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FIU 3 D Printing Methodology

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VizcayaMuseumandGardens edited this page Jan 9, 2019 · 1 revision

DOCUMENTATION OF 3D PRINTING PROCESS

The process from digital file to physical 3D print is divided into three parts. The first part of the process named “Digital Process” involves the initial progression of using 3D software (rhino, maya, etc) to modify the original raw 3D file up to the point of exporting. The “Printing Process” includes what was needed and/or modified on the makerbot software to prepare the file to be printed. The “Post-Printing Process” is everything that happened after the file was printed (post-production, tips & tricks to get the print looking its best).

BARGE (not modular) DIGITAL PROCESS

  • SOFTWARE USED: Maya
  • The Barge was first imported into Maya and sliced into 16 different pieces to manage the large scale relative to the print beds of the Makerbot 5th Generation 3D printers. The smaller print base is less likely to warp.
  • The model was sliced 8 times on its long side in a way that kept the bow and stern, and as many figures on the barge as intact as possible. Then the model was sliced down the middle lengthwise to again reduce the size of each print.
  • To make the file easier to manipulate in Maya, we first selected the entire barge using command: “face selection.” Then we went into the “mesh” options to the command: “separate” for the entire barge. This made the file much easier to manipulate and took much less time to process commands.
  • Once the barge is fully separated (although it will appear as though nothing has occurred) we used the command: “multi-cut tool” to slice the barge into the predetermined pieces.
  • We cut out the figures on top of the barge (herms, obelisks, etc.) to print them on their own. We found it best to reduce the risk of a failed print by taking difficult pieces out and reattaching them later. We did not slice these small figures. We kept them without slices because it is easier to print small objects like these as wholes.
  • Once the barge was sliced (multi-cut command created new lines on the barge rather than actually cutting), we duplicated the barge model once for each piece of the model. In each duplication we erased everything, except for one specific piece of the barge. That piece we exported as an individual STL.
  • It is best to only have a few copies of the full barge open at one time as the more file you have open, the heavier and slower the software will be.
  • Once a piece of the barge was made into an individual file, we then filled in the surface plane of the model where the cut (or erasure) had left the model without a surface. We did this with the command: “fill hole.” With this the surface once again complete, MakerBot’s Makerware read this as a valid STL and prints it as a solid piece. PRINTING PROCESS
  • Software: Makerbot Desktop
  • Export: STL. file
  • Setting: High
  • Infill: Density > 20% - Pattern > Diamond (fast)
  • Model properties: 0.10 mm layer height -Raft: On
  • Supports: On
  • Scale: 300% (The large upscale here is because we received the original file at a very small scale and we did no scaling in Maya) POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands.
  • The toughest part of these barge pieces to clean are the railings. The supports are tightly made in between every single hole, and we found it best to rest the piece on a rag and use a long nose plier to break through the supports in each hole. Caution must be used to not break the railing off.
  • A long nose plier is also used to scrape off any excess printer bumps or fuzziness left behind.
  • We used small amounts of acetone on the surfaces where the pieces will be glued together to make the connection stronger. Once we added acetone, we used a blade to score the sides that will be glued together so that the glue has more surface to secure the connection between each piece.
  • Once glue was placed (2 pieces at a time), we used large rubber bands to hold the pieces together and let them dry for at least 20 minutes before gently handling again and gluing more pieces together with it. When the barge was fully glued together, we used acetone on the entire surface of the model to smooth out printer roughness and tighten the seams. Caution: Do not add too much acetone or let it sit inside any parts of a printed piece. It may fill the piece or warp it as excess acetone slowly dries within it. -Finally, we added spackle to any visible seams in an effort to “perfect” the model.

BARGE PUZZLE (modular) DIGITAL PROCESS

  • The process for the modular Barge was EXACTLY the same as that for the non-modular barge, EXCEPT we added one more 1 more slice down the middle of the height of the barge using the command: “multi-cut tool” in Maya.

  • This added slice doubled the number of barge pieces from 16 to 32 pieces.

  • We decided to slice the barge this way so that the finished “puzzle” could be made in any order wanted/needed.

  • We also added notches to (female connections) to help secure the obelisks and herms and smaller statues of the barge. Other smaller pieces around the barge are made to remain glued into the puzzle pieces. We added protrusions to fit the notches in the obelisks, herms and other small statues to create secure connections to the barge. PRINTING PROCESS

  • Exactly the same as modular barge POST-PRINTING PROCESS -Exactly the same as modular barge

BARGE BOW AND STERN DIGITAL PROCESS -We used the same Maya file that was used for the “Barge Puzzle”, the same bow (now cut into 4 pieces) and stern (also cut into 4 pieces) was used for these prints.

PRINTING PROCESS

  • The same EXACT settings were used in these prints as were used in the modular and non-modular barge EXCEPT for two changes:
  • First, the pieces were scaled up to 450%
  • Second, the infill setting was 30% POST-PRINTING PROCESS
  • We used the same exact process for these as for the modular and non-modular barges.

ALLIGATOR GROTTO (not modular) DIGITAL PROCESS

  • SOFTWARE USED: Rhinoceros 5 -The grotto was first sliced into 6 separate pieces using command: “mesh planes” and the command: “Mesh Split” & command: “Mesh Boolean Split.” We created three mesh planes, one on the horizontal axis, two on the vertical axis. COMMENT: This was the hardest part for us. Sometimes the command would fail, so we alternated between mesh split & mesh boolean split to see which would work. Other times the split would work only on a certain axis (ex. vertical axis) and we had to rotate the entire model to be able to cut it from that specific axis TIP: leave each piece in its original position and no do not erase mesh planes, hide them instead (command: “hide”). We found that we needed those hidden planes later to cut the grotto border. -Each piece was then given thickness using the “OffsetMesh” command. We chose a .09 offset distance, 0.0 increment, and selected “solid,” while leaving “BothSides” and “Delete Input Meshes" de-selected.
  • After giving each piece thickness, we made a mesh box with XFaces = 10 and YFaces = 10, surrounding the area of the grotto. -Using “PointsOn,” we then manipulated the multiple points around the X & Y axis to fit the curved shape of the grotto. -We used the same mesh planes and same process that was used to cut the grotto (command: “show” to unhide them, command: “Mesh Boolean Split”) to cut the mesh box.
  • We then grouped each piece to its corresponding mesh box border and grouped them together (command: “group”). We created 6 pieces in total. -We then selected all 6 pieces and scaled them to 1 FT / 12 IN / 304.8 MM (command: “scale”) -EXPORT: exported as a .STL PRINTING PROCESS -SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop
  • Import .STL file.
  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density: 20-25 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) TIP: The higher the density the more susceptible the print is to warping / curling. To offset this, we added “Helper Disks” to the corners of every print. Helper Disks prevent print corners from warping by adding more material to corners. These can be added directly in MakerBot print, or, as we did, downloaded from thingiverse.com. -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected. COMMENT: The largest number of issues we encountered while printing the grotto had to do with shifting, and warping. We are not sure what caused the prints to shift, but we found that helper disks and the centering the prints on the build plates helped to avoid warping. POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands.
  • The husky plier set was used to clean up strings, or blotches, or irregularities. -We generally applied acetone to a rag and then applied it to the print. This helped to smooth out some edges, blur some printing imperfections.
  • We found it helpful to score the sides of the prints with a knife before gluing. Once scored and glued, we held the pieces together with a large rubber band to ensure continue pressure while setting. TIP: A little goes a long way. Not much loctite is needed to glue pieces together. TIP: Our best and most effective method to glue multiple pieces of a print together was to glue ONLY two pieces at a time and secure them with a band. -After glue is dry and the prints are securely glued together, we added spackle at the seams.
    TIP: We found that fingers are the best method to apply spackle. Place a bit of spackle on your finger and gentle rub it against any seam. Spackle can also be used to fill in holes!

PLEASURE AND PERILS 1916 & 2016 DIGITAL PROCESS -SOFTWARE USED: Rhinoceros 5 -The model was first sliced into 6 separate pieces using command: “mesh planes” and the command: “Mesh Boolean Split”. We created 4 mesh planes, one on the horizontal axis located right below the models’ arms (where the seam would be less noticeable) and three planes were made on the vertical axis. One of these planes ran through the middle of the two mermaids and the other two planes divided the bottom half of the model into fourths.

The red lines indicate where the mesh planes would be COMMENT: Sometimes the command would only work on a certain axis (eg. vertical axis) and we had to rotate the entire model to be able to cut it from that specific axis TIP: Keep all pieces united as you cut, this will help improve accuracy in the scaling process. -Select all 6 pieces and scale to 1 FT / 12 IN / 304.8 MM (command: “scale”) -Now for the base. Using the command: “curve”, roughly outline the shape of the model. TIP: We found it best to outline the shape of the model TOP VIEW. -Select the curve and use the command: “ExtrudeCrv” to make the base. Make sure Solid = Yes. Make the base .75 IN / 19.05 MM thick. -To fit and install a rotating mechanism, like the “Lazy Susan,” make a circle corresponding to the mechanism’s diameter, including an additional .25 IN of slack (command: “circle” make sure to select “Diameter”) The diameter we used was 5.5 IN so we made a circle of a 5.75 IN diameter.

  • Select circle and use command: “ExtrudeCrv”, making sure solid = yes. The thickness of the circle must be the thickness of the Lazy Susan. -Place the extruded circle well within the base of the statues, making sure both forms are on the same plane. (The bottom of the forms are aligned.) -Use the command “Boolean Difference” to make a hole in the base.
  • The base was then split into 4 parts using the command “BooleanSplit”. -Making sure the pleasure and perils statue is situated well within the base, make a copy of the base and use it to “Mesh Boolean Difference” the pleasure and perils. This allows the pleasure and perils statue to lay complete flat atop the base when printing. -Export each individual piece (10 pieces total. 6 for the statue, 4 for the base) as an .STL file PRINTING PROCESS -SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop
  • Import .STL file.
  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density: 25 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) TIP: The higher the density the more susceptible the print is to warping / curling. To combat this “Helper Disks” were added to the corners of every print. -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected. COMMENT: Shifting and warping were the primary issues we encountered. It’s unknown what caused many of prints to shift but we have found that helper disks and centering the prints help avoid warping. POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands, Black and Decker Dremel RTX 3 Speed Rotary Tool -Clean-up was required if print came out stringy or fuzzy. We used the husky plier set to clean up strings, blotches, or other irregularities. -We then poured Acetone on a rag and applied the rag to the print. Sometimes we applied Acetone directly to the print to smooth out some edges or blur some imperfections.
  • We scored the sides of the prints before gluing them together. Once scored and glued, the pieces were held together by a large rubber band to ensure pressure and to keep pieces together. TIP: Very little Loctite is needed to glue pieces together. TIP: Our best and most effective method to glue multiple pieces of a print together was to glue two pieces at a time and secure them with a band. -After glue is dry and the prints are securely glued together, spackle is added between the pieces to make for a seamless look. TIP: We found that using our fingers was the best method to apply spackle. Place a bit of spackle on any finger and gentle rub it against any seam. Spackle can also be used to fill in holes! COMMENT: Layer on spackle as needed. We added about 2 - 3 coats of spackle. If spackle is too prominent sanding it down with sandpaper helps achieve a smooth finish. If sanding is used, note that the color of the sandpaper may integrate with the white of the spackle and create discolored seams. COMMENT: For the Pleasure and Perils without a base, the same process was used, all the same files were printed, except the base was not printed. -Wait until the base is completely dry to place the Lazy Susan. If the Lazy Susan is too tight a fit into the base, use the Dremel to sand down the sides until the Lazy Susan fits in. Once the Lazy Susan fits within the hole in the base, place a generous amount of Loctite on the areas where the Lazy Susan makes contact with the base. Leave it to dry. TIP: We recommend gluing the entire pleasures and perils first and then gluing the base together separately. Then instal the Lazy Susan onto the base and finally glue the pleasures and perils onto the base. TIP: If the pleasures and perils aren’t completely flushed with the base, use spackle to fill in the gaps.

  HERMS 1916 & 2016 (not modular) DIGITAL PROCESS -SOFTWARE : Rhinoceros 5 -Both Herms (1916 and 2016) were imported and sliced using the command: “Mesh Planes” and “Mesh Boolean Split”. Mesh planes were created horizontally along both models at three moments shown on image (left). Red lines indicate mesh planes. Plane 3: Between the head and the start of the headdress COMMENT: The same splitting process was done for the 1916 version and the 2016 version. The only difference is to be careful of the grapes hanging from the headdress in the 1916 version. Do not slice the grapes while slicing the headdress. Grapes are part of the headdress. Plane 2: Underneath the dagger. Mid torso. Plane 1: Where the robe begins on the herm. -We sliced both herms into into 4 separate pieces then scaled them up to 1 FT / 12 IN / 304.8 MM (command: “scale”) TIP: Use the 1916 version as a reference when scaling both herms to 1 FT. After scaling both up you will notice the 1916 version is taller than the 2016. This is okay, the 2016 version is naturally shorter than the 1916 due to natural wear and tear. DO NOT make both herms of equal size, that will make them at different scales. The goal is to have them both at the same scale. -Export each piece as an .STL PRINTING PROCESS -SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop

  • Import .STL file.
  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density: 30 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected. TIP: No supports are needed for the base piece or the column piece POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands, Black and Decker Dremel RTX 3 Speed Rotary Tool -Clean up was required if print came out stringy or fuzzy. The husky plier set was used to clean up strings, or blotches, or irregularities. -Acetone was then poured on a rag and applied to the print, or sometimes directly to the print, to smooth out some edges, blur some imperfections.
  • To glue the pieces together it’s helpful to score the sides of the prints before gluing them together. Once scored and glue is applied, the pieces were held together by a large rubber band to ensure pressure and to keep pieces together. TIP: A little goes a long way. Not much loctite is needed to glue pieces together. -After glue is dry and the prints are securely glued together, spackle is added between the pieces to make for a seamless look. TIP: We found that using your fingers is the best method to apply spackle. Place a bit of spackle on any finger and gentle rub it against any seam. Spackle can also be used to fill in holes! COMMENT: Layer on spackle as needed. We did about 2 - 3 coats of spackle. If spackle is too prominent sanding it down with sandpaper helps achieve a smooth finish. IF sanding is used, note that the color of the sandpaper may integrate with the white of the spackle. We recommend using a dremel to sand down.

HERMS 1916 & 2016 (modular) DIGITAL PROCESS -SOFTWARE : Rhinoceros 5 -Both 1916 and 2016 versions were imported and sliced at 5 different locations using the commands: “Mesh plane” & “Boolean Mesh Split”. 6 mesh planes were created and places at the slicing location. As shown in image below

Plane 6: Across hand. Meant to slice hand from the headdress Plane 5 : Across head. Used to separate head from headdress Plane 4 : Start of arm.

Plane 3: Underneath the dagger. Mid torso

Plane 2: Where the robe begins on the herm.

Plane 1: Beginning of column. COMMENT: The same splitting process was done for the 1916 version and the 2016 version. The only difference is to be careful of the grapes hanging from the headdress in the 1916 version. Do not slice the grapes while slicing the headdress. Grapes are part of the headdress. -After all 6 pieces are sliced, a T shaped notch was created within each piece along with it’s male/female counterpiece. As shown on image below. This was created using the command : “Mesh Box” (command: “Join” two mesh boxes that form a T shape) the command: “Offset Mesh” the command: “Mesh Boolean Difference” and “Mesh Boolean Union”. -Procedure for notches: After the T shape is created, place it well within the piece you wish to combine it with. Then using command: “Offset Mesh” set the Offset Distance to 0.09 and make sure ‘Solid’ and ‘Both Sides’ are selected. (The bigger notch will be used to create the female notch while the smaller notch will become the male notch). Using the command “Mesh Boolean Union” select the smaller notch and it’s corresponding piece to join them. Using the command “Mesh Boolean Different” select the piece that corresponds to the female notch and select the notch created by the offset, upon pressing enter it should create the female notch that corresponds to the male notch on the previous piece. TIP: Using command : “Hide” and command: “Show” will help organize and select the pieces you need and hide the pieces you don’t need. This becomes incredibly useful when it’s time to boolean pieces.

Piece 6 “Headdress” : Contains female part for male part in piece 4 Piece 5 “Arm” : Contains male part for female part in piece 4 Piece 4 “Torso” : Contains male part for piece 6 on head, female part for piece 5 on arm, and female part for piece 3 on it’s base.

TIP: When creating the arm notches, slightly angle them to create a better grip between the male and female notches. Piece 3 “Lower torso” : Contains male part for piece 4 on its top and female part for piece 2 on it’s base.

Piece 2 “Column” : Contains male part for piece 3 on its top and female part for piece 1 on it’s base.

Piece 1 “Base” : Contains male part for piece 2 on its top.

-After all the male and female notches are created export each piece as an .STL PRINTING PROCESS -SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop

  • Import .STL file.
  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density : 30 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected. TIP: No supports are needed for the base piece or the column piece POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands, Black and Decker Dremel RTX 3 Speed Rotary Tool -Clean-up was required if print came out stringy or fuzzy. The husky plier set was used to clean up strings, blotches or irregularities. -Acetone was then poured on a rag and applied to the print, or sometimes directly to the print, to smooth out some edges, blur some imperfections.
  • No gluing is needed because it’s meant to be a puzzle. TIP: If the puzzle pieces have a very tight fit, sand down the notches using the Dremel tool.

SHELL GARLAND DIGITAL PROCESS SOFTWARE: Rhinoceros 5 -Using the command: “Mesh Plane” and command: “Mesh Boolean Difference” the model was cut into 6 pieces using 4 planes. TIP: leave each piece in its original position and no do not erase mesh planes, hide them instead (command: “hide”), those planes will be needed later to cut the shell garland border. -We gave each piece thickness using the “OffsetMesh” command and made it approximately a .09 offset distance, 0.0 increment. We selected solid, while leaving BothSides and Delete input meshes de-selected.

  • After giving each piece thickness, we made a mesh box with XFaces = 10 and YFaces = 10, surrounding the area of the shell garland. -Using “PointsOn” we manipulated the multiple points around the X & Y axis to fit the curved shape of the shell garland. -We used the same mesh planes and same process that was used to cut the shell garland (command: “show” to unhide them, command: “Mesh Boolean Split”) to cut the mesh box. -We grouped each piece to its corresponding mesh box border and grouped them together (command: “group”). We made 6 pieces in total. -We selected all 6 pieces and scale to 1 FT / 12 IN / 304.8 MM (command: “scale”) -EXPORT: exported as file type .STL PRINTING PROCESS SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop
  • Import .STL file.
  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density: 20-25 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) TIP: The higher the density the more susceptible the print is to warping / curling. To combat this “Helper Disks” were added to the corners of every print. -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. Leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected. POST PRINTING PROCESS TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands. -Clean-up was required if print came out stringy or fuzzy. We used the husky plier set to clean up strings, blotches, or irregularities. -In this case as well, we poured Acetone on a rag and applied to the print, or sometimes we poured it directly to the print, to smooth out some edges, blur some imperfections.
  • As with other pieces, we scored the sides of the prints before gluing them together. Once scored and glue is applied, we held the pieces together by a large rubber band to ensure pressure and to keep pieces together. TIP: Not much Loctite is needed to glue pieces together. TIP: Our best and most effective method to glue multiple pieces of a print together was to glue two pieces at a time and secure them with a band. -After glue is dry and the prints are securely glued together, we added spackle between the pieces to create a seamless look. TIP: We found that using your fingers is the best method to apply spackle. Place a bit of spackle on any finger and gentle rub it against any seam. Spackle can also be used to fill in holes!

CHANLER CEILING DIGITAL PROCESS SOFTWARE : Rhinoceros 5 -Using the command: “Mesh Plane” and command: “Mesh Boolean Difference” we cut the model into 4 pieces using 2 planes. TIP: Leave each piece in its original position and no do not erase mesh planes, hide them instead (command: “hide”). Those planes will be needed later to cut the ceiling border. -We then gave each piece thickness using the “OffsetMesh” command with approximately a .09 offset distance, 0.0 increment, and selected solid, while leaving BothSides and Delete input meshes de-selected.

  • After giving each piece thickness, we made a mesh box with XFaces = 10 and YFaces = 10, surrounding the area of the Chanler ceiling. -Using “PointsOn” we manipulated the multiple points around the X & Y axis to fit the curved shape of the ceiling. -We then cut the mesh box using the same mesh planes and same process that was used to cut the ceiling (command: “show” to unhide them, command: “Mesh Boolean Split”).
  • Group each piece to its corresponding mesh box border and group them together (command: “group”). There should be 4 pieces in total. -Select all 4 pieces and scale to 1 FT / 12 IN / 304.8 MM (command: “scale”). -EXPORT: exported as file type .STL

PRINTING PROCESS SOFTWARE: Makerbot Desktop

  • Import .STL file.

  • Setting > Custom set to High -Infill > Infill Density : 30-35 % | Infill Pattern > diamond (fast) TIP: The higher the density the more susceptible the print is to warping / curling. To combat this “Helper Disks” were added to the corners of every print. -Model Properties > Layer Height: 0.10 mm -Raft > raft selected -Supports and Bridging > supports selected. Leaky connections selected. Breakaway supports selected.

  • Rotate the piece to be completely vertical rather than flat as the layers of printing come out smoother this way.

    POST-PRINTING PROCESS -TOOLS USED: Husky 1052 Mini Pliers Set, Spackle (white), Acetone, Loctite super glue gel, Exacto knife, large rubber bands, Black and Decker Dremel RTX 3 Speed Rotary Tool -We usd Acetone to smooth out some printing defects. -Once glued (2 pieces at a time), we used rubber bands to hold the pieces together. TIP: as these edges come out much thinner, being slightly more generous with glue is advised and more time is needed to allow to dry.

  • We spackled the seams for a “close to perfection” finish.

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