WEEK 12

10/07/2021

For this week's lesson, we were introduced to digital fabrication. Firstly, we learnt that digital fabrications are good for prototyping as it allows the physical evaluation of the design. With digital fabrications, we are able to perform functional testing before committing to a full production run as well as print numerous design iterations to identify and remove errors before production.

Secondly, we learnt that digital fabrications are good for end use parts as it extends the lifespan of older equipment by printing obsolete parts. It also allows reverse-engineer spare parts and customizable high value/ low volume End-Use production. 

For the second part of the lesson, we were introduced to the Computer Aided Design and 3D Printing. For this segment, each group were tasked to develop the teaching materials for a designated topic and peer-teach that particular topic to the class. For our group, we had to research on the different types of 3D Printing materials used in Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), Stereolithography (SLA), or Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) printing. We were to include the common materials used as well as the interesting materials. Then, we also had to research on how to choose a suitable thermoplastic for FDM 3D printing. The teaching materials prepared by my group can be found here.

Through this peer-teaching activity, we acquired the knowledge of different types of 3D printing technology as well as how to achieve the design requirement to print out product of better quality. Apart from what we have learnt from our own research, we also managed to learn from what the other groups have prepared. 

Group 1 shared about advantages and applications of Additive Manufacturing (AM). They also gave a brief introduction to the different types of 3D printing technology (FDM, SLA and SLS). On the other hand, Group 3 shared about how slicer setting such as layer height, print speed part orientation, bed adhesion supports can affect the quality of a printout. Group 3 mentioned that quality of a printout refers to surface finishing and/or strength. Thereafter, they gave us an insight on some of the important 3D printing terminologies which includes overhang, bridging, infill, and wall thickness. 

Similarly, Group 4 shared about how slicer setting can affect the speed of 3D printing. They also introduced us to some other important 3D terminologies such as infill density and pattern and layer height. Lastly, Group 5 shared about some of the real-life applications of 3D printing based on some articles.

To conclude, this lesson was definitely a fruitful and beneficial one as we gained a better understanding about 3D printing technology which may be crucial for product development in the future. In this case, since our project idea is a thermoelectric cooler box, it would be very helpful if we could print out the outer layer of our cooler box with 3D printing. This would help us to make our product in a more efficient way as 3D printing allows us to create complex geometry with Computer Aided Design that traditional machining method would not allow because of machine constraints.