Rapid Manufacturing Process Guideline

A. Multi Jet Fusion (MJF) process

Source:
- https://support.jlcpcb.com/article/170-3d-printing-design-guidelines

1. Wall thickness
Wall thickness refers to the distance between one surface of your part and the opposite sheer
surface. A part made by 3D printing has a minimum wall thickness that is dependent on its
overall size. As a guide, we recommend that you increase your wall thickness whenever you
scale up your design to a larger size.

2. Embossed and Engraved Details

LEDO6060/8000/9000R/8228/Black Resin : 0.5 mm deep & 0.5 mm wide

PA12 : 0.5 mm deep & 0.5 mm wide

PAC : 0.8 mm deep & 0.8 mm wide

3201PA-F : 0.8 mm deep & 0.8 mm wide

ABS : 1.0 mm deep & 1.0 mm wide

316L : 1.0 mm deep & 1.0 mm wide

3. Thread design
There are two main factors affecting 3D printing of non-standard threads: thread pitch and
Helix angle.

The clearance fit of thread needs to refer to model clearance. If there is no clearance fit in the
design, it will be unable to assemble. The minimum standard screw is M6.

4. Model clearance
Clearance between parts that will be assembled together.
Modules can be printed to be assembled, as long as they meet the minimum clearance as
shown below.
 Clearance between moving parts
The minimum clearance between two moving or connecting parts.

The above is the minimum clearance for simple structures, which is not applicable to all
structures.

5. Escape holes
Hollow designs need an “escape hole”, so that excess material can escape during the 3D
printing process. Most printing services use printers and printing techniques that require
at least one escape hole.

(1) The minimum escape hole diameter is 2.5mm.

(2) Two escape holes are required when the escape hole diameter is less than 3mm,
otherwise the resin will not flow out and the cavity will not be cleaned, and the part
may crack after a period of time.

(3) The size and quantity of escape holes shall be finally determined according to the
model size and structure.

(4) The supports in the cavity cannot be totally removed unless the escape hole is
designed to be large enough.
6. Holes design

The relationship between aperture (Φ) and hole depth (h):

7. Small column design

The relationship between column diameter (D) and column height (H):
B. Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) process
Source:
- https://proto3000.com/service/3d-printing-services/materials/overview/design-
guidelines/fdm-design-guideline/
- https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/340051/Design_Guides/Xometry_DesignGuide_FDM.pd
f

1. Wall thickness

Wall thickness is limited by the filament size, and features thinner than twice the
filament’s thickness usually do not print successfully. For supporting structures, walls
need to be at least 0.047” - 0.06” (1.2 - 1.5 mm) thick for best results by allowing filament
to fill between layers.

2. Holes

Holes for FDM is recommended to be designed with a diameter greater than 0.04” (1mm)
to retain a circular shape. Orientation of holes is very important and resolution tends to
be best when printed parallel to the xy-axis.

3. Text & Small Details

Recommended thickness that protruding text must maintain is at least 0.04” (1mm) to
register properly. Text must also have a height of at least 0.04” (1mm), but 0.047”- 0.06”
(1.2 - 1.5 mm).
 All text must also be oriented parallel to the xy-plane for best results, because it will allow
multiple layers to stack cleanly and avoid “squished” characters and details.

4. Gaps

A good tolerance to follow for thin gaps is maintaining a width greater than 0.2” (5mm)
to ensure that all support material can be removed.

5. Tabs

Tabs are very susceptible to breaking in FDM, especially for larger parts. The first thing to
do would be to increase the size of the tab as large as possible (size depends on the
application and size of the overall part).
Orienting tabs parallel to the xy-plane will also increase the strength of the tab and reduce
the risk of breakage.

6. Fillet

Support material is required for overhanging surfaces greater than 45 degrees from
vertical, so adding a fillet will help the surface gradually grow, and continually support
itself.
7. Ribs

Another great alternative to fillets for increasing the strength of support structures is by
adding ribs. A safe minimum rib thickness to follow is 0.06” (1.5 mm) to allow multiple
layers of filament inside of each rib.

8. Model clearance
Clearance between parts that will be assembled together.
Modules can be printed to be assembled, as long as they meet the minimum clearance as
0.2 mm.

Clearance between moving parts

The minimum clearance between two moving or connecting parts is 0.5 mm.