Teach Engineering by Making a 3D Printer!

thingiverse

This is a Print It Forward Project from Printrbot that is an excellent way to educate engineering and fundamental 3D printing principles. Students will learn what BOM stands for and go through the process of constructing a 3D printer from scratch. Update: I uploaded a V2 of the base. I improved it to make it more stable and deep enough to allow for normal size nema motors instead of the small motors. It's much more stable now. Print Settings Printer Brand: Printrbot Printer: Printrbot Plus Rafts: Yes Supports: Yes Resolution: 0.2 Infill: 50% Notes: I used a 50% infill for PLA to test out this build. I will use the new NylonX in the next build to test different materials. Overview and Background Students will learn a great deal during this project. Between using metric tools, soldering, some wiring, and the concept of rods, bearings, belts, and pulleys, they'll gain valuable knowledge. Duration of Lesson This project should take a few class periods to complete. The overall process should be about 4-5 classes. Project Teach Engineering by Making a 3D Printer! This project is an excellent way to teach students the pride of building something. They'll build a working printer and, by doing so, understand its basic mechanics and how to repair it.