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Aug 25, 2023

What Are the Major Power Consumers in an FDM 3D Printer?

Share this Article One of the most important and expensive parts of any 3D printer is the power supply. Living between the wall outlet (AC power) and the rest of the machine (generally DC power), the

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One of the most important and expensive parts of any 3D printer is the power supply. Living between the wall outlet (AC power) and the rest of the machine (generally DC power), the power supply serves as the backbone of the entire electrical system inside any printer.

However, not every part of the printer is a large consumer of electricity. So what are the parts of the machine that require the most energy?

Heating is an essential part of FDM printers, and the heating elements themselves are generally the largest consumers of power in the entire system. Within most printers, the two main heating subsystems are the following.

A 3D printer heated bed with a silicon heater. Image courtesy of 3DJake.

After the heaters, the largest consumers of power in a 3D printer are often the mechanical components. In short, any part that moves will fit this classification, including the motors, and fans.

Current waveforms of a 3D printer’s stepper motor. Image courtesy of Trinamic.

Last on our list is the electronics within the printer. Although most of the items discussed in this article can fall into that category, in this context, “electronics” refers to the processing, display, and control electronics within the system.

Understanding the power consumption dynamics within an FDM 3D printer provides users with insight into just how electricity is used by a machine. Indeed, the heating elements, the motors, mechanical components, and the electronics and controllers are pivotal contributors to the overall energy use. The extruder heater and heated bed take the lion’s share, with stepper motors and fans not trailing far behind. While the power usage by mainboard, processors, microcontrollers, and the display interface is not as significant as the aforementioned components, it is nonetheless an integral part of the energy expenditure. As the technology advances, striking a balance between operational efficiency and power consumption will continue to be a critical task for engineers and designers in the additive manufacturing industry.

Feature image courtesy of Prusa Research.

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