FLIR Exx Accessories

Design files for this project can be found here

After years of waiting, I finally stumbled across an great deal for a nice thermal IR camera. The device in question, a now-discontinued FLIR E40, features a native 160 × 120 60Hz sensor with 0.07°C thermal sensitivity and a -20 to 650°C (-4 to 1202°F) temperature range. The device didn’t come with a working charger or other accessories, but I figured that I could just model and build the missing accessories myself.

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Modular Segmented Hose

Design files for this project can be found here

Here is a 3D printable segmented hose design with a number of different options for adapters, nozzles, and mounts. Hose components were designed to be printed in vase mode to ensure a good seal between each segment. The design itself is also mostly parametric, enabling easy scaling and other tweaks for various applications.

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Heater PWM Modification

Here’s a small weekend project that I worked on to address a few small annoyances that I had with my Presto HeatDish Parabolic Heater. The goal here was to replace the internal temperature regulator with a solid state relay driven with a variable frequency PWM signal for faster switching frequency, improved control sensitivity, and wider operating range while maintaining existing safeguards such as tip over and overheating protection.

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3D Printer Heated Enclosure

Design files for this project can be found here (frame) and here (MGN12)

The more reliable my 3D printing setup gets, the greater the desire to move towards printing more exotic filaments. Materials such as nylon (PA) or polycarbonate (PC) have better trade-offs in mechanical properties compared to PLA or PETG filaments in areas such as strength, temperature resistance, and stiffness at the cost of being harder to print. One of the common requirements for printing such filaments is that the printer needs to be fully enclosed and heated to prevent drafts and temperature differentials from warping off the print bed mid-print.

Here I’ll also document and provide source files in this post for the various modifications I’ve made to my Prusa i3 MK3S in the process of moving it into a custom heated enclosure.

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Filament Dry Box

Design files for this project can be found here

Update 11/15/2020 – Added bucket dryer improvements and notes on molecular sieves
Update 5/16/2021 – Updated short-term filament storage design

There has been some recent developments in exploring the impact of moisture on 3D prints, and from my experience so far I’ve found that having dry filament makes a significant difference in both print quality and consistency. For the types of filament that I typically print with, drying the filament drastically reduces the amount of ooze and stringing, resulting in a noticeable improvement in print quality. Filament that is too dry however tends to have worse bridging characteristics as some plastic (PETG) becomes too sticky.

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Projects by Kevin