Engineering Commons^™

Bending Performance And Failure Mechanisms Of Hybrid And Regular Sandwich Composite Structures With 3d Printed Corrugated Cores, S.Z.H. Shah, Khurram Altaf, Juhyeong Lee, Tahir Sharif, Rizwan Saeed Choudhry, S. M. Hussain

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

The effect of core geometry and hybridization on the bending performance and failure mechanisms of carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) and glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP) corrugated sandwich composite structures (SCS) were experimentally investigated using a three-point bend test. The CFRP and GFRP corrugated cores and facesheets were produced using Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) and vacuum-assisted infusion processes, respectively. Three types of corrugated SCSs were built: SCSs with different core geometries (circular, square, trapezoidal, sinusoidal, and triangular), hybrid SCSs with different CFRP and GFRP cores and facesheets, and fully 3D-printed CFRP and GFRP SCSs. The corrugated SCS with square core geometry outperformed …

The Economics Of Classroom 3-D Printing Of Open-Source Digital Designs Of Learning Aids, Nicole Gallup, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

While schools struggle financially, capital for purchasing physical learning aids is often cut. To determine if costs could be reduced for learning aids, this study analyzed classroom-based distributed digital manufacturing using 3-D printing of open-source learning aid designs. Learning aid designs are analyzed in detail for their economic viability considering printing and assembly costs with purchased components and compared to equivalent or inferior commercial products available on Amazon. The results show current open-source 3-D printers are capable of manufacturing useful learning aids and that doing so provides high economic savings in the classroom. Overall, the average learning aid would save …

Parametric Nasopharyngeal Swab For Sampling Covid-19 And Other Respiratory Viruses: Open Source Design, Sla 3-D Printing And Uv Curing System, Nicole Gallup, Adam M. Pringle, Shane Oberloier, Nagendra G. Tanikella, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Access to nasopharyngeal swabs for sampling remain a bottleneck in some regions for COVID-19 testing. This study develops a distributed manufacturing solution using only an open source manufacturing tool chain consisting of two types of open source 3-D printing and batch UV curing, and provides a parametric fully free design of a nasopharyngeal swab. The swab was designed using parametric OpenSCAD in two components (a head with engineered break point and various handles), which has several advantages: i) minimizing print time on relatively slow SLA printers, ii) enabling the use of smaller print volume open source SLA printers, iii) reducing …

Open Source High-Temperature Reprap For 3-D Printing Heat-Sterilizable Ppe And Other Applications, Noah G. Skrzypczak, Nagendra G. Tanikella, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Thermal sterilization is generally avoided for 3-D printed components because of the relatively low deformation temperatures for common thermoplastics used for material extrusion-based additive manufacturing. 3-D printing materials required for high-temperature heat sterilizable components for COVID-19 and other applications demands 3-D printers with heated beds, hot ends that can reach higher temperatures than polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) hot ends and heated chambers to avoid part warping and delamination. There are several high temperature printers on the market, but their high costs make them inaccessible for full home-based distributed manufacturing required during pandemic lockdowns. To allow for all these requirements to be met …

Open Source Arc Analyzer: Multi-Sensor Monitoring Of Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing, Adam M. Pringle, Shane Oberloier, Aliaksei Petsiuk, Paul G. Sanders, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Low-cost high-resolution metal 3-D printing remains elusive for the scientific community. Low-cost gas metal arc wire (GMAW)-based 3-D printing enables wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) for near net shape applications, but has limited resolution due to the complexities of the arcing process. To begin to monitor and thus control these complexities, the initial designs of the open source GMAW 3-D printer have evolved to include current and voltage monitoring. Building on this prior work, in this study, the design, fabrication and use of the open source arc analyzer is described. The arc analyzer is a multi-sensor monitoring system for quantifying …

Partially Reprapable Automated Open Source Bag Valve Mask-Based Ventilator, Aliaksei Petsiuk, Nagendra G. Tanikella, Samantha Dertinger, Adam Pringle, Shane Oberloier, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

This study describes the development of a simple and easy-to-build portable automated bag valve mask (BVM) compression system, which, during acute shortages and supply chain disruptions can serve as a temporary emergency ventilator. The resuscitation system is based on the Arduino controller with a real-time operating system installed on a largely RepRap 3-D printable parametric component-based structure. The cost of the materials for the system is under $170, which makes it affordable for replication by makers around the world. The device provides a controlled breathing mode with tidal volumes from 100 to 800 mL, breathing rates from 5 to 40 …

Economic Savings For Scientific Free And Open Source Technology: A Review, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Both the free and open source software (FOSS) as well as the distributed digital manufacturing of free and open source hardware (FOSH) has shown particular promise among scientists for developing custom scientific tools. Early research found substantial economic savings for these technologies, but as the open source design paradigm has grown by orders of magnitude it is possible that the savings observed in the early work was isolated to special cases. Today there are examples of open source technology for science in the vast majority of disciplines and several resources dedicated specifically to publishing them. Do the tremendous economic savings …

Open-Source Digitally Replicable Lab-Grade Scales, Benjamin R. Hubbard, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

This study provides designs for a low-cost, easily replicable open-source lab-grade digital scale that can be used as a precision balance. The design is such that it can be manufactured for use in most labs throughout the world with open-source RepRap-class material extrusion-based 3-D printers for the mechanical components and readily available open-source electronics including the Arduino Nano. Several versions of the design were fabricated and tested for precision and accuracy for a range of load cells. The results showed the open-source scale was found to be repeatable within 0.05 g with multiple load cells, with even better precision (0.005 …

Reprapable Automated Open Source Bag Valve Mask-Based Ventilator, Aliaksei Petsiuk, Nagendra Gautam Tanikella, Samantha C. Dertinger, Adam Pringle, Shane Oberloier, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

This study describes the development of an automated bag valve mask (BVM) compression system, which, during acute shortages and supply chain disruptions can serve as a temporary emergency ventilator. The resuscitation system is based on the Arduino controller with a real-time operating system installed on a largely RepRap 3-D printable parametric component-based structure. The cost of the system is under $170, which makes it affordable for replication by makers around the world. The device provides a controlled breathing mode with tidal volumes from 100 to 800 milliliters, breathing rates from 5 to 40 breaths/minute, and inspiratory-to-expiratory ratio from 1:1 to …

Conversion Of Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus Mask To Open Source Powered Air-Purifying Particulate Respirator For Fire Fighter Covid-19 Response, Benjamin R. Hubbard, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

To assist firefighters and other first responders to use their existing equipment for respiration during the COVID-19 pandemic without using single-use, low-supply, masks, this study outlines an open source kit to convert a 3M-manufactured Scott Safety self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) into a powered air-purifying particulate respirator (PAPR). The open source PAPR can be fabricated with a low-cost 3-D printer and widely available components for less than $150, replacing commercial conversion kits saving 85% or full-fledged proprietary PAPRs saving over 90%. The parametric designs allow for adaptation to other core components and can be custom fit specifically to fire-fighter equipment, including …

Open Source High-Temperature Reprap For 3-D Printing Heat-Sterilizable Ppe And Other Applications, Noah G. Skrzypczak, Nagendra Gautam Tanikella, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Thermal sterilization is generally avoided for 3-D printed components because of the relatively low deformation temperatures for common thermoplastics used for material extrusion-based additive manufacturing. 3-D printing materials required for high-temperature heat sterilizable components for COVID-19 and other applications demands 3-D printers with heated beds, hot ends that can reach higher temperatures than polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) hot ends and heated chambers to avoid part warping and delamination. There are several high temperature printers on the market, but their high costs make them inaccessible for full home-based distributed manufacturing required during pandemic lockdowns. To allow for all these requirements to be met …

Design Of Versatile Feedback Control System Components For Selective Laser Sintering, Thomas Chessman

University Scholar Projects

Selective laser sintering (SLS) is an additive manufacturing technique that involves using a laser to fuse powdered material together, layer by layer, in order to create a 3-D product. Despite its numerous benefits over traditional methods of manufacturing, including higher efficiency, versatility, and the ability to process many materials, selective laser sintering suffers from its propensity to generate structural errors during operation.

Feedback control has been shown to improve fabrication quality in other laser-based additive manufacturing techniques when implemented properly. Widespread exploration of applying feedback control in SLS might lead to significant performance improvements in this form of manufacturing.

This …

Parametric Nasopharyngeal Swab For Sampling Covid-19 And Other Respiratory Viruses: Open Source Design, Sla 3-D Printing And Uv Curing System, Nicole Gallup, Adam Pringle, Shane Oberloier, Nagendra Gautam Tanikella, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Access to nasopharyngeal swabs for sampling remain a bottleneck in some regions for COVID19 testing. This study develops a distributed manufacturing solution using only an open source manufacturing tool chain consisting of two types of open source 3-D printing and batch UV curing, and provides a parametric fully free design of a nasopharyngeal swab. The swab was designed using parametric OpenSCAD in two components (a head with engineered break point and various handles), which has several advantages: i) minimizing print time on relatively slow SLA printers, ii) enabling the use of smaller print volume open source SLA printers, iii) reducing …

Nytrox As “Drop-In” Replacement For Gaseous Oxygen In Smallsat Hybrid Propulsion Systems, Stephen A. Whitmore

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

A medical grade nitrous oxide (N₂O) and gaseous oxygen (GOX) “Nytrox” blend is investigated as a volumetrically-efficient replacement for GOX in SmallSat-scale hybrid propulsion systems. Combined with 3-D printed acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), the propellants represent a significantly safer, but superior performing, alternative to environmentally-unsustainable spacecraft propellants like hydrazine. In a manner analogous to the creation of soda-water using dissolved carbon dioxide, Nytrox is created by bubbling GOX under pressure into N₂O until the solution reaches saturation. Oxygen in the ullage dilutes N₂O vapor and increases the required decomposition energy barrier by several orders …

Low-Cost Open Source Ultrasound-Sensing Based Navigational Support For The Visually Impaired, Aliaksei Petsiuk, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Nineteen million Americans have significant vision loss. Over 70% of these are not employed full-time, and more than a quarter live below the poverty line. Globally, there are 36 million blind people, but less than half use white canes or more costly commercial sensory substitutions. The quality of life for visually impaired people is hampered by the resultant lack of independence. To help alleviate these challenges this study reports on the development of a low-cost, open-source ultrasound-based navigational support system in the form of a wearable bracelet to allow people with the lost vision to navigate, orient themselves in their …

Open Source Completely 3-D Printable Centrifuge, Salil S. Sule, Aliaksei Petsiuk, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications

Centrifuges are commonly required devices in medical diagnostics facilities as well as scientific laboratories. Although there are commercial and open source centrifuges, the costs of the former and the required electricity to operate the latter limit accessibility in resource-constrained settings. There is a need for low-cost, human-powered, verified, and reliable lab-scale centrifuges. This study provides the designs for a low-cost 100% 3-D printed centrifuge, which can be fabricated on any low-cost RepRap-class (self-replicating rapid prototyper) fused filament fabrication (FFF)- or fused particle fabrication (FPF)-based 3-D printer. In addition, validation procedures are provided using a web camera and free and open …

Economic Potential For Distributed Manufacturing Of Adaptive Aids For Arthritis Patients N The U.S., Nicole Gallup, Jennifer Bow, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

By 2040, more than a quarter of the U.S. population will have diagnosed arthritic conditions. Adults with arthritis and other rheumatic conditions earn less than average yet have medical care expenditures that are over 12% of average household income. Adaptive aids can help arthritis patients continue to maintain independence and quality of life; however, their high costs limit accessibility for older people and the poor. One method used for consumer price reduction is distributed manufacturing with 3-D printers. In order to assess if such a method would be financially beneficial, this study evaluates the techno-economic viability of distributed manufacturing of …

3-D Printable Polymer Pelletizer Chopper For Fused Granular Fabrication-Based Additive Manufacturing, Aubrey Woern, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Although distributed additive manufacturing can provide high returns on investment, the current markup on commercial filament over base polymers limits deployment. These cost barriers can be surmounted by eliminating the entire process of fusing filament by three-dimensional (3-D) printing products directly from polymer granules. Fused granular fabrication (FGF) (or fused particle fabrication (FPF)) is being held back in part by the accessibility of low-cost pelletizers and choppers. An open-source 3-D printable invention disclosed here allows for precisely controlled pelletizing of both single thermopolymers as well as composites for 3-D printing. The system is designed, built, and tested for its ability …

Approaches To Open Source 3-D Printable Probe Positioners And Micromanipulators For Probe Stations, Iiro Hietanen, Ismo T. S. Heikkinen, Hele Savin, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Three types of highly-customizable open source probe positioning systems are evaluated: (a) mostly 3-D printed, (b) partially printed using OpenBeam kinematic constraints, and (c) a 3-level stack of low-cost commercial single axis micropositioners and some printed parts. All systems use digital distributed manufacturing to enable bespoke features, which can be fabricated with RepRap-class 3-D printer and easily accessible components. They are all flexible in material choice for custom components. The micropositioners can be set up for left-right use and flat or recessed configurations using either mechanical or magnetic mounting. All systems use a manual probe holder that can be customized …

Belt-Driven Open Source Circuit Mill Using Low-Cost 3-D Printer Components, Shane W. Oberloier, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Barriers to inventing electronic devices involve challenges of iterating electronic designs due to long lead times for professional circuit board milling or high costs of commercial milling machines. To overcome these barriers, this study provides open source (OS) designs for a low-cost circuit milling machine. First, design modifications for mechanical and electrical subsystems of the OS Distributed 3-D (D3D) Robotics prototyping system are provided. Next, Copper Carve, an OS custom graphical user interface, is developed to enable circuit board milling by implementing backlash and substrate distortion compensation. The performance of the OS D3D circuit mill is then quantified and validated …

Self-Sufficiency Of 3-D Printers: Utilizing Stand-Alone Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems, Khalid Yousuf Khan, Lucia Gauchia, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

A self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) is a type of 3-D printer capable of printing many of its own components in addition to a wide assortment of products from high-value scientific or medical tools to household products and toys. There is some evidence that these printers could provide low-cost distributed manufacturing in underprivileged rural areas. For the most isolated communities without access to the electric grid, a low-cost alternative energy is needed. Solar energy can be harvested through a stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) power system specifically designed to match the needs of the RepRap. The voltage and current requirement for the printer …

Reprapable Recyclebot: Open Source 3-D Printable Extruder For Converting Plastic To 3-D Printing Filament, Aubrey Woern, Joseph Mccaslin, Adam Pringle, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

In order to assist researchers explore the full potential of distributed recycling of post-consumer polymer waste, this article describes a recyclebot, which is a waste plastic extruder capable of making commercial quality 3-D printing filament. The device design takes advantage of both the open source hardware methodology and the paradigm developed by the open source self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) 3-D printer community. Specifically, this paper describes the design, fabrication and operation of a RepRapable Recyclebot, which refers to the Recyclebot’s ability to provide the filament needed to largely replicate the parts for the Recyclebot on any type of RepRap 3-D …

Development Of A Resilient 3-D Printer For Humanitarian Crisis Response, Benjamin L. Savonen, Tobias Mahan, Maxwell W. Curtis, Jared W. Schreier, John K. Greshonen, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Rapid manufacturing using 3-D printing is a potential solution to some of the most pressing issues for humanitarian logistics. In this paper, findings are reported from a study that involved development of a new type of 3-D printer. In particular, a novel 3-D printer that is designed specifically for reliable rapid manufacturing at the sites of humanitarian crises. First, required capabilities are developed with design elements of a humanitarian 3-D printer, which include, (1) fused filament fabrication, (2) open source self-replicating rapid prototyper design, (3) modular, (4) separate frame, (5) protected electronics, (6) on-board computing, (7) flexible power supply, and …

Effect Of Knit And Print Parameters On Peel Strength Of Hybrid 3-D Printed Textiles, Ayushi Narula, Christopher M. Pastore, David Schmelzeisen, Sara El Basri, Jan Schenk, Subin Shajoo

Kanbar College Faculty Papers

The influence of knit fabric structure on the adhesion of three-dimensional (3-D) printed textiles was examined. 3-Dprinting was applied to different elastic knitted fabrics with different amounts of prestretch, typical for 4-D fabric construction. The quality of the bond was measured in terms of peel strength. Peel strength was measured by pulling the fabric at 180 degrees from the printed plastic to delaminate the 2 and recording the 10 highest peak values observed during the test. The printed width, the ratio of fabric width of print width, fabric washing, and fabric structure were varied. The specimens were then evaluated for …

Distributed Manufacturing Of Flexible Products: Technical Feasibility And Economic Viability, Aubrey Woern, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Distributed manufacturing even at the household level is now well established with the combined use of open source designs and self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) 3-D printers. Previous work has shown substantial economic consumer benefits for producing their own polymer products. Now flexible filaments are available at roughly 3-times the cost of more conventional 3-D printing materials. To provide some insight into the potential for flexible filament to be both technically feasible and economically viable for distributed digital manufacturing at the consumer level this study investigates 20 common flexible household products. The 3-D printed products were quantified by print time, electrical …

Open Source 3-D Printed Nutating Mixer, Dhwani K. Trivedi, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

As the open source development of additive manufacturing has led to low-cost desktop three-dimensional (3-D) printing, a number of scientists throughout the world have begun to share digital designs of free and open source scientific hardware. Open source scientific hardware enables custom experimentation, laboratory control, rapid upgrading, transparent maintenance, and lower costs in general. To aid in this trend, this study describes the development, design, assembly, and operation of a 3-D printable open source desktop nutating mixer, which provides a fixed 20° platform tilt angle for a gentle three-dimensional (gyrating) agitation of chemical or biological samples (e.g., DNA or blood …

Three Hundred And Sixty Degree Real-Time Monitoring Of 3-D Printing Using Computer Analysis Of Two Camera Views, Siranee Nuchitprasitchai, Michael C. Roggemann, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Prosumer (producing consumer)-based desktop additive manufacturing has been enabled by the recent radical reduction in 3-D printer capital costs created by the open-source release of the self-replicating rapid prototype (RepRap). To continue this success, there have been some efforts to improve reliability, which are either too expensive or lacked automation. A promising method to improve reliability is to use computer vision, although the success rates are still too low for widespread use. To overcome these challenges an open source low-cost reliable real-time optimal monitoring platform for 3-D printing from double cameras is presented here. This error detection system is implemented …

Free And Open Source 3-D Model Customizer For Websites To Democratize Design With Openscad, Yuenyong Nilsiam, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

3-D printing has entered the consumer market because of recent radical price declines. Consumers can save substantial money by offsetting purchases with DIY pre-designed 3-D printed products. However, even more value can be obtained with distributed manufacturing using mass customization. Unfortunately, the average consumer is not technically sophisticated enough to easily design their own products. One solution to this is the use of an overlay on OpenSCAD parametric code, although current solutions force users to relinquish all rights to their own designs. There is thus a substantial need in the open source design community for a libre 3-D model customizer, …

Energy Payback Time Of A Solar Photovoltaic Powered Waste Plastic Recyclebot System, Shan Zhong, Pratiksha Rakhe, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

The growth of both plastic consumption and prosumer 3-D printing are driving an interest in producing 3-D printer filaments from waste plastic. This study quantifies the embodied energy of a vertical DC solar photovoltaic (PV) powered recyclebot based on life cycle energy analysis and compares it to horizontal AC recyclebots, conventional recycling, and the production of a virgin 3-D printer filament. The energy payback time (EPBT) is calculated using the embodied energy of the materials making up the recyclebot itself and is found to be about five days for the extrusion of a poly lactic acid (PLA) filament or 2.5 …

Emergence Of Home Manufacturing In The Developed World: Return On Investment For Open-Source 3-D Printers., Emily E. Petersen, Joshua M. Pearce

Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications

Through reduced 3-D printer cost, increased usability, and greater material selection, additive manufacturing has transitioned from business manufacturing to the average prosumer. This study serves as a representative model for the potential future of 3-D printing in the average American household by employing a printer operator who was relatively unfamiliar with 3-D printing and the 3-D design files of common items normally purchased by the average consumer. Twenty-six items were printed in thermoplastic and a cost analysis was performed through comparison to comparable, commercially available products at a low and high price range. When compared to the low-cost items, investment …