A Study on Acoustic Signals from an Electret Microphone in 3D Printing

This work presents a study of the acoustic signals from an electret microphone generated during the manufacture of the first layer in fused deposition modelling process. Experimental tests were conducted in a GTMax3D® 3D printer, in which the transducer was attached to the extruder support. The tests consisted of manufacturing a single layer part of polylactic acid, with and without defects. The results reveal the particularities of the signals in the time and frequency domain for two infill patterns employed, as well as the identification of damage to the part, demonstrating the potential of the transducer for monitoring the process.