ALTPRINT: Algorithm for Additive Planning with Local Variation of Filling of the Extruded Filaments
摘要
This article presents an update to the AltPrint program by adapted to use two filament feeding mechanisms: direct drive and Bowden tube and also allows the generation of continuous trajectories, with the incorporation of modifications to extend the program to 3D printers with “Bowden” type filament feed and allow the generation of continuous trajectories. The AltPrint program is an algorithm developed to integrate into additive planning extruded material flow control, to generate parts with flexible regions. The computational implementation was designed from Open Source concept using the Python language, integrated with an open additive planning program. The complex multifactorial relationship between material flow control at the extrusion nozzle and indexed movement of the build platform as well as process parameters and environmental conditions, considering desktop 3D printers, directly affects the dimensional quality of the parts. These conditions may affect final quality of the mesostructure (such as, for example, lack or excess of interface between the deposited filaments, generating internal material discontinuities) and in the final part. These failures contribute to the reduction in the mechanical strength of the part, reduced surface and dimensional quality with pronounced ghosting by extrusion. On the other hand, control strategies on parameter “E” can contribute to the generation of preselected flexible regions, which is part of the proposal of this work. This numerical strategy allows the generation of geometries and parts with flexible regions through the generation of beams, similar to the behavior of mechanical elastic elements. However, different architectures of desktop 3D printing equipment are also sources of variability in the control of parameter “E.” In this way, as result of these improvement proposals, experimental geometries demonstrating visual quality in the flexible regions for both types of filament feeding mechanisms as well continuous trajectory generation demonstrating the program’s potential to generate functional parts with elastic regions.