Basic Necessities for Your 3D Printing Designs

In order to extract the full potential that additive technology offers, it is important to follow some 3D Printing Designs recommendations.

Now almost any 3D software is also compatible with existing printers. But, if we have decided to create our own designs instead of choosing to download from specialized sites, we will have to think about several factors.

We are not going to deal with 3D modeling itself, but the requirements that our part must have to be suitable for printing. So, when we go to design our piece, we are going to take into account:

The characteristics of the impression material:

The printing materials sold are different and may therefore have different flexibility, resistance, roughness, weight, and etc. Before starting to make 3D Printing Designs, it is convenient to consult the guide for the chosen printing material, which is very easy to find online.

The thickness of the piece:

If we are trying to print a building with flat walls, for example, we have to give those walls an adequate thickness that fits both the final design and the material to be used in the printing. This advice can also be applied to narrow and thin parts, which, if we are not careful in the design process, can be impossible to print.

The resolution of the file:

One of the most common file formats in 3D printing is STL format. To make the explanation easy, this format defines the geometry of 3D objects by translating the 3D Printing Designs into triangles.

If we look at the figures, we will see the difference in resolution from one to another. Resolutions that are too high or low tend to cause printing problems: if we have fallen short, we will end up having an object with angles, but if the resolution is too high, the file can have so much detail and be so heavy that the printer is not able to print it.

It is also convenient to create objects with a flat base:

Since 3D printing is done in layers, if our object has a sufficiently large support base it is much easier to print. If we imagine a mug, making its impression is much better if we do it with the mug placed on its base. Thus, the printing is carried out layer by layer vertically and we can avoid the use of support supports.

The fill of the object:

It depends on how we configure the filling of our object we can save a lot of printing material. If we are careful and create a hollow object (always taking into account the thickness) we can save a lot and save time. If, on the other hand, we need a more resistant object, we can add more filling and its mechanical properties will improve.

Create holes and threads before manufacturing the part:

Since the parts manufactured using additive technology internally have an internal filling mesh to reduce the amount of material to be used and continue to provide the necessary rigidity. Therefore, if you want to perform a post-processing operation on the part, it will be damaged and will be unusable.

In case the part must contain holes, tapped holes, and threads, these must be included in the part design to be printed. For tapped holes and threads, it will be necessary to create the physical thread on the part.