Pwdr - Open source powder-based rapid prototyping machine. Pwdr - Open source powder-based rapid prototyping machine. Focus' progress. Selective Laser Sintering Part 6. Hi folks, I thought I'd take a second to make a quick post about some of the interesting bits of the new open selective laser sintering printer that I've been designing in between finishing up my dissertation. (I'm also looking for an interesting postdoc (or maybe the right industry job, if it's research oriented and challenging) -- if you're interested in learning more, please have a look at my graphical portfolio / academic CV.
My background is pretty diverse, and I'm quite interested in branching into cognitive robotics, rapid prototyping, and potentially making these technologies a little "smarter", more accessible, inexpensive, or otherwise more capable. ) One of the overarching design goals of the project is accessibility -- it's very important to me that the design be easy to create, and very affordable. Infact, I keep a $200 high-mark in my head, with the goal of designing something that doesn't exceed that mark in terms of the parts cost. I hope you've enjoyed this post! Peter. Slsdiag.gif (525×350) 153619-004-66FCF088.jpg (587×400) Utwired.engr.utexas.edu/lff/symposium/proceedingsArchive/pubs/Manuscripts/2010/2010-41-Leu.pdf. 3dp/final_report_v2.pdf. Laser Shutter Mechanism and Optics Mount Development.
I ordered two fiber-coupled 2 Watt IR lasers from eBay for $99 apiece. The output of a fiber carrying last light is essentially a wildly divergent point source, so my first task was to collimate the laser output by dumping it into the end of a microscope objective. I fabricated a simple jig to facilitate precise three-dimensional positioning of the fiber terminus in front of a microscope objective.
I directed the output of the objective lens onto a wall and observed the spot with my cell phone's camera (nearly all digital cameras pick up IR). By observing the changes in spot size, I was able to determine optimal spacing between the fiber terminus and several different microscope objectives. Left: my set up for determining optimal terminus-objective spacing. My first laser shutter mechanism was simply a piece of bicycle brake cable wrapped in Teflon tape.
This optics mount's performance gradually declined as residue built up on ht fiber terminus. The revised optics mount. Rapid Prototyping - Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) was developed at the University of Texas in Austin, by Carl Deckard and colleagues. The technology was patented in 1989 and was originally sold by DTM Corporation. DTM was acquired by 3D Systems in 2001. The basic concept of SLS is similar to that of SLA. It uses a moving laser beam to trace and selectively sinter powdered polymer and/or metal composite materials into successive cross-sections of a three-dimensional part. As in all rapid prototyping processes, the parts are built upon a platform that adjusts in height equal to the thickness of the layer being built. Additional powder is deposited on top of each solidified layer and sintered. Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)