3D Printing and Design for Educators

AICTE and NEP 2020 recommends inclusion of emerging technology area courses into the existing Diploma, UG and PG engineering programs. The incorporation of ‘3D Printing and Design’ as Professional elective course or Value added course in the existing curriculum would rightly empower the engineering scholars to be ready inline with IR4.0 skill requirements. As 3D Printing is an emerging technology and many technical education institutes have taken initiatives to include it in their curriculum. Hence, Curriculum document, Underpinning knowledge, Instructional methods and Assessment tools are now required by the teachers to teach this course effectively at Diploma, UG and PG level engineering programs. Additive manufacturing (AM) or Additive layer manufacturing (ALM) is the industrial production name for 3D Printing. 3D Printing is a process that makes solid objects from a digital model. It involves depositing material either metal, plastic, ceramic etc. in solid/liquid/powder form in thin 2D layers to get a 3D object. This course on ‘3D Printing and Design for Educators’ attempts to develop understanding of the process of making real object from corresponding digital model using various 3D printing processes and materials. It covers the software and hardware required, various materials used for 3D Printing and details about printing process parameters. It also covers the post processing required to make a quality 3D printed component. On one side this Swayam MOOC throws light on various 3D Printing processes to print real objects from corresponding 3D digital models. While on the other side this course provides a platform for all the teachers of technical educational institutes to develop teaching and assessment skills required in offering a course on 3D Printing and Design to the students of different engineering programs. This 4 credit ‘3D Printing and Design for Educators, course comprises of 8 units to provide you an exposure to various 3D Printing processes and related aspects through several video lectures, video demonstrations, text content, discussion forum, assignments, and self-assessment tools. Being practical oriented course, number of demonstration videos of actual operations is included in the course material to give more incite related to working, operations, and selection of various 3D printing. We welcome you to register for this MOOC on the SWAYAM platform. Looking forward for a healthy interaction during the whole course.

Unit-1: Additive Manufacturing Introduction and CAD

Additive v/s Conventional Manufacturing processes-CAD-CAM and its integration-CAD file formats-Process chain for 3D Printing-ReverseEngineering for 3D Printing

Unit-2: Data Preparation for 3D Printing
Classification of 3D Printing Processes-STL interface Specification, STL data generation, STL data Manipulation-Advantages and limitations of STL file format, Open files, Repair of STL files-Alternative 3D Printing interfaces-Part orientation and support generation-Model Slicing and Contour Data organization, Direct and adaptive slicing: Identification of peak features-Tool Path generation

Unit-3: 3D Printers and Software
Construction details and working of established FDM based 3D printers for plastics parts-Accuracy, Precision and Tolerance in 3D printing-3D Printer software- Fusion 360, Solidworks, Onshape, Tinkercad, UltimakerCura, MeshLab, Simplify 3D, Repetier host, Slic3r, etc. – use and operation of anyone

Unit-4: 3D Printing Materials
Various forms of 3D printing raw material- Liquid, Solid, Wire, Powder-i. Popular FDM, SLA, SLS, Binder Jetting, Material Jetting and Direct Energy deposition 3D printingmaterials-Polymers, Metals, Non- Metals, Ceramics-Polymers and their properties-PowderPreparation and their desired properties.

Unit-5: Solid based 3D Printing Processes
Basic principle and working of fused deposition modeling (FDM) process

Unit-6: Liquid based 3D Printing Processes

PhotoPolymerization-Principle and working of stereo lithography apparatus-SLA based 3D printing processes-Curing processes

Unit-7: Powderbased3DPrintingProcessesPowder fusion mechanism-Principle and working of Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) process-SLS based 3D printers-Laser Engineering Net Shaping process-Electron Beam Melting-Binder Jet3D Printing
Unit-8: Post Processing and Quality of 3D printed components

Need of post processing: Functional and Aesthetic reasons-Steps of Post Processing: Cleaning/Support removal, Fixing, Curing or hardening, Surface finishing, Colouring-
Inspection and testing: Digital, Visual, Physical-Defects and their Causes