For my 3D printing assignment, I decided to go with a familiar theme of my recent obsession with fish. After scrolling through some of my options on Thingiverse, I found a nice, articulated fish structure with moving parts designed by 5narkHunt3r (Michael Ransom from Livermore, CA). 

The setup for FDM printing was pretty straightforward, I launched the Bamboo software on the OEDK computer, adjusted the scale, and printed my fish with PLA on the FDM Bamboo printer.

My first prints came out too small, thin, brittle, and deformed. Also, the segments of the fish were not able to move. Having intricate, fine details and thin structures does not really work with FDM 3D-printing. Had to learn it the hard way.

I adjusted the scale with a second take. This time, the fish were big and thick enough to be printed. Segments were highly movable. I was very happy with my products and fit most of them in my capsules. I felt bad bending and torturing my fish but I thought it was a good use of the space provided.

Unfortunately, one of my species broke in the process, so I had to reprint it. I decided to spice it up a little bit, and printed a yellow (gold) fish instead.

SLA printing took longer and required more steps. I loaded my structure on PreForm, adjusted scale, orientation, and supports. Tough 1500V resin was used to print the product, with subsequent washing, curing, and removing supports. My final fish was not bending at all, so to fit it in inside my capsule I had to break it apart. I guess it’s a sliced fish that I got. In general, SLA with a resin of my choice was smoother yet was less aesthetic than my FDM print.

It was my very first time 3D-printing techniques, and I enjoyed learning about different methods’ capabilities! As I did more prints, I felt more confident about my skills in putting everything together for a successful end-product. Overall, this homework was much less time-consuming and easier than previous ones.  I hope to use these skills in the upcoming years for biomedical devices.

Cost model

Cost type	Cost	Price	Source	Quantity	Total
Materials	White PLA – 1.75 mm 1 kg	24.99	Hatchbox	1	24.99
	Yellow PLA – 1.75 mm 1 kg	24.99	Hatchbox	1	24.99
	Grey Pro Resin 1L	199	FormLabs	1	199
Labor	Engineer	$35/hr	Myself	1	35
	Worker	$25/hr	Myself	2	50
Overhead	FDM printers	$0	OEDK	2 hr	0
	SLA printers	$0	OEDK	4 hr	0
Waste management	Cleaning	$10/hr	Myself	1 min	1.66
					335.64