FDM 3D Printing: Parts & Processes

• FDM stands for Fused Deposition Modeling.

Parts of an FDM 3D Printing Machine

• Bowden Tube guides filament from the extruder motor to the hot end for melting.
• Extruder pushes filament into the hot end for melting and layer-by-layer printing.
• Nozzle releases melted filament onto the printer bed to create the object.
• Printer Bed is the flat surface where the object is built layer by layer; a heated bed improves filament adhesion and prevents warping.
• Display Screen controls settings, starts/stops prints, and troubleshoots without a computer.
• Motherboard controls motors, temperatures, and sensors based on G-code instructions.
• Power Supply converts electricity to power the printer's motors, heated bed, and components.
• Cooling Fan prevents overheating of the hot end and printed parts.
• Frame provides support and stability to the printer during printing.

Classification Processes

• Material Jetting sprays material droplets onto a platform, then cured using UV light or another method for hardening.
• Binder Jetting uses a liquid binder to bond powder particles, forming a solid part layer by layer.
• Powder Bed Fusion uses heat, like a laser or electron beam, to fuse powder particles layer by layer.
• Sheet Lamination creates objects by stacking and bonding thin material sheets, then cutting them to shape.
• Directed Energy Deposition melts material with a high-energy heat source as it is deposited.
• VAT Photopolymerization uses a liquid photopolymer resin cured by light to build parts layer by layer.
• Material Extrusion heats and extrudes thermoplastic material through a nozzle to build parts layer by layer.
• Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is a Material Extrusion process that builds parts by extruding melted thermoplastic filament layer by layer.
• Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) is essentially the same as FDM, extruding melted thermoplastic filament layer by layer, but without the Stratasys trademark.

Learn about Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) 3D printing. This lesson covers essential components like the extruder, nozzle, and heated bed. It also briefly introduces material jetting as an alternative additive manufacturing process.