Layered Manufacturing (LM) is a rapidly growing market with many opportunities for new advancement. The ink jet based LM printer needs to be capable of precisely placing ink drops to form an image using an ink formula which cures via ultraviolet light in a reasonable time frame to allow for the succeeding layer to be placed quickly. The printer should include monitoring systems for the critical parameters of the ink jet system. In finding the ideal ink formulation, additional metrics should be developed for assessing each formulas “jetability” and “curability”. A previous group working on this project was successful in developing independent X, Y and Z axis controls for moving the Reservoir Bucket, Jet Stack, Print Head Holder and Print Head, as well as an inexpensive UV curing system and a system for changing Reservoir Buckets. They also began work on a UV ventilation system.

The goal of this project is to continue and complete the solid start provided by the previous team to deliver a fully integrated prototype that is reliable, affordable, and user-friendly. The resulting device needs to meet the customer requirements for build size and resolution, and produce an image part that can be built in a reasonable time with UV curing ink.

Project Name

3D Printer Ink Jetting Station

Project Number

P17512

Start Term

Fall 2016

End Term

Spring 2017

Faculty Guide

Bill Nowak wjnddm@rit.edu

Primary Customer

Dennis Cormier drceie@rit.edu

Sponsor (financial support)

Xerox

Planning & Execution

Project Photos and Videos

Imagine RIT

Problem Definition

Systems Design

Preliminary Detailed Design

Detailed Design

Build & Test Prep

Subsystem Build & Test

Integrated System Build & Test

Integrated System Build & Test with Customer Demo

Customer Handoff & Final Project Documentation