So what is a Rostock printer and why is it different to other FDM X/Y printers.
Traditional XYZ machines, such as CNC milling tools and routers, including 3d printers use 3 motors to control each axis of movement One for left and Right, one for forward and backward and finally one for up and down. The Rostock is a delta robot printer. This type of printer has a simpler design with 3 motors working in constant coordination for movements across the print bed. this allows the delta printer to move the print head freely and rapidly during the printing process, in theory making the printing process quicker.
In addition to this free range of movement, all of the delta printers axis are aligned in a vertical configuration. this means the build volume is only limited by the length of the linear rods and drive belts allowing for some extremely tall prints by comparison.
This image illustrates the difference between XYZ (Cartesian) and Delta printers
This style of printer is derived from the delta robot. Quote from Wikipedia - "The delta robot was designed in the 1980s by a research team led by professor Reymond Clavel at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL, Switzerland). The purpose of this new type of robot was to manipulate light and small objects at a very high speed, an industrial need at that time. Industries that take advantage of the high speed of delta robots are the packaging industry, medical and pharmaceutical industry. For its stiffness it is also used for surgery."
This type of printer is well documented within the reprap community with a number of spin-off designs. Reprap Rostock Page.
Where do I start
The Reprap page has very good documentation, including an extensive bill of materials section.
After taking notes of all of the components I scoured the internet for parts. Many of my projects have stalled due to lack of funds. I often embark on the project and do the "free" bits and worry about the cash when I get there. Inevitably when I get there, there is no cash so the project stalls and gathers dust until the next new project comes along and the process repeats. I did not want this to happen on this project, so the list making began.
I listed all of the parts that I needed in a spreadsheet, along with the URL for the part and the cost (including postage). After getting a ball park figure I knew I had funds to cover, the real search began. This involved looking for the parts that I needed and find the best deals.
For the structure of the printer, I managed to salvage 2 pieces of plywood left over from a DIY project some years ago. For the 3D printed parts I found what I though was a good deal on Ebay along with 4 NEMA17 motors, a heated bed, E3D v5 hotend fully assembled with Bowden tube, GT2 toothed belt and pullies and flanged bearings.
For the electronics opted for the well established RAMPS1.4 system that plugs directly into an Arduino Mega. I found a good deal on Banggood for one that came with a full sized LCD and SD card reader. I have heard some good and bad reviews on these,but for the money it was worth the gamble.
In my next post I will be going through the parts in more detail and going through the build process starting with the endeffector
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