Group Assignment on 3D Scanning and Printing
Group members
- Stanley Amaechi
- Lauri Hallman
- Shahmeer Adnan Rana
🖨️ Week 5 - 3D Scanning and Printing (Group Work)
In this assignment, we tested the design rules of our 3D printers using different printing techniques and materials. Below are our observations.
The PLA prints were done using Creality Ender 3D printers, and the resin prints using Formlabs Form 2.
🟢 Supported PLA 3D Print
| Feature | Observation |
|---|---|
| Overhang | Acceptable, but support marks are visible underneath. |
| Clearance | 0.2 mm and smaller gaps get stuck, preventing movement. 1 mm gaps are too loose. |
🔴 Unsupported PLA 3D Print
| Design Aspect | Observations |
|---|---|
| Overhang | 6 mm overhang is fine, but longer spans produce spaghetti-like strands. |
| Angle | Angles between 90° and 60° are fine. Smaller angles result in spaghetti-like strands underneath. |
| Bridge | A 20 mm bridge begins to sag. |
| Anisotropy | Horizontal layers are visible when viewed from the side. |
| Infill | Thin spaghetti-like strands form inside hollow sections. The bottom plane has a rougher finish than the top. |
| Surface Finish | Layers are very visible on curved surfaces. Circular paths show slight imperfections at endpoints. |
| Dimensions | Measured values match the designed dimensions using a caliper. |
| Wall Thickness | Holes larger than 0.4 mm are printed, but walls thinner than 0.2 mm are not (nozzle size: 0.2 mm). Spaghetti strands appear in walls between 0.4 mm - 0.2 mm thick. A designed 0.2 mm wall measures 0.4 mm. |
🔵 Resin 3D Print
| Design Aspect | Observations |
|---|---|
| Angle | No spaghetti-like effect at any angle. Supports cause slight imperfections on the bottom surface. |
| Surface Finish | Excellent surface quality, significantly better than PLA. |
🟡 Pictures of the 3D prints
Below is a collection of all the 3D print test pieces, photographed from two different angles:
🎯 Summary
- Supported PLA prints work well but leave visible support marks.
- Unsupported PLA prints struggle with overhangs, small angles, and bridging, producing spaghetti-like strands.
- Resin prints deliver superior surface finish with minimal artifacts.
📌 Key Takeaways: Resin printing offers the best surface quality, while PLA prints require careful design considerations for unsupported structures.