile additive manufacturing technology. A cement paste was tested for the construction industry, frosting for the food industry, and clay paste for the fine arts industry. Next, a statistical experimental analysis was performed to determine the optimum printing parameters to obtain geometrical accuracy of the object being printed. The independent variables chosen for the material and the printing platform included the material type, percent concentration of dry material to wetting agent, layer height, layer width, and printing speed. Multiple samples were printed for each combination of independent variables. The dependent variables, maximum taper angle and x-y-z measurements, were then found from the printed samples. Principal Component Analysis was performed on the taper angle and x-y-z measurements to create a single index which represented the error in print quality. A slightly modified 2 k factorial design was then used to determine which printing parameters and material type significantly affected the error index. Finally, response surface methodology along with the method of steepest ascent was used to identify the optimum printing parameters. Keywords Additive manufacturing · Mobile printing · Material deposition · Statistical analysis
1 Introduction
* Ismail Fidan [email protected] 1
Department of Mechanical Engineering and Center for Manufacturing Research, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN, USA
2
Department of Manufacturing and Engineering Technology, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN, USA
3
Department of Mathematics, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN, USA
4
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Knoxville, TN, USA
5
Edmonds College, Lynnwood, WA, USA
6
University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA
7
Sinclair College, Dayton, OH, USA
The concept of the mobile-platform 3D printer is based on additive manufacturing (AM) technology that, although it has been evolving since the late 1960s [1], is still considered new compared to standard technologies, like casting, which originated in 3200 B.C.[2]. After 2009, when the last major patent for Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) expired, AM technology rapidly began gaining popularity as many companies were able to
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