Geometric Structures in Textile Design Made with 3D Printing

Abstract

3D printing is a well-known technology for producing 3D objects by depositing successive layers of material. Among its many applications, the fashion industry has taken advantage of this technology to revolutionize its brands. Due to the unique properties of textiles, such as comfort, flexibility, etc., attempts have been made to create textile-like structures. Structures with different geometries were designed and printed using different materials ranging from rigid to flexible. In this study, three different basic geometric structures were designed using the Blender program (a free open-source 3D modelling software). Each geometric structure was designed in two different sizes with smaller and larger basic structural elements. In this case, six different models were created. The aim of this study was to compare the textile-like surfaces of different basic geometric shapes produced with 3D printers. It also aimed to investigate the use of surfaces designed with basic geometric shapes in the textile-like material for fashion industries. In the production phase, the fused deposition modelling (FDM) process was chosen, and ABS and TPU materials were used. Various tests were performed, such as weight tests, and tensile and flexural strength tests on models with different basic geometric shapes and sizes. An examination of the test results showed that the different geometric shapes of the various basic structures and the different materials used have an overall effect on the final properties of the structures. It was concluded that the obtained results can be used as a reference and could be helpful for researchers in the use of 3D printers in the textile-like material and fashion material industries.