![]() ![]() Looking carefully at the print preview in the slicer also showed the same error. ![]() This looks a lot better, but I noticed the that left bottom corner had not printed correctly. Doing this I flipped the object over in the slicer and sent it again to the 3D printer Second print ![]() In my experience a good bet is often to find a flat surface on the model that can be used as a base for the print. When printing the orientation of the model can influence your result. So I had a look in the slicer software and noticed that the issue was possibly the orientation of the model. Sadly it looks like the object had not printed correctly, with parts of it dropping off when I removed the raft (a layer of PLA at the bottom that helps it stick to the build platform). I hooked up the printer to the computer, pressed print, and about 12 minutes later (I was told it was possibly the fasted print ever done by the museum) I had my object: First print Furthermore, it is nontoxic and easy to work with. It is a material made from renewable resources (such as corn starch), and is also bio-degradable. Of the several available I chose PLA ( polylactide). Now my model was ready to print I had to choose the material to print with. A slicer program takes a model and breaks it down to a series of horizontal layers (hence the name slicer) so that the printer can build it up from the bottom to the top, layer by layer. So I take my model and export it to stl (stereolithography) format ready for the slicer program to do its magic. This printer has been used with courses held at the V&A and with an artist in residence, Silvia Weidenbach, who produced jewellery that fuses traditional approaches with 3D printing. I had the first and the learning department had the two others.I got in touch with them and booked some time with the Makerbot Replicator. When you print a model you need three things: a 3D model, a slicer program and a 3D printer. After this I had a model ready to print: Clip design in sketchup Step 2: Printing Due to some of the limitations of Sketchup, I had to do some tweaks on my virtual model as some of the curves of the object were impossible to re-create. Using SketchUp, the original clip, and a ruler, I set out to painstakingly replicate the dimensions of the original clip in a virtual model. Building a model from scratch is slower, but when it’s finished you can adjust the model more easily. Scanning can be done quickly, if you have the right scanner – but the process can struggle with small objects. ![]() I could attempt to scan it in some form, or I could make a model of it on a 3D CAD application. Step 1: Design An unbroken clip in place An unbroken clipįirst I obtained an undamaged clip and worked out the best way to make a copy of its design. As we didn’t have any spares, I offered to design and make a replacement. One of them had a clip at the back of the device that had snapped and broken. The backgroundĪt the V&A we use several chip and pin devices. A major part of my job is to problem solve issues across the museum – so when an issue with a broken component came across my desk I thought that there might be an opportunity to create a bespoke solution. At home I own and run a 3D printer that I made from a kit (an Anet A8), and while it requires a lot of tinkering to run smoothly, it’s helped me gain a solid understanding of the technology. In this post I wanted to describe a real-world issue that I have used 3D printing to solve, and what this might mean for the future.Īs someone who works in the IT department at the V&A I like to hear about new technologies. Indeed, the Museum has acquired several objects based on 3D replicas, and has a Gallery devoted to the subject. Over the past few years there have been many exciting developments in a technology that promises to be revolutionary for everyone – 3D printing. ![]()
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