Dual Extruder Head 3D Printer

By Mustafa Alkhulaitit – Project Manager

One of our main objectives is to add an additional extruder head to the 3D printer. The dual extruder upgrade will remove any shape restrictions. There are many shapes that the single extruder head will not be able to print. The dual extruder head will allow us to print using dissolvable support structures such as HIPS and PVA. Having multiple extruders allows us to have multiple filaments ‘piped in’ and ready to be used whenever the object being printed requires them, and this is where the saved time comes from. Another advantage of having dual extruders is the ability to print in two different colors by using multiple filaments.

Besides the advantage of dual extruders, there is a limitation for dual extruders. According to “3D printer prices” “The limitations of multiple extruders come as a result of the different extruders currently sharing the same print head. Since each extruder is locked to one another and unable to move independently, more material could only be printed if the object required a symmetrical object to be printed the exact distance apart from the original, as the two extruders are positioned.” Until the extruders can move independently, the benefits of duel extruders come only from having multiple materials readily available.

The dual extruders when operated by the RAMPS card and the Arduino Mega 2560 will result in smoother, higher quality prints. The RAMPS card is dual extruder ready and will not need additional shields or boards. The attached designs and pictures show how the design is going to look like for the dual extruders.

Our plan for the dual extruder is to make a duplicate copy of the existing extruder head. The stepper motor will not be attached to the nozzle head directly because this will take space and will make heads heavy. Instead, the stepper motors will be held in a specific way, as can be seen in the picture.