Adding Wireless to 3D Printer

Octoprint for Prusa I3 MK3

Prusa I3 MK 3 Website

Octoprint Website

Years after assembling my Prusa I3 MK3 3D printer, I decided to upgrade my 3D printer to have wireless capabilities. I used an open-source software called Octoprint to be able to wirelessly upload print files to the printer, remote monitor 3D prints, and record time lapse videos of 3D prints.

To upgrade my printer, I needed to install a Raspberry Pi 3B and a Raspberry Pi camera to my 3D printer. As a result, I CADed cases and mounts using SOLIDWORKS. I then 3D printed the cases and mounts.

Raspberry Pi 3B Mount

The Raspberry Pi 3B case that I designed consisted of two halves. The Raspberry Pi is screwed onto the bottom half of the case and the top half is screwed onto the bottom half of the case to enclose the Raspberry Pi. The case has two more screw holes on the side to allow it to screw into the 3D printer's frame.

This case consisted of many holes that allow access to all the ports on the Raspberry Pi. All the dimensions and tolerances on the part had to be accurate and tight to allow easy access to all the ports on the Raspberry Pi.

CAD Model of the Case

The Case Mounted to the Frame

The Raspberry Pi Camera

For the Raspberry Pi camera, I designed 4 parts in total. Two parts were to enclose the camera itself, similar to the Raspberry Pi 3B case. The third part was the mount that screwed into the side of the 3D printer. The fourth part is the camera arm.

I designed the camera mount to be able to adjust the angle of the camera to get the perfect camera angle on the part being printed. It has two thumb screws to allow easy adjustment of the camera. One screw is located between the mount and the arm to change the angle of the camera arm. The second screw is between the arm and the camera case, which adjusts the angle of the camera. Additionally, I designed it to have enough clearance to allow the camera to be folded during travel or storage.