3D Object: Hybrid Design + FDM Print Part 2

In continuation of my previous post and the progress of mine and Austin's final hybrid object I am happy to say that the final product was a complete success. The model we ended up using for our final 3D print was my third hybrid model concept, view previous post for reference.

Me and Austin decided that it was both an interesting form and idea that combined the elegant and smooth surface of his pottery and the sharp robotic forms of my cross like shape. We both agreed that the final shape looked as if it were a piece of pottery that had began to morph into a robotic shape, and the shape that we had made was catching this shape mid transformation.

Once we had created our final shape all we had left to do was take it to the 3D printer and bring our object to life, although we regrettably had a few hiccups during our printing. Initial when we came into the printing lab the 3D printer had been pre-loaded with a grey filament, the plastic extruded from the nozzle of the three dimensional printer. Me and Austin had decided on a semi transparent filament because we thought it would add to the overall look and feel of our shape by giving it an even more bizarre appearance. So we took out the grey filament and loaded in the transparent one, once we had done that we began to print our shape. However we noticed that no filament was being extruded. The reason for this was that there is a small piece of the 3D printer which pulls the filament downward and toward the nozzle, but what was happening was this small piece was just fraying the filament and clogging up the machine. This was quickly fixed once me and Austin had problem solve a little, apparently other groups who used the clear filament ran into the same issue.

Once this small problem had been corrected we proceeded with printing our object, and had no further problems.

To view the printing process look at the images below:

This images shows what it looks like once you have loaded in your

desired shape into the 3D printing software. 

 

Before the actual shape is printed the printer creates a boarder around the printing area. Also the first three or so layers of  a printed model are filled in, meaning that the inside is filled with filament in order to create a solid base for the rest of the model to be built upon.

As you can see the model is slowly but surely being made, one layer as a time.

Our final product took around an hour and a half to be fully printed, the reason it took so long was because me and Austin made two instead of one large model. The final product was around six inches tall and sin and a half inches wide. To view the final product see the below images:

  

View from the top to show that the shape is hollow

I found this project to be one of my personal favourites from this class as it truly demonstrated how you can make an image in a three dimensional software, like Rhinoceros 5, and bring it into reality in a fully touchable and tangible form. This project tested all of my knowledge I had gained from each project and lecture in this class. I look forward to not only working with 3D printers in the future, but I also look forward to having another OBDF class. I have found this to not only be one of the most fun but also one of the most useful classes I have ever had.  

On an unrelated note I will have another blog post coming soon that will detail a small project I have been doing outside of class. For anyone who has been following my blog, my next post will be related to a "heart attack."