Refining Hardware of Desktop Fiber Extrusion Devices for Affordable Manufacturing and Novel Fiber Prototyping

The Fiber Extrusion Device (FrED) is a hands-on desktop tool designed to facilitate the teaching of manufacturing engineering concepts through remote laboratory experiences. FrED simulates the continuous fiber draw process used in various industries, including fiber optics, synthetic textiles, medical devices, aerospace, and construction. This device translates industrial-scale fiber draw towers into a compact version, allowing users to experiment with different parameters to understand their effects on manufacturing processes. Over the past three years, successive groups of MEng students have refined FrED’s design with the goal of creating a robust, functional, and affordable device for in-house manufacturing at the MIT FrED Factory. While the 2023 model achieved significant cost reduction, it required further hardware and electronics refinement for stable and repeatable performance. This thesis encompasses two main objectives: enhancing the hardware design and assembly processes for the final 2024 educational FrED model, and developing an alternative design for an advanced FrED version suitable for academic lab settings to rapidly prototype synthetic fibers. The first objective was met by improving the two most dynamic sub-assemblies—the gearbox and extrusion system—to ensure smooth and consistent operation. Additionally, conjoining part tolerances and hardware insert locations and geometries within manufactured parts were verified and adjusted according to manufacturing standards. Multiple jigs were also designed and fabricated to facilitate the assembly process of the gearbox and extrusion sub-assemblies, and two new parts were created to enhance user operation of FrED. For the second objective, an enhanced version of FrED capable of handling a wider range of preform materials was developed by upgrading the extrusion sub-assembly to operate at temperatures over three times higher than the educational version. This feature had been previously attempted with older, more expensive versions of FrED but had not been pursued with the recent, more affordable iteration. The new high-temperature FrED successfully drew fibers from PLA, a biodegradable thermoplastic, using 3D printed preforms with distinctive geometries, demonstrating its potential for providing an affordable solution for rapid synthetic fiber prototyping in academic labs.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Glasser, Kaili

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Anthony, Brian W.

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
• Copyright retained by author(s)

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/157149

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/157149