Check out this well-documented 3D printed Stirling engine project built with Stratasys-printed parts, shared with us by Doug Conner from Solar Heat Engines:
My goal in designing this engine was to use 3D printed parts for simplicity everywhere I could without compromising performance. The 170 degree F (77C) temperature limit of the ABS material would limit the engine to low temperatures. Other (more expensive) printed plastics have heat deflection temperatures up to 372F (189C) that could be used in the future on the two temperature-critical parts.
This is a master class not only for how to adjust an engine design to suit the materials used in construction, but also to recognize the few parts that would be better accomplished with off the shelf parts such as those documented below:
Every Thursday is #3dthursday here at Adafruit! The DIY 3D printing community has thrilled us at Adafruit with its passion and dedication to making solid objects from digital models. Recently, we have noticed that our community integrating electronics projects into 3D printed enclosures, brackets, and sculptures, so each Thursday we celebrate and highlight these bold pioneers!
Have you take considered building a 3D project around an Arduino or other microcontroller? How about printing a bracket to mount your Raspberry Pi to the back of your HD monitor? And don’t forget the countless EL Wire and LED projects that are possible when you are modeling your projects!
The Adafruit Learning System has dozens of great tools to get you well on your way to creating incredible works of engineering, interactive art, and design with your 3D printer! If you have a cool project you’ve made that joins the traditions of 3D printing and electronics, be sure to send it in to be featured here!