Desktop rapid prototyping system with supervisory control and monitoring through Internet

Rapid prototyping (RP) can enhance design and manufacturing productivity by taking advantage of the Internet. Via the Internet, most small and medium size companies should be able to share the access of the RP machine remotely without owning the expensive machines. This study combines RP preprocessing, RP machine, and the Internet into a telecontrolled manufacturing system. Also presented is the software and hardware for a new LCD-based photosensitive resin RP machine that uses only visible light. This visible light can expose and solidify an entire layer at once, layer-by-layer, until the whole part is finished. The user sends a three-dimensional (3-D) CAD model (STL file) via the Internet to a telecontrol server, which transforms the CAD model into a RP machine LCD photomask display. The user can then direct the RP machine to build the RP part while watching a live image of the part via the World Wide Web. An online visual system allows inspection of the RP part quality during manufacturing. Part building is monitored by a pattern matching algorithm which compares a grabbed image with the photomask. If the grabbed image is not adequately similar to the photomask, the program stops manufacture and notifies the user. The experimental results show that RP using the Internet is promised, but the surface roughness should be further improved.