Page A-8
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Students learn 3D printing
Judy Hoyle
IVN Contributing Writer
Devon DeNoon first
became intrigued with 3D
printing in 2011 when he was
still a student at I.V. High
School. Now he’s teaching
an afterschool class in the
futuristic technology as part
of the federally funded 21st
Century Learning Center
program.
DeNoon sat at a
computer in the industrial
arts wing of the high school
last week. He was using a 3D
printer to build replacement
parts for itself.
“You can print just
about anything, from
mechanical components to
toys and trinkets,” DeNoon
said.
Last fall, DeNoon was
an assistant in an afternoon
arts and crafts class when he
ran into his former teacher,
Wayne McHugh, who told
him one of the school’s 3D
printers wasn’t working.
DeNoon had built
a 3D printer before and
offered to fix the machine.
He was able to figure out
that incorrect wiring had
caused a heater element
to overheat and break, a
problem which had not been
corrected when the heater
was repaired. DeNoon got the
printer working and began
upgrading it, printing a new
extruder for it and crafting
a new build plate. McHugh
offered him the opportunity
to teach others the complex
interplay between modeling
H&R Block
210 W. Lister St.
Cave Junction
592-3667
Ted Crocker, LTC
Bob Litak, LTC
Licensed Tax Consultants B14914
on a computer screen and
producing a physical object
or component.
“The current generation
of low-cost 3D printing
machines has its origins in
the Netherlands in 2005, with
the RepRap foundation,”
DeNoon said. “They wanted
to build a machine capable
of making parts for itself.
The first models had overly
complicated extruders and
frames, but through trial and
error, they refined them and
came up with the electronics,
software and design structure
that most commercial 3D
printers use today.”
Once only available
for expensive high-tech
applications for large
corporations, the technology
has grown quickly over
the past 10 years and now
3D printing is everywhere
including small 3D print
shops, startup companies and
hobbyists with a printer in
their home.
Almost anything can
be printed, from an artificial
leg for a dog to a working
motorcycle, to name just two
real world applications.
3D printing has
transformed design,
production and logistics
processes, enabling easy
production of prototypes,
one-off components or
custom tools and even
small scale production
manufacturing.
The process begins
by making a virtual design
of the object to be printed,
using computer aided design
(CAD) software, or a 3D
scanner to create a copy of an
existing object.
The 3D file is converted
into a mesh format, usually
an STL, then a “slicer”
program can be used to
translate the model into a
language the 3D printer
understands.
A 3D printed object is
created through extruding
successive layers of material
until the object is completed.
Each layer of the 3D copy
is a thinly sliced horizontal
cross section of the object
being copied.
There are several
categories of 3D printer, each
with a distinct method for
creating physical objects,
but all use the technique of
laying down numerous layers
of material to build up an
object.
The most common
is FDM (fused deposition
modeling) and it uses molten
plastic to create objects.
“Many types of plastic can be
used,” DeNoon said. “They
all have different physical
properties. Some are easy to
print. Others are incredibly
strong, but very sensitive to
heat, making them difficult to
use. There are even flexible
plastics.”
Other 3D technologies
include STL (stereo
lithography) printers that
solidify a photo curable resin,
Powder Printers that bind
or glue granules of powder
together and SLS (Selective
Laser Sintering) printers that
use high power lasers to melt
(Photo by Judy Hoyle, Illinois Valley News)
Devon DeNoon (right) working with a student on 3D printing in his afterschool
class, part of the 21st Century Learning Center program.
powders of metal together.
“I like the challenge of
maintaining the machines,”
DeNoon said. “A lot can go
wrong, but most problems
have simple fixes. I can
usually figure out what’s
wrong in five to 10 minutes
and have it fixed by end of
class.”
He also expressed
satisfaction that an absolute
novice can master enough
basic concepts within two
hours to be able to design and
create an object.
“It’s cool that in this
class you can make any small
plastic part any way you
want, from chess pieces, to
mechanical components,”
DeNoon said.
IVHS is currently
looking for funding for a 3D
scanner in order to help build
the program next year.
DeNoon, a two-time
Academic Masters finalist,
also has other design projects
in the works, including a
model plane with a 3 foot
wingspan. It’s constructed
from foam core and has a 3D
printed battery holder. He’s
now working on wiring the
control for the aircraft.
Another project is
research and development
into a hopper feed Nerf ball
gun using a five gallon drum
and a 3D-printed adaptor.
“I’d like to be able to
shoot hundreds of Nerf balls
at a time rather than have to
reload after just 12,” he said.
“Using 3D printing to create
functional objects, even if
they’re for fun, helps inspire
the kids and help them see
more of the possibilities of
3D printing.”