Advanced Output Center Frequently Asked Questions
Large Format 2D Scanning Questions
All appointments must be booked in advance through Acuity.
The laser cutter is a computer controlled 2½-axis cutting device. It uses a laser (a finely focused beam of light) to burn into flat sheet materials. The laser cutter can make both engravings and through-cuts. Cuts are controlled by a computer file set up in Illustrator, much the same way a plotter works.
You should use the laser cutter to make intricate or variable cuts that are impossible or very difficult on traditional shop or hand-cutting equipment.
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The laser cutters at the AOC are available to currently enrolled students, active faculty and staff at SAIC. All users must complete a certification prior to using the laser cutter.
The laser cutters are self-serve, so users must run cutting jobs themselves, with the supervision of an AOC lab monitor. See the Laser Access Policy page for details.
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Yes, appointments can be made in advance and must booked in advance through Acuity. You can also walk-in if the machine is available but reservations are recommended to guarantee access.
Please see the Laser Access Policy page for the full rules about making reservations.
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Maybe. New materials can be added to the Approved Materials List if they are safe to cut. To determine a material’s safety factors, you must submit an SDS sheet for the material along with this form to the Advanced Output Center. Requests are usually processed in 1-2 weeks.
Please note that SDS are very specific to each product, as different manufacturers can use different ingredients/processes to make the same or similar products. To speed up the evaluation process, please make sure SDS are obtained from the manufacturer of the product in question.
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3D printing is a fabrication technique that starts with a 3D computer model of an object, and ends with a physical prototype of that model. To make the prototype, a 3D printer slices the computer model into many thin horizontal sections, which are then extruded or cut into physical layers, and either re-assembled or laid down on top of each other.
3D printing has many different uses, from testing product designs to making working parts to creating sculptures. See the Links page for more detailed descriptions of the process.
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Turnaround time varies greatly depending on size and shape of model, color choice and queue length. Small pieces can take less than a day, while large runs can take a week or more. Check with a lab manager for an estimate.
Since 3D printing is a technician-run service, the printer cannot be reserved; jobs are processed by a technician in the order they are received. New jobs are added to the queue when they have been properly submitted with a valid file and completed order form (Available here).
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The printing volume of the F370 printer is 14″x10″x14″. The printing volume of the Objet printer is 11.81″x7.87″x5.9″. The Formlabs volume is 5.7″x5.7″x6.9″. Anything smaller than those dimensions will be able to print in a single run. Larger items can sometimes be modeled and exported as smaller sections, printed in sections and re-assembled.
The thinnest wall thickness of your model should be no less than 0.04″ (1mm). This will help maintain the structural integrity of the printed piece. For design guidelines regarding model detail, please see the 3D Printing Guide.
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The F370 prints using ABS plastic, an opaque thermoformable material available in several colors. ABS is a relatively soft plastic, however it is durable enough to withstand handling and even to make some usable parts. The F370 also can print in ASA, a UV stable plastic, PC-ABS, ABS with Poly-carbonate for a stronger part, and TPU, which is a rubber material.
The Objet 30 prints using a UV-cured resin which is available in a clear material that simulates acrylic plastic.
The Formlabs has multiple materials available. An acrylic like plastic for white, gray, black, clear, and custom color prints, a semi-flexible rubber in dark grey, a white glass infused rigid material, a transparent white material to simulate polypropylene, and a light teal for abs like plastic.
These are the only materials available for 3D prints at the AOC, however there are many other types of 3D printers in existence which use other materials including casting sand, multi-color material, clear material and extremely durable material. Check out the Links page for references to other 3D printing services outside the AOC.
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The 3D printers accept only solid STL files. STL is a general-purpose polygon file format, which can be exported from many different 3D modeling applications. A file that is ‘solid’ is a continuous surface with no open edges.
Certain applications, including Rhino, Rapidform and SolidWorks, have built-in tools that make it much easier to create solid models; other programs like Maya are not optimized for solid modeling and thus make it much more difficult to correctly prepare a file for 3D printing. For more information about solid modeling, please see the 3D Printer Guide.
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While can can print the packed objects as-is, if any part of the tray fails, this gives us only one option, to reprint all parts again instead of just the one part. If you can export your objects separately, this gives us the option of printing just the one part needed instead of wasting additional modeling materials.[top]
The 3D scanners at the AOC are available to currently enrolled students, active faculty and staff at SAIC. All users must be certified to use the 3D scanners.
You can enroll in the 3D scanner Canvas course here.
Certifications for 3D scanning do not expire. See the 3D Scanner Access Policy page for more details.
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Large Format 2D Scanning Answers
The AOC’s large-format scanners are open to all currently enrolled students, faculty, staff and alumni at SAIC. Scanners are self-serve; there are no certifications required to use the large-format scanners. It is recommended that you make an appointment to use the scanners. All appointments must be booked in advance through Acuity.
A laptop (Mac or PC) is required to use the flatbed scanner. No laptop is required to use the roller scanner.
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The AOC has two large-format 2D scanners; a flatbed scanner and a roller scanner.
The flatbed scanner can scan any non-transparent media/object up to 12″x18″ and requires a laptop (Mac or PC) with scanning software to function. Images/objects to be scanned are placed face down on a glass plate.
The roller scanner scans flat paper media only and can accommodate sizes up to 42″ wide by almost any length; documents are fed through rollers over a scanning bed. Check out the Large-Format Scanning Guide for details.
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Yes! There are many other scanners on campus, although most cannot accommodate larger media like the AOC’s can.
All the Canon copier/printers on campus have scan-to-email capabilities and are great for scanning documents. The General Access lab also has flatbed scanning stations which do not require a laptop, as well as slide/negative and drum scanning equipment. The Photo Department has a general-access copy stand for digitizing large objects which can’t fit into a roller scanner.
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The flatbed scanner can scan non-transparent documents/objects up to 12″x18″.
The roller scanner can scan flat, non-abrasive paper documents up to 42″ wide by almost any length. Check out the Large-Format Scanning Guide for details.
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Maybe. The flatbed scanner does require a laptop (either Mac or PC) and scanning software such as EpsonScan (Mac), Image Capture(Mac), or EpsonScan (PC).
The roller scanner does not require a laptop, but you will need blank media such as a flash drive to copy your scan files onto. Check out the Large-Format Scanning Guide for details.
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The roller scanner produces various file types.
The flatbed scanner can produce almost any image file format, though this will depend on the scanning software you use.
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Carefully read the Large-Format Scanning Guide to make sure you are setting up a scan correctly. If problems persist and a lab monitor is on duty, check with them for troubleshooting help.
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