Robot arm for removing parts from build plate

[sebastian 0]

Hi guys,

I stumbled upon this kickstarter project for a miniature indidustrial robot arm:

Has anyone thought about using such a robot arm to (automatically) remove finished prints from the build plate? That would be pretty awesome!

Sebastian

 

[skint 61]

Pretty cool..but. Why would you need something to automatically remove a print? Unless in future you can set up print ques so that I can print lots of stuff whilst on holiday

 

[sebastian 0]

Pretty cool..but. Why would you need something to automatically remove a print? Unless in future you can set up print ques so that I can print lots of stuff whilst on holiday

 

I'm already using BotQueue for automated print queues.

Imagine you are running a fleet of 3d printers for a 3d print service like shapeways...

 

[skint 61]

oh yeah, if you were running a bunch of them these robot arms could be great.

 

[IRobertI 520]

I know daid designed a more rugged fan shroud for the UM1 that he used to push parts off the platform, no extra arm needed.

 

[polux 0]

Like add the end of this fantastic video

?

 

[nick-foley 5]

I designed a fan shroud with a hook built into it, added a loop to the top of a print, and wrote a test piece of gcode which I ran after a print to hook the loop and pull the print off the bed. It worked, and with more tweaking could have been very effective, but I ultimately decided that it was a better use of my time to use one of the 5-axis arms I was born with to pull prints instead.

Having printed a lot more since then, I now know that large prints frequently stick to the build platform extremely well... so well that the printer could easily be damaged pulling the part from the build platform if you don't do it carefully.

I think a build platform with a hopper of ejectable build platforms might be a better direction, or maybe something like the original TOM. They bring their own problems, though, I'm sure...

 

[mgosby 0]

Thought about it? Bahm and Jay wrote the book on it. 

[GregValiant 1,251]

I envisioned a "pick-and-place".  Bed-slinger printers would require Z movement by the removal machine. 

1. Doors open.
2. Slide in and pick up the used build plate.
3. Set it aside.
4. Pick up a new build plate.
5. Put it in the printer.
6. Close  the door.
7. Print.

Fancier would be a small industrial robot with multiple printers in a circle around it.

The "Gold Plated" version would be a gantry mounted robot on a seventh axis.  It could slide down between 2 rows of 100 printers on each side, pull off a plate, put in another, then park itself at ceiling height to get out of the way.

If the filled plates were set on an indexing conveyor they could move to a "removal" station, then a "washing" station, and then back in line for re-use.

 

Or you can go "Quick and Dirty" with a "bulldozer" script and just knock the parts off the plate into a basket.

 

So...how much money ya got?

[Travis7s 25]

Putting money into a more refined version of the Creality CR-30 with the conveyor belt build plate seems like the way to go for me.