3d Printing in Melbourne

From what I have found there is only one commercial 3d print shop in the Melbourne area, and one in Mornington. There is a head office for 3D systems in Hawthorn. But beyond that you either need to go to an industrial type printer, or go to one of the universities. So already there is alot of room for more 3d print shops within Melbourne. Being able to 3d print within Melbourne means the product could be cheaper depending on materials being used and will help avoid having to pay for it to be sent over. You can directly liaise with the technicians themselves allowing for better customer support and direct feedback.

RMIT’s Advanced Manufacturing LabThis is a great example of where it seems 3d printing is going. They have a lab of computers directly connected UpPrinters. As well as the capability to print in resins and metals using SLA, FDM and SLS technologies. This kind of set-up appears to be what will become more and more prevalent in the future. The technology is becoming more accessible and cheaper to acquire. With the UpPrinters software being highly intuitive and almost easy to use.

Google Search for 3d printing map RMIT Advanced Manufacturing

RangeThere are a range of online 3d printing services which cater to-wards the average consumer that has CAD capabilities, all the way to specialised industry based projects for medical grade or aeronautical purposes.

Various 3d printing technologies are owned by only one company, for example z-corp owns z printing (clay like printing in multiple colours, or Stratasys own FDM (injection layered printing made from meltable substances such as polymers). Some of these web-sites are owned specifically by these companies(RedEye On De-mand - FDM). Others have bought the printers from these compa-

nies and are making them accessible to consumers (Shapeways or Sculpteo).

All of these services are using virgin materials, with a variety of materials being available. It is amazing that we have access to such amazing technology and such a large array of materials which can be used. However I wonder what the implications are that any person that can CAD or use the internet can now essen-tially manufacture with a click and order these products to their doorstep as long as money permits.

GalleriesParticularly interesting is the fact that the consumer friendly web-sites often have a gallery of files to choose from and allow you to print other peoples designs for a royalty or royalty free fee. Finding

something that you want to print can even done by the consumer that does not have CAD skills, but still wants to have access to 3d printing technology.

CustomizationOne site, Sculpteo has taken this ease of use even further, offer-ing simple java based programs where you can upload an image or click some shapes to create your very own 3d file ready for 3d printing. Sculpteo is allowing the consumer to customize files on-line and press the print button. Highly convenient and allows eve-ryone have their own unique version of what they want to print. In the age of individualism I believe that this trend will only continue.

When one see’s what other companies such as Nike or Smart are doing, where you can completely customise every aspect of a shoe or car, ensuring that even the stitching of a product is unique to how you want it. It seems that this ability to customise is the next step in manufacture and that 3d printing will play a big part in this process due to reduced tooling costs and variety of materials to choose from.

LeftoversWhat happens to all these individual pieces when they become fashionably obsolete, because everyone wants their own unique version, can this still be passed down to someone else, or will it

become discarded because it is so radically unique to that indi-vidual.

GapsI can see two gaps, one being that customization will only become bigger and now would be the time to infiltrate this gap, and sec-ondly the re-use of the material which is being used to make these customized objects because surely with the ease of manufacture

people will be happy to just print another once they are sick of the first. Otherwise we will have alot of unique objects in landfill which should really be able to be turned into something.

Online 3d Printing

Shapeways -Consumer based 3d printer with excellent customer support. Will help you get your file ready for 3d print. Also has a mar-ket place for your 3d designs which can be sold. A large selection of materials to be chosen from

Ponoko - They have a variety of options when it comes to manufac-turing using 3d Printing and other technologies such as CNC. They also have good customer support and allow the individual user to sell their products on their website.

PrintTo3D - A small scale 3d print shop which offers FDM and SLS printing. Claims to be a cheaper option for printing..Only has white print options immediately available with other colours able to be ordered in at additional cost.

Sculpteo - Aims to make it easy for the consumer to get into 3d printing and also has a very interesting feature of allowing you create 3d models to print whilst on their website, with a variety of simplified tools being used.

i.Materialise - Catered toward the average consumer, allows you to print in a large range of materials and also has a gallery of designs to choose from and print.

Consumer Friendly 3d Printing

3D ProParts - Owned by 3dSystems, they have a wide range or tech-nologies available for industry based projects

Materialise - By the same company as i.Materialise catered towards industry specialisation. They offer a range of services from medical to design prototyping, with support offered in terms of software as well as manufacturing.

RedEye On Demand - Owned by the company Stratasys, can do a variety of 3d printing using cast urethane and FDM technologies. Specialises in Industry specific work including, aeronautical, architec-tural, automotive and medical.

Industry Based 3d Printing

Images from Sculpteo homepage

Rapid Prototyping TypesThere are variety of ways which allow 3d printing. Here are examples of the more popular types of 3d printing.

SLS - Selective Laser Sintering - Powdered materials spread by roller and lasered - bed moves along zaxis - Polymers - Metals - Cyramicsimages from -http://www.additive3d.com/sls_int.htm

- http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/showthread.php?t=31828&page=2

FDM - Fused Deposition Modelling - Filament based additive printing, where molten filament is layered - Polymer - Liquid Foods - Concreteimages from - http://www.additive3d.com/fdm_int.htm - http://www.dyrodium.com/

Z-Corp - Z Printer - Layers of fine powder “glued together” to form multicoloured models while bed moves of z axis - Clay like substance - Coloured Sandstoneimages from - http://www.cadalyst.com/files/cadalyst/nodes/2010/13407/0810ZCorp-2.jpg - http://www.additive3d.com/3dp_int.htm

SLA - Stereolithography - Uses layers of liquid polymers which are lasered while bed moves along z axis - UV Sensitive Polymerimages from - http://www.additive3d.com/sla_int.htm - http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/five_examples_of_stereolithographic_furniture_17871.asp

PrintrbotCost - ~US549 (depending on part sourcing)Materials - Filament (PLA, HDPE, ABS & More)Quality - Fair to Poor (depending on setup)Type of Print - Thermoplastic ExtrusionBed Size - 6”x6”x6”Licence - Open- sourceNotes - Most refined and simplified opensource printer - highly customisable

Visit - http://printrbot.com/

Rep Rap - PrusaCost - ~AUS600(depending on part sourcing)Materials - Filament (PLA, HDPE, ABS & More)Quality - Fair to Poor (depending on setup)Type of Print - Thermoplastic ExtrusionBed Size - 200x 200x 140mmLicence - Open-sourceNotes - “The printer that prints itself” - can be difficult to build - highly customisable

Visit - http://reprap.org/wiki/Main_Page

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/printrbot/printrbot-your-first-3d-printer/posts?page=2

http://blog.reprap.org/2011/12/001-layer-height-on-prusa-mendel.html

MakerBot - Thing O MaticCost - ~US$1099 Materials - Filament (PLA, HDPE, ABS & More)Quality - Fair to GoodType of Print - Thermoplastic ExtrusionBed Size - 96 X 108 x 115mmLicence - Open-sourceNotes - has ability to push out finished job allow-ing for continous production without attendance

Visit -http://www.additive3d.com/comp_lks.htm

http://lobsterind.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/20110124-094106.jpg

Fab@Home Model 2Cost - ~US$ $2,125.00Materials - Filament (PLA, HDPE, ABS & More)Quality - PoorType of Print - Syringe DepositionBed Size - 8”x8”x8”Licence - Open-sourceNotes - can print in anything that will squirt and go hard - from cement to chocolate - long drying times and low accuracy

Visit -http://www.fabathome.org/

http://foodhost.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/print.jpg

Open Source 3d Printers At HomeAll of these printers essentially use FDM technology but in a simplified fashion. I have selected a variety that go up in cost and ability to illustrate what is available and capabilities that they have.

What Kinds of Materials Could Be Used To Make FilamentThermoplasticsPolymers which reversably change phase under temperature - they melt when hot, go hard when cold. This is currently the most popular option

HDPE - High Density PolyethaleneMelting Point - 120 to 130 °C- Good bonding- High strength- Very Cheap- Shrinkage occurs upon solidfying

PLA - Polylactic AcidMelting Point - 150-160 °C- Made from renewable resources- Biodegradable- Good bonding/processability

ABS - Acrylonitrile Butadiene StyreneMelting Point - approximately 105 °C- Very strong and resistant- More expensive the HDPE- Good bondability

PP - PolypropyleneMelting Point - 130–171 °C- Good at turning into a fibre- In theory 100% Recyclable- Not good at bonding

Sources -http://reprap.org/wiki/Printing_materialshttp://www.ides.com/info/genericsWikipedia and Google Images

- Drawbacks of Recycling Thermoplastics- The process of heating up and re-solidifying a thermoplastic degrades both its strength and appearance, this occurs around the 7th or 8th cycle or reuse- Often the act of recycling plastic is more expensive than simply buying virgin materials due to complicated recycling systems- The plastic being recycled could be contaminated with dangerous chemicals such as fillers, or scents which have leached into the plastic, making extraction and use a dangerous process- The desired colour may not always be achievable due to the inability to remove pigment from processed plastic

+ Benefits of Recycling Thermoplastics- Reuse of otherwise discared plastics which will end up in our earth or floating in our oceans- Free Materials (beyond the cost of granulating and extruding, ie electricity and having the machinery)- The ability to print something out and re-use it if the prototype shows that there are flaws or improvements to be made- A higher level of self reliance where the individual creates the majority of the entire process themselves- In larger industrialised settings when done efficiently could become economically beneficial to both the individual needing to get rid of plastic waste the individual doing the recycling- Could open up a new industry of recycled plastic 3d printing.

Recycling Thermoplastics

image from - http://awesome.good.is/transparency/web/0905/trans0509throughthegyre.htmlinfo from - http://reprapdelft.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/reprap-granule-extruder-tudelft1.pdf

What other materials could be used instead of Thermoplastics?

FoodsThe fab@home uses a syringe like system where basically anything that can be squirted and solidifys can be used. This opens up a large range of food based materials such as chocolate which has been having a very high success rate, aswell as cheese or even creating cereal.sourced from - http://alittleaustrian.com/?tag=3d-printing

Chemical CompoundsSuch as proteins or sugar compounds such as glucose or fructose. This is very new, and may be out of limits for most people at this point in time, however as the technology improves could become a very real optionsourced from -http://3dprintingreviews.blogspot.com.au/2009_05_01_archive.html

Liquids that Solidify in Normal Ambient TemperaturesThe fab@home uses a syringe like system where basically anything that can be squirted and solidifys can be used. Building materials such as concrete or sylicone have been successful. However the accuracy of these prints is affected by slow drying timessourced from - http://www.emergingobjects.com/projects/concrete-fruite-plate/

MycelliumUsing the power of fungus to create filament, this has not been achieved yet however the current breakthroughs in mycellium production could enable this to a very real and bio-friendly optionsourced from -http://www.architerials.com/2010/02/building-blocks-insulation-made-of-mushrooms/

The Types of Granular Extrusion

Screw Extrusion- Good heat distribution- Dense material at the extrusion head- A better change to get a equal output- A continue process

Most of the existing attempts at home extrusion follow this procedure due the simplicity and effectiveness of using this system. The biggest challenge is getting a good screw which will move the parti-cles in an even fashion

Air or Liquid Pressure Extrusion- Quite Advanced- Difficult Construction- Higher Danger

image sourced from - http://www.freepatentsonline.com/6531077.html

Pump Extrusion- Easy construction- Bad heat distribution- Bigger change with air bubbles- Discontinuous process

Image sourced from - http://blog.re-prap.org/2008/04/granule-extruder.html

image sourced from - http://reprap.org/wiki/File:GranuleExtruder-granule-extruder-diagram.jpg

To be able to FDM 3d print you need to be able turn your mate-rial into a moulten form which then gets layered onto a working area. The most common way for this to occur with opensource home 3d printers is for a fila-ment to be passed through a head which then gets heated to allow for bonding. There are other versions of this where an unfilamented material comes from a reservoir directly into a heated head and then solidifies, although this is not as accurate due to heavy head movements.

So how do you get filament? With a granular extruder. The principle is generally the same, where granules are pressurized and heated through a small hole and a then extruded granules are collected as filament. How-ever the mechanism of creating pressure does change.

Prototyped Screw Granular Extruders

Image sourced from - http://web4deb.blogspot.com.au/2010/12/plastic-extruder-continued.html

Web4Debs

Image sourced from - http://recyclebot.tumblr.com/

Recyclebots’s

Image sourced from - http://www.flickr.com/pho-tos/metrixcreate/5892021216/sizes/l/in/set-72157627093581458/

MetrixCreate’s

Image sourced from - http://fabathome.org/wiki/index.php/Image:Deposition_Complete_Front.JPG

School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide

Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of Delft University

Image sourced from - http://reprapdelft.wordpress.com/

There have been a variety of attempts at making an extruder for the reprap and fab@home unit. So far there has been minor success, but nobody has actually shown any evidence of it being in fully functioning use. All of these options use the screw extruder type as a way of creating pressure to bush out filament.

You can see that there are two types of extruder being used here. One which is mounted directly onto the 3d printer where the granules are being fed directly into the heated head, straight onto the bed for printing. The other is where an extruder creates a filament separate from the 3d printer and and is collected to be fed through the 3d printer much like traditional FDM printing.

I believe the separate extruder option is better because it allows the actual printer head to stay as nimble as possible leading to higher accuracy when printing.

Opportunities for Business and Innovation In 3d Printing In Meblourne

Sell the Kits OnlineDevelop an opensource granular extruder prototype for a DIY 3d Printer. Allow others to have input into your ideas. Once optimised, develop DIY kits for others, or offer fully constructed versions on an online store. Always offer the plans for free anyway. The convenience of having parts sourced from one source will likely create business.

Develop Website for DIY Granular ManufactureSimilar to what is already occurring on Shapeways and other similar sites. Have the files ready for download with a certain royalty going to all parties involved. The person with the 3d printer can then take the file and print from home using either virgin materials or a pre-specified mixture recycled/virgin material. Revenue could come from advertisements on the site and a partnership with a DIY manufacturer

Come Up With a Mixtures Recipe BookUsing the developed granular extruder you could create new blends of filament, such as PLA mixed with PE. This would however reduce the longterm recyclabilty. You could also tackle the issue of plastic toxicity in terms of using waster. Include within this guide what kinds of wastes are good for 3d printing in terms of not being toxic, and which are safe for food grade. Basically grading and informing waste materials for the consumer.

Develop Different Settings for Different MaterialsDue to the different properties of different materials (such as melting temperatures and consistencies). An extrusion system could be developed with pre-installed settings so with the same system you could extrude ABS as well as PP. Food safety could become an issue with this system

Customisable Online LibraryCome up with an online library or store with products where many of the basic features can be manipulated and customised to the customers needs or wants. This would be similar to what sculpteo are doing but could go into everyday items such as cups or stationary. Convenience and simplicity would be key here. This could be coupled with the idea of encouraging the use of DIY Granules made from reused materials. This type of system could also be a good way of avoiding piracy of files from your website as each file would be unique. A system of skeleton drawings similar to solidworks could be used to allow rapid customisation.

Bespoke 3d ManufactureAfter having granualated a variety of colours or products, the filament would have little imperfections which could be seen as a positive attribute, adding a degree of petina to the end result. These products could then be sold online or in stores in melbourne

Printer Farms In MelbourneMuch like a print shop for paper but for 3d objects, with different printers meeting different needs. Currently Melbourne only has one 3d printer place beyond the universities. If this was coupled with cheap material fees, with repair of parts and electricity being the main cost. This could create alot of revenue and still be a cheaper option for the consumer than buying and printing online. The convenience and speed of delivery would be a major factor in deciding to go to such a shop. Also the reuse of materials maybe play a part in sales for the environmentally conscious 3d printer customer.

Develop an Efficient System for Reused PlasticEssentially come up with a good way of using waste materials to be entered into a 3d printer for manufacturing. In an industrial setting this could have massive cost savings. In both the industrial and commercial setting it is of great benefit to the environment to be able to reuse old waste. This could even lead to upcycling if done properly and good things are made - this is very subjective.