3D Printed Camper
Wave Of The Future 3D, a product development firm located in Saskatoon SK, Canada, has produced one of the largest single piece 3D prints in the world. A 13ft 3D printed camper, weighing in at roughly 600 pounds off the machine and of plastic pellets of a material called PETG ( a co-polymer of PETG [Polyethylene Terephthalate]).
PETG normally prints at a temperature of around 235 degrees C, but because of the massive PETG required for this print, the temperature was set to around 400 degrees C instead. The pellet extrusion system also used three 100 watt inductive heaters to melt the plastic pellets, it heats the barrel as well as the auger.
The extruder barrel is also 3D printed out of a sintered stainless steel. This allows for unique geometry inside of the barrel to be produced, to help in the mixing of the pellets within. A 3D printed vacuum feed system is also used to keep the extruder fed with pellets while it is printing.
3D Printed Camper Van
The 3D printed camper took 9.5 days to print and was then given a closed cell spray foam insulation giving the camper an insulating R-value of 17 and a temperature rating of -35 degrees C. A spray-on armor coating then gives it extreme strength and toughness.
All plumbing is housed inside the camper making sure you will never have to worry about pipes freezing. The floor, walls, roof, and seats are all printed as a single piece. Once the spray coatings are applied it is extremely strong and lightweight. After the printing of this initial prototype, they estimate improvements for the next print should reduce the weight by 300 pounds and reduce the print time by around 5 days!
Printron
The 3D printer used to produce the 3D printed camper is a custom build they call Printron. It was specifically designed to print the camper. Printron’s build plate measures 28ft x 8ft x 9ft. They have been constantly modifying and improving it to allow faster movements with taller and wider layers.
So they also designed a special brass nozzle with a nickel coating for the machine. Also, it has a wide 3mm hole and an even wider 10mm flat which was specifically chosen so that a 10mm wide bead could be extruded from it to produce a very strong part. Printron was originally all aluminum but is now being outfitted with a new carbon fiber gantry.
This is to replace the aluminum one, reducing the moving mass of the machine by 300 pounds and allowing them to print even taller and faster. This carbon fiber gantry and the molds to make it were all designed in house by Wave of the Future 3D, and it was manufactured locally.
Wave of the Future 3D
This 3D printed camper is just one of Wave of the Future 3D’s many projects they have done. They are a product development firm that specializes in rapid prototyping and development,
They have over 50 3D printers they use to help increase the speed, at which they can invent and create for their customers. Whether you need to replace a small wheel in your dishwasher that broke, or you have an idea.
Finally, for a product, you would like to take from your head to your hands, or even if you need a few thousand parts produced. Wave of the Future 3D can do it quick, (usually a few days to a few weeks). With prices making these services available to anyone!
Check out their website and their facebook for more info!
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