Seeking general design guidelines for a snap-together assembly

[cadcoke5]

I am looking for genera design guidelines for a design that can snap together. I realize screws and glue are a possible option, but assemblies that snap together are just easier to deal with.

Perhaps there are some good examples of snap-together assemblies?

Obviously, issues like the type of plastic, the resolution of the printer, and the desired clearances all have a major part. Beyond examining an example, I would ideally like to see where someone has written up the criteria for their design.


Thanks for any leads,
-Joe

[cadcoke5]

I did finally find a blog where the write wrote up designing some pins that will hold two parts together for a bracelet. Though, it is not the kind of snapping-together that I am seeking.

http://www.mkrclub.com/2015/04/pin-p...gether-3d.html

-Joe

[Mjolinor]

I posted some links to a couple of PDFs recently that gave soem good info on this.

[cadcoke5]

I just searched for any posts you made using the word "snap" but did not find your message which gave the links. Do you recall what the subject was?

Also, I did find another blog when went into a few more types of joining with 3D prints. I have spent several hours searching for some guidelines, but there are so many returns on the search, it is difficult to filter down to what I am seeking.
http://eikimartinson.com/engineering/3dparts/

-Joe

[Mjolinor]

http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.p...9721#post59721

[cadcoke5]

Although I was really looking for design paramameter for rapid prototyping, those snap-fit design links, which were for finished products, are certainly useful ideas. They give both examples of types of snaps, as well as great engineering information about designing them.

But, I dont know how much the those design guidelines apply to rapid prototyping. We have to deal with materials that are stronger in some directions than others, and have other issues that are not present in injected molded parts. Still, we are often making rapid prototypes for items that will later be injected molded. When we prepare a model for the rapid prototyping, we often make changes to the model to accommodate the limitations of the machines.

-Joe

[Mjolinor]

Although I was really looking for design paramameter for rapid prototyping, those snap-fit design links, which were for finished products, are certainly useful ideas. They give both examples of types of snaps, as well as great engineering information about designing them.

But, I dont know how much the those design guidelines apply to rapid prototyping. We have to deal with materials that are stronger in some directions than others, and have other issues that are not present in injected molded parts. Still, we are often making rapid prototypes for items that will later be injected molded. When we prepare a model for the rapid prototyping, we often make changes to the model to accommodate the limitations of the machines.

-Joe

So don't use them then.

[cadcoke5]

So don't use them then.

Please don't misunderstand me, as I said in my reply, the link you provided is valuable information, and I thank you for it.

What I am still hunting for, is information like, "On my 3D printer, with X.XX resolution, I found that this clip design, with X.XX clerance, worked well."

-Joe

[raysspl]

Even if the materials found aren't specifically for rapid prototyping, it's a good foundation to go off on. Try 3d printing a few components & take it from there & iterate.