DESIGN AND ASSESSMENT OF AN AM VENDING MACHINE FOR STUDENT USE

摘要

Due to prohibitive costs, access to Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies at academic institutions tends to be limited to upper-level courses that feature significant project-based coursework, such as capstone design. However, with the decreasing cost of desktop-scale AM technology, there is potential to improve student access to such technologies throughout a student's undergraduate career, and thus provide more opportunities for AM education. In this poster, the authors present the design and implementation of an AM "vending machine" that is powered by desktop-scale extrusion-based AM systems. The resulting machine allows for unrestricted student use of AM equipment, and thus provides ample opportunity for informal learning regarding AM. The results of a formal assessment of student use of the machine are presented.