Benton Chuter

3D Printing and Electronics

3D Printing

NinjaSlice 3D

NinjaSlice 3D is a self-contained 3D printer and enclosure modeled after the popular Prusa i3 and its many clones. I created this 3D printer to enable rapid prototyping in my design work and to exercise my design, machining, and electronics skills.

The heated build plate, adjustable build surface material, enclosure, and direct MK8 extruder system have allowed me to print a wide range of materials including PLA, ABS, PETG, HIPS, PVA and TPU. Depending on the most appropriate surface for the current print’s filament type, I can alternate between glass, aluminum, and PEI build surfaces with whatever adhesive additives such as glue, hairspray, or ABS slurry may be appropriate.

The heated build plate and enclosure also limit warping, which proves critical for materials with high thermal coefficients such as ABS. A direct, overhead filament loading scheme from spool holders resting on the top of the enclosure ensures a steady filament flow rate while an air filtration system limits VOC and ultra-fine particle emissions.

For more information regarding the design and manufacturing behind this machine, please see the CNC Machining page

Prints

Prints by NinjaSlice 3D of publicly available models. Sliced using Simplify3D and Cura 2.4

All prints shown here are licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution or Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial licenses and are credited accordingly. I do not claim any ownership of these designs but retain the rights to these images under the Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial license agreement. These prints are meant to demonstrate my understanding of the use, maintenance, and enhancement of 3d printers and their associated control software as well as post-processing techniques.

Prints

Pencil Holder design by Thingiverse user Jimbotron

Prints

Phone Holder design by Thingiverse user Unfilterd

Prints

Waterer design by Thingiverse user Parallel Goods

Prints

Majora’s Mask design by Thingiverse user ferreusveritas

Prints

Chess design by Thingiverse user BigBadBison

Prints

Pencil Holder design by Thingiverse user Caleb6543

Qidi Tech 1

The Qidi Tech 1 is a dual-extrusion FDM printer directly modeled after the Makerbot Replicator 2.

I purchased the Qidi Tech I to allow use of a greater range of printing materials that would further enable my design and prototyping while also increasing my manufacturing capabilities to keep pace with demand.

I have replaced the standard extrusion system with the Flexion dual bundle and a pair of hardened steel hotends, which expand the range of usable filaments from those listed above to include high temperature and abrasive filaments such as polycarbonate, nylon, and wood-filled and strontium-aluminate PLAs.

The flexion extruder system also enables printing of flexible filaments at high speeds and flow rates that would cause extrusion failures in other systems. I have installed an enclosure for temperature control and an overhead filament feed system for consistent filament feed. A fume extractor is also available for use with some materials, although the printer resides in an outdoor shed that I constructed specifically to mitigate any exposure concerns.

Prints

Prints by Qidi Tech I of publicly available models. Sliced using Simplify3D and Cura 2.4

All prints shown here are licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution or Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial licenses and are credited accordingly. I do not claim any ownership of these designs but retain the rights to these images under the Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial license agreement. These prints are meant to demonstrate my understanding of the use, maintenance, and enhancement of 3d printers and their associated control software.

Prints

Aqua Julia Vase design by Thingiverse user Virtox

Prints

Squishy Turtle design by Thingiverse user jakejake

Mechatronics

In Competition

In Competition

Samwise Gamg-E

An autonomous robot that can navigate an arena using a variety of sensors, positioning and orienting itself to fire nerf balls through a 6" diameter hole roughly 8 feet away.

Duron and steel threaded stud frame. Various microcontroller, motor, navigation, hopper and firing system parts.

Laser-cut frame. Original design personally assembled, tested, and calibrated.

The class competition was performed in the spirit of the 2016 Presidential Election. Our competition in particular was meant to reflect the media war that took place in that election. As such, the website may refer to arenas as "media echo chambers," towers as "media sites," nerf balls as "alternative facts," and nerf ball blockers as "fact checkers." In this context, our project goal was to navigate our side’s echo chamber and fire as many alternative facts into the opposing side’s media sites as possible in order to "win" those media sites while fact checking our own towers to prevent the opposing team from firing alternative facts into our own sites. The side with the most sites won would be declared the winner after a little over two minutes. All robot contestants were required to fit within a 12" x 12" x 12" cube. Due to Stanford policy I cannot post the official class project description but you are welcome to ask me any questions.

Testing the firing mechanism to calibrate the flywheel height

Our first attempt at an orient function using ultrasonic sensors

First successful completion of all state transitions

Calibrating the firing system when mounted, in the arena

Testing all the incorporated subsystems

Testing different hopper designs to ensure better ball flow

*For a more detailed description of the design process regarding this project, visit the project website.

*Read the full project description (PDF).

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DodecaheTRON

An interactive “Automated Representation of Kulture” built for Stanford’s ME 218A smart-product design course. A rotating, two-way-mirror dodecahedron sits on a magnetically-paneled stage; visitors touch tape sensors to summon the planet’s four elements — water, fire, air, and earth — tune the LED colors, and wave at a proximity sensor to speed up or slow its spin, all synchronized with light and audio. A single TIVA microcontroller running a hierarchical state machine drives the sensors, servos, LEDs, and sound. Built with Kevin Johnson, Ian McColl, and Jing Zhao.

*For a more detailed description of the design process regarding this project, visit the project website.

Linkage Systems

Kangaroo Walker

A small autonomous walker that mimics the pentapedal gait of a kangaroo and reliably traverses rough paving stone. Powered by a 3V battery pack delivering 2.6V to a single Tamiya 6 Speed H. E. motor, it successfully crossed Meyer Circle, our test site. With a transmission ratio of 196.7:1 and a belt system powering five 4-bar linkages representing forelimbs, hind limbs, and a tail, it accurately recreated pentapedal locomotion. Traveling at 11.2 cm/s, it overcame wet and windy conditions and maintained a straight course without intervention. Force plate analysis demonstrated that its force and power generation were proportional to those of a real kangaroo.

Our kangaroo walker’s frame shape, limb placement, limb curves, and limb synchronization were all designed to closely mimic that of a biological kangaroo. The kangaroo walker moved most effectively when these limbs were synchronized in a biomimetic manner. As a result, the force and power generation sequence of our kangaroo walker limbs in the vertical and fore-aft directions were highly biomimetic. For a more detailed description of the design process regarding this project — read the full report.

Shaft Crawler

A small lego crawler that can ascend and descend a steep narrow shaft similar to those found inside the Egyptian pyramids. Our crawler successfully traversed the shaft in an efficient manner while carrying a bolt to simulate drilling capacity. After depressing a bumper switch at the top to turn on a light, it returned smoothly down the shaft. We prototyped various designs to determine a suitable gear ratio, driving wheel location, and stabilizing mechanisms to balance the friction and rolling forces. Original design personally assembled by hand.

Our final design involved a two-sided folding frame. It used a pair of rubber bands to exert the necessary normal force on the shaft walls to maintain a suitable friction force that could allow it to descend and ascend without falling. Stretched to different lengths, these rubber bands provided a crucial moment on the crawler that predisposed it to climb in rather than out of the shaft.

We used a gear ratio of 125:1 and ran the motor at 6V in ascent and 3V in descent to improve efficiency. On test day we used 13.99J in ascent and 1.40J in descent for a total of 15.39J, which was significantly below the 60J limit. We calculated that our motor was 53.0% efficient, our transmission was 34.7% efficient, and that our wheels were 89.1% efficient for a total experimental efficiency of 16.4%. To further reduce energy consumption and improve efficiency we could reduce the crawler weight. For a more detailed description of the design process regarding this project — read the full report.

Golfer

A golf putter that can consistently putt golf balls at reasonably high speeds.

We designed a linkage system that we lasercut and mounted to a duron frame provided by the class instructors.

For a more detailed description of the design process regarding this project — read the full report.

Electronics

A "Useless Box"

A "useless box, " whose only function is to turn itself off. This redesigned version also taps out a message in Morse code before retiring.

Flipping the switch leads to a voltage change on one of the Arduino pins, causing the Arduino to power the stepper motor that controls the acrylic "finger" accordingly.

Class-designed frame and circuitry. Original program control design and implementation

LED Cube

A programmable LED cube that takes advantage of multiplexing to gain individual control over each LED

An Arduino allows the user to select which LEDs to power on and off. The logic voltages produced by the Arduino control mosfet gates such that the Arduino is not directly powering the cube, preventing current overdraw.

Class design. Original program control design and implementation

Class design. Original program control design and implementation Class design. Original program control design and implementation

Private contact information obscured

Solar-powered USB Charger

A solar-powered USB charger that enables mobile device charging

A small solar array charges a lithium ion battery which may be used to power a mobile device by USB.

Class design

Class design

EKG

EKG circuitry using an instrumentation amplifier and an operational amplifier to produce computer-displayable heart electrical signals when connected to electrodes in electrical contact with two separate body locations.

Class design

Class design

3D Printer Dual Mosfet Modification

The original electronics assembly that I used for my NinjaSlice 3D printer directed all current flow through the circuit board. To reduce the resulting stress on the circuit board I added a pair of mosfets.

These mosfets redirect the 15 amps needed for the heat bed and extruder through their own boards, which can not only better handle the current but are also less expensive to replace. I also replaced the stock 16 gauge wire with 12 gauge wire that can handle the current more reliably.

One of the mosfets prior to being secured to the frame

3D Printer Dual Mosfet Modification

3D Printer PSU Cooling Fan

To cool my NinjaSlice 3D printer's power supply unit and prolong its effective lifespan I decided to add a cooling fan.

I spliced a pair of old phone chargers with appropriate amperage and voltage ratings to a computer fan and mounted the assembly directly adjacent to the power supply unit.

3D Printer PSU Cooling Fan

3D Printer Air Filtration System

3D printers are known to produce low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and ultra fine particles, especially when printing at higher temperatures.

To limit exposure, I adapted the "Hepa Filter for 3D Printer" by Thingiverse user jmillerfo for use with my 3D printing enclosure, extending the output vent and opting to use a pair of spliced phone chargers and a buck converter instead of a separate power supply unit.