3D printer

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Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. How does a 3D printer build an object?

A It adds material one thin layer at a time

B It cuts the shape out of a solid block

2. Which one does a 3D printer need as its input?

A A digital 3D design file

B A paper drawing fed through a slot

3. A 3D printer is classed as which type of device?

A Input device

B Output device

4. Which material can a 3D printer use?

A Only ink and paper

B Plastic, resin or metal

5. A company wants to test a new phone case design cheaply before mass production. What should it make with a 3D printer?

A A prototype

B A barcode

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
13D printer		AA 3D printer is an output device because it produces a physical object. The design file is the input.
2additive printing		BA 3D printer is additive: it adds material one thin layer at a time. It does not cut material away from a block.
3A 3D printer needs a digital design file as its input before it can print a solid object		CAn output device that builds a solid object from a digital 3D design by adding material, such as melted plastic, one layer at a time
4A 3D printer can use different materials, such as plastic, resin or metal, to make a solid object		Ddesign.stl
5A 3D printer prints by cutting a solid block of material away until the shape is left		EBuilding an object by adding thin layers of material on top of each other, rather than cutting material away
6A 3D printer is an input device because it takes in a design from the computer		Fmaterial = "resin"

Definitions

3D printer

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

_____ designFile OUTPUT solidObject

___ layer ← 1 TO totalLayers printer.addMaterial(layer) ENDFOR

layers ← height _ layerHeight OUTPUT layers

DECLARE material : ______ material ← "plastic"

IF designLoaded = ____ THEN printer.start() ENDIF

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A design <- LOAD("cup.stl")

B layer <- 1

C WHILE layer <= total_layers

D REMOVE_MATERIAL(layer)

E layer <- layer + 1

F ENDWHILE

Question 2

A design <- LOAD("gear.jpg")

B material <- "resin"

C PRINT(design, material)

Question 3

A thickness <- 0.2

B layers <- 60 * thickness

C OUTPUT layers

Question 4

A IF use = "implant" THEN

B material <- "metal"

C ELSE

D material <- "ink"

E ENDIF

Question 5

A FOR layer <- 1 TO 100

B MOVE nozzle TO position

C EXTRUDE cold_plastic

D NEXT layer

Answer Key

3D printer

Section A: Quick Questions

A — It adds material one thin layer at a time

A — A digital 3D design file

B — Output device

B — Plastic, resin or metal

A — A prototype

Section B: Match the Pairs

3D printer → An output device that builds a solid object from a digital 3D design by adding material, such as melted plastic, one layer at a time

additive printing → Building an object by adding thin layers of material on top of each other, rather than cutting material away

A 3D printer needs a digital design file as its input before it can print a solid object → design.stl

A 3D printer can use different materials, such as plastic, resin or metal, to make a solid object → material = "resin"

A 3D printer prints by cutting a solid block of material away until the shape is left → A 3D printer is additive: it adds material one thin layer at a time. It does not cut material away from a block.

A 3D printer is an input device because it takes in a design from the computer → A 3D printer is an output device because it produces a physical object. The design file is the input.

Section C: Definitions

3D printer — An output device that builds a solid object from a digital 3D design file by adding material, such as melted plastic, one thin layer at a time.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

INPUT designFile
OUTPUT solidObject

FOR layer ← 1 TO totalLayers
    printer.addMaterial(layer)
ENDFOR

layers ← height / layerHeight
OUTPUT layers

DECLARE material : STRING
material ← "plastic"

IF designLoaded = TRUE THEN
    printer.start()
ENDIF

Section E: Spot the Error

D — A 3D printer is additive: it adds material one layer at a time. The line should be ADD_MATERIAL(layer), not REMOVE_MATERIAL.

A — A 3D printer needs a digital 3D design file as its input, such as an STL file. A JPG is only a flat 2D image. It should be gear.stl.

B — The number of layers is the object height divided by the layer thickness. It should be 60 / thickness, not multiplied.

D — 3D printers build objects from solid materials such as plastic, resin or metal. Ink is used by inkjet printers, so the line should be material <- "plastic".

C — The plastic must be melted so it can flow out of the nozzle and fuse to the layer below. It should be EXTRUDE melted_plastic.