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Ceramic 3D Printer

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Overview

This six-foot tall ceramic 3D printer made from aluminum was designed and constructed by me and fellow mechanical engineer Eric Wu for the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts (SMFA) under a research grant to create an experimental paste extrusion platform. 

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The frame is made of water-jet cut 1/4in 6061 aluminum and 80-20 aluminum extrusions. It is a delta style printer and the vertical linear motion of the three rails is achieved with lead screws and NEMA-23 stepper motors. The extrusion system is the WASP LDM (liquid deposition modeling) extruder. 

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Through this project I gained a lot of experience working with metal and also designing around existing off the shelf components.

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Universal Joints

While fabrication and assembly was very much a joint effort, Eric and I divided the design work. Eric focused on the frame and electronics, and I focused the vertical motion carriages and mounting the extruder within the frame using universal joints.

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