The Automated Design and Manufacturing Laboratory (ADML) is an automated assembly line located in the Engineering Product and Innovation Center (EPIC) that serves as the lab component for the course ME345: Automation and Manufacturing Methods. Over the semester the students learn how to program each automated component of the system, including Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) mills, Universal Robot's 6 axis robotic arm, cameras, and Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC). Students then learn how to integrate each component together to develop a completely automated manufacturing process using an in-house manufacturing execution software. This integrated system is then used by the students to automatically manufacture new products of their own design that provide a societal benefit.
Since 2019 multiple undergraduate students have worked on augmenting the ADML's capability with printing electronics by implementing Direct Ink Writing (DIW) based 3D printing and vacuum based pick and place into the ADML's assembly robot. Using these new capabilities, students in the ME345 will be able to design and manufacture electronic circuits. Moreover, a graduate level course will be developed based on this new addition to the ADML.
The aim of this Thesis is to continue the work of previous students by finalizing the hardware and software necessary for the pick and place of electronic components and developing a conductive ink for electrical wiring and interconnects. A three component ink comprised of silver flake and a copolymer solution of acrylates/polytrimethylsiloxymethacrylate in a isododecane solvent was developed. This ink is biocompatible so it can be used by students without any hazard concern. It also exhibits a high degree of adhesion to the high-density polyethylene (HDPE) stock parts currently used in the ADML to ensure strong bonding to the electrical components. The mixing process, ink ingredient concentrations, and print parameters (i.e., extrusion pressure, print speed, and nozzle standoff distance) were optimized for compatibility with DIW based 3D printing, consistent and clog-free extrusion throughout the printing process, print fidelity, and a high electrical conductivity within approximately 1-2 orders of magnitude of bulk silver. / 2025-05-24T00:00:00Z
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/46272 |
| Date | 24 May 2023 |
| Creators | Wolfe, Kayla |
| Contributors | Boley, J. William |
| Source Sets | Boston University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ |
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