Construction Update 2.0

By Mustafa Alkhulaitit – Project Manager

Up to this point, our team has been working on two main features of the 3D printer: the frame and the heat bed. After receiving the frame, our team has started assembling it and getting it ready to transfer the electronics to the new frame. The frame needed multiple parts to be printed that were printed with the help of Michael Pluma.  

The frame of the printer, both the old one and the new one, use rods for smooth movements of stepper motors. In order to transfer those rods to the new frame, the rods were sanded, cleaned, and cut for better appearance and better fit. So far, the frame is almost 90% done and just need some minor changes until it is finally ready.

 

Fig.1: Pieces of the frame before assembly.

 

Fig.2: The frame at about 90% completion.

The heat bed, on the other hand, is going to be the same, but will include a minor change. The aluminum plate, which forms the surface of the heat bed, was cleaned and sanded for better appearance. The base of the heat bed, or the heart of the heat bed, will have a newer look. We found the insulator material used, few pieces of cloth, is giving the base an unwanted thickness as well as an unattractive look. Therefore, the cloth will be removed and replaced by polyisocyanurate rigid foam insulated sheathing.

 

Fig.3: The surface plate before cleaning and sanding.

Fig.4: The plate after sanding and cleaning. It now has a much better, smooth look and surface.

With the previous frame, the heat bed had four screw holes on the sides as can be seen in figure 5. The heat bed cannot be implemented with the same screws; therefore, the heat bed must be given new screw positions.