Nowadays, sensors play an important role in human life. Among the many manufacturing methods used in the fabrication of sensors, three-dimensional (3D) printing has gradually shown its advantages, particularly with commercial products. Physical sensors, biosensors, and chemical sensors can all be fabricated via 3D printing technology, through either directly printing sensing components, printing molds for casting sensors, or printing platforms to be integrated with commercial sensors. In this article, the varieties of features and applications of 3D printing technologies used in the fabrication of sensors are reviewed. Several types of 3D printing technologies are compared for better understanding of the tools. With the development of new or hybrid manufacturing methods and materials used in the 3D printing technology, this technology will show its great advantages and potential in the fabrication of highly sensitive nanosensors or compound sensors with 3D intricate structures.

A review of 3D-printed sensors

In this paper, a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) pressure sensor was designed and fabricated using 3D printing method for the measurement of vertical pressure. The raw material used for the fabrication of this new pressure sensor was Polylactic Acid (PLA). The effectiveness of embedding FBG sensors inside printed PLA material was first examined taking into account different infill densities. It is found that the FBG sensor can be successfully embedded into PLA material without sacrificing its sensing performance. The change of infill density has no influence on both peak and residual wavelength change of FBG sensors during and after the printing process. All FBG sensors printed inside PLA prototype with different infill density values exhibit almost the same peak and residual wavelength rise values in the printing process. In addition, the higher the density value, the longer the time required to finish printing process. A simple FBG pressure sensor was designed and fabricated according to the successful experience of embedding FBG sensors into printed PLA. Measurement performance of this FBG pressure sensor was examined in laboratory cyclic loading tests. Calibration tests indicate that the maximum measured vertical pressure of this new pressure sensor was 2000 kPa with a measurement sensitivity of 13.22 kPa/pm.

/pdf/design-fabrication-and-testing-of-a-3d-printed-fbg-pressure-32pzaq85b8.pdf

Design, Fabrication and Testing of a 3D Printed FBG Pressure Sensor

Fused deposition modelling (FDM) is a popular technology used for modeling, prototyping, and production applications. In this study, a simple fiber Bragg grating (FBG) based pressure sensor was fabricated using FDM process for monitoring vertical pressures. Raw material used for the fabrication of the pressure sensor was Polylactic Acid (PLA). Measurement performance of this FBG pressure sensor was validated by conducting cyclic loading tests on the FBG pressure sensor. Calibration tests indicate that the maximum measured vertical pressure of this new pressure sensor was 800 kPa with a measurement sensitivity of 4.26 kPa/pm. FMD process is found to be a simple and quick encapsulation method for the fabrication of FBG sensors. It is also found that FBG sensors can be successfully embedded into melted raw PLA materials without sacrificing its sensing performance.

A simple FBG pressure sensor fabricated using fused deposition modelling process

In this paper, 3D printing method and fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensing technology were combined to fabricate a simple and small size tilt sensor. The raw material for creating different sensor components was Polylactic Acid (PLA) material. Bare FBG sensors were directly inscribed into PLA material using fused deposition modeling (FDM) process for complete protection. Printing test using FDM process indicate that bare optical fiber cables successfully survived the FDM process even though the melted PLA materials approached a maximum temperature of around 220°. Two FBG sensors characterized by different wavelength values were symmetrically arranged inside a sensing unit for the measurement of the tilt angle in terms of their wavelength shifts. The minimum resolution and the measurement range of this new FBG tilt sensor were 0.084° and ±75°, respectively. The measurement performance of this new tilt sensor was also verified with the conventional tilt sensor. A small slope model was built up in the laboratory to examine the measurement performance of three FBG tilt sensors which were mounted at different depths inside the slope model. The measured horizontal displacement data from FBG tilt sensors were verified with the output data of the Linear Variable Displacement Transducer (LVDT) and the obtained maximum error was less than 3% when the maximum displacements are approached.

A FBG Tilt Sensor Fabricated Using 3D Printing Technique for Monitoring Ground Movement

Recent developments in surface science and engineering, thin films, nanoscience, biomaterials, plasma science, and vacuum technology

In recent years there has been considerable interest in utilizing embedded fiber optic based sensors for fabricating smart materials. One of the primary motivations is to provide real-time informat...

/pdf/fiber-bragg-gratings-embedded-in-3d-printed-scaffolds-2blbgfy5z1.pdf

Fiber Bragg Gratings Embedded in 3D-Printed Scaffolds

In recent years there has been considerable interest in utilizing embedded fiber optic based sensors for fabricating smart materials. One of the primary motivations is to provide real-time information on the structural integrity of the material so as to enable proactive actions that prevent catastrophic failure. In this preliminary study we have examined the impact of embedding on the temperature-dependent response of fiber Bragg gratings.

Khazar Choudhry

Papers

Fiber Bragg Gratings Embedded in 3D-Printed Scaffolds

Fiber Bragg Gratings Embedded in 3D-Printed Scaffolds