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Design+

ARTICLE
Experimental and numerical analysis of

3D-printed objects based on oriented
anisotropic cells

1
Marlon Wesley Machado Cunico * , and Jennifer Desiree Medeiros Cavalheiro 2
1 Department of Laboratory Material Sciences and Structures, Zirclab Medical Devices, London,
United Kingdom
2 Department of Structural Engineering, University Federal of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil

Abstract

The use of additive manufacturing technology has grown significantly in recent
years, creating new challenges for product designers. Complex designs are rarely
fully described in traditional drawings or design specifications. This research
aimed to address this gap by developing specifications based on the mechanical
characterization of fused deposition modeling objects, focusing on their anisotropic
behavior as influenced by cell structures. We used experimental design, analytical
research using finite element methods, statistical analysis, and simplified numerical
models to investigate the relationship between mechanical characteristics and
*Corresponding author:
Marlon Wesley Machado Cunico manufacturing factors. The main effects of building attributes were examined in
(marloncunico@zirclab.com) addition to formulating failure mechanisms and generalized elasticity. The findings
Citation: Cunico MWM, Cavalheiro allowed the creation of a simplified model to describe mechanical behavior by
JDM. Experimental and numerical demonstrating the relationship between infill methods and mechanical strength.
analysis of 3D-printed objects
based on oriented anisotropic cells.
Design+. 2025;2(1):3779. Keywords: Additive manufacturing; Finite element method; Anisotropic cells; Design
doi: 10.36922/dp.3779
Received: May 28, 2024
1st revised: July 27, 2024 1. Introduction
2nd revised: September 26, 2024
Over the past few years, 3D printing technologies, or additive manufacturing, have
3rd revised: October 30, 2024 begun to take center stage in a number of market sectors. This could be a result of
Accepted: December 13, 2024 low-cost technologies, which are mostly fused filament fabrication (FFF) technologies,
Published online: March 11, 2025 becoming more widely employed. 1,2
Copyright: © 2025 Author(s). Despite this remarkable popularization, a number of obstacles still need to be
This is an Open-Access article addressed, and a number of manufacturing and product-related problems have come
distributed under the terms to light. Among these issues, mechanical anisotropy of the material directly influences
of the Creative Commons
AttributionNoncommercial License, mechanical strength, potentially endangering functional components. 3,4
permitting all non-commercial use,
distribution, and reproduction in any Several studies have been done to better understand the anisotropic behavior of
medium, provided the original work FFF objects and fabrication parameters. For example, Ahn et al. first experimentally
5
is properly cited. described the main effects of fused deposition modeling as a function of the air gap,
Publisher’s Note: AccScience bead width, color, temperature, and orientation. This work evidenced the main
Publishing remains neutral with contribution of each component to the strength of the object. In addition, Domingo-
regard to jurisdictional claims in 6
published maps and institutional Espin et al. presented the identification of the compliance matrix as a function of basic
affiliations. fabrication orientation. On the other hand, there are studies of the damage and failure

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 1 doi: 10.36922/dp.3779