Courses 3D Printing Parametric Workflows with Blender: Animating Robots for Digital Fabrication

Parametric Workflows with Blender: Animating Robots for Digital Fabrication

Parametric Workflows with Blender workshop teaches how to create custom toolpaths for 3D printing, CNC, and robotic fabrication using Blender's Geometry Nodes.

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Overview
Content
Instructors
Reviews

Date:

Jan 11, 12, 2025

Duration:

8 Hours

Difficulty:

Beginner

Language:

English

Certificate:

Yes

Registration:

€93.50

Tutor:

Luis Pacheco

Members:

79.48 EUR (27.75%) discount

Recordings:

Available Indefinitely

Gift The Course

Introduction of the workshop:

Learn to use Blender's Geometry Nodes to develop custom digital fabrication workflows. This hands-on workshop will teach you different approaches to developing tailored machine instructions, from drawing with plotters and cutting with CNCs to 3D printing and robotic fabrication.

What You’ll Learn?

Develop toolpaths for 3D printers, CNC machines, and robotic arms usingBlender and Geometry Nodes.

Harness the power of Geometry Nodes for parametric design.

Utilize attributes to customize your toolpaths.

Develop custom visualization and debugging tools for your projects.

Troubleshoot common digital fabrication challenges.

Apply your knowledge to real-world fabrication projects.

Parametric Workflows with Blender: Animating Robots for Digital Fabrication

Methodology:

This workshop will explore several digital fabrication workflows using Blender. We will begin by introducing the fundamentals of Blender's interface and navigation to ensure all participants are comfortable with the softwareenvironment. We'll set up a workspace tailored for digital fabrication tasks and familiarize ourselves with Blender. We will export some manually generated toolpaths to get conformable with blender's main interface. Next, we'll delve into Geometry Nodes, Blender's powerful system for procedural and parametric modeling. We'll explore how node-based workflows can generate toolpaths, and we'll practice creating toolpaths for drawing and cuttingapplications using plotters and CNC machines.

We will then focus on 3D printing workflows. Starting with basic toolpath generation using Geometry Nodes to create optimized toolpaths for additive manufacturing. We'll address common 3D printing issues and constraints,ensuring that your designs are print-ready. The final part of our workshop will cover robotic fabrication workflows. We'll introduce Animaquina, a Blender addon for animating, simulating, and controlling robotic arms. You'll learn how to create multi-axis toolpaths suitable for robotic fabrication and understand the constraints and possibilities of working with robots. We'll also cover essential safety protocols and best practices in robotic fabrication.

Throughout the workshop, we'll emphasize the use of attributes within Geometry Nodes to tailor and customize your toolpaths. Students will work individually on a final project that integrates the techniques covered in theworkshop.

What You’ll Use?

Blender

Tissue add-on

Highlights:

Knowledge Requirements:

Basic Blender 3D modeling knowledge is highly recommended.

Content

Intro + PAACADEMY Updates (05:45)

Introduction to the workshop - PAACADEMY Updates

Lecture (10:57)

Blender workflows for digital fabrication

This presentation focuses on developing parametric workflows in Blender for digital fabrication, including 3D printing, geometry nodes, and robot toolpath creation.

Blender Setup and Basics (53:22)

Basic navigation in Blender

This part discusses the installation and setup of Blender, introduces essential navigation and transformation shortcuts, and covers basic geometry editing with modifiers and geometry nodes.

Curves to G-code Workflow (32:04)

Projecting curves & generating G-code

This part discusses creating curves in Blender, projecting them onto surfaces, converting them into G-code, and refining the workflow with geometry nodes for CNC and robotic applications.

G-code for Machines (52:56)

Precise G-code export workflows

This part discusses importing objects into Blender and converting them into G-code for CNC and 3D printing using custom post-processors.

Halftone G-Code Workflow (35:34)

Halftone creation using Blender nodes

This session focuses on creating halftone designs using Blender's geometry nodes, optimizing for G-code export, and preparing files for CNC applications.

Geometry Nodes Halftone Portrait (11:17)

Geometry Nodes, halftone, CNC & scaling

This session covers creating and manipulating a halftone portrait using Blender's Geometry Nodes, including techniques like adjusting image textures, scaling, and optimizing the points for CNC machine drawings.

Spiralized Drawing for CNC (36:50)

Spiralized drawing, CNC, image scaling

This session demonstrates the process of creating a spiralized drawing with Blender's Geometry Nodes, adjusting image input, scaling, and pen settings and exporting to CNC for precise drawing execution.

CNC Drawing and Troubleshooting (38:28)

CNC drawing, pen settings, troubleshooting

This session demonstrates the process of using CNC and Blender for custom pen-based drawing, adjusting settings, and troubleshooting issues with image brightness and line thickness, along with the integration of geometry nodes and curve manipulation.

3D Printing and G-code Generation (56:11)

3D printing, G-code generation, troubleshooting.

This session covers the 3D printing process, including creating a slice of a surface, adding textures, downloading and using the Tissue add-on for Blender, and generating G-code for 3D printing, along with troubleshooting and visualization tips.

3D Clay Cup Printing (55:51)

Geometry Nodes for 3D clay printing

Create a clay cup using Geometry Nodes in Blender, considering material contraction and layer height, while defining the side and base texture for 3D printing.

Calibrating the PotterBot 3D printer (13:02)

PotterBot Calibration and Printing

In this session, the process of preparing and calibrating the PotterBot 3D clay printer is demonstrated, including adjusting extrusion values and positioning the nozzle for optimal clay printing results.

Calibration and Debugging (24:12)

PotterBot calibration, extrusion adjustment, printing

The session focused on calibrating the PotterBot 3D clay printer, adjusting extrusion values, debugging the G-code, and ensuring proper layering and spiral movements for printing.

Interactive Robotic Toolpath Programming (08:10)

Robotic toolpath simulation with Blender

The session focuses on using Blender and real-time toolpath adjustments to program and simulate robot movements, enhancing the integration of extruders and robotic systems for 3D printing.

Simulating Robot Toolpath Movements (38:11)

Robotic simulation and toolpath programming in Blender.

This session demonstrates using Blender to simulate robot movements, program toolpaths, and control robotic extruders for 3D printing while highlighting safety and calibration protocols.

Robotic Printing and Simulation (32:02)

Robotic printing, Blender toolpath simulation

The session explores advanced robotic printing in Blender, simulating and optimizing toolpaths, adjusting speeds and calibration, and ensuring safety while printing with real-time control of robotic arms.

Robot Real-Time Control (15:58)

Universal robot real-time control simulation

This session focuses on connecting and controlling a Universal Robot (UR) from Blender, demonstrating real-time simulation, toolpath adjustments, and safety protocols for robotic printing and movement optimization.

Robotic 3D Printing Simulation (16:47)

Robotic control, Blender, 3D printing

This session focuses on integrating Blender with robotic systems for real-time control, simulation, and 3D printing using Universal Robots and KUKA.

Important Notes:

A curated list of online tutorials (1-2 hours) will be provided before the workshop.

Please install all required software before the workshop begins.

A computer with a numpad and 3-button mouse is strongly recommended.

While not required, access to a 3D printer, CNC machine, or robot will allow for hands-on testing of your designs.

Instructors

Luis Pacheco

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Biography

Luis Pacheco is a Robotics and Digital Fabrication Research Specialist at Florida International University, where he also serves as an adjunct professor in the School of Architecture and the Robotics and Digital.Fabrication Lab. With a deep specialization in digital manufacturing, computational design, and architectural robotics, his research emphasizes innovative workflows in additive manufacturing for construction and thedevelopment of robot control interfaces. He is also the founder of Neobrutal Studio, a consulting company for additive manufacturing and robotics, and was previously the co-founder and CEO of MakerMex, Mexico’s first 3D printer manufacturing company; he was recognized as one of MIT’s Innovators Under 35 in 2016.