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How to Capture Time-lapse Videos for 3D Printing
2024-05-07 | By Zach Hipps
License: See Original Project 3D Printing
Over the years of 3D printing, I've become more interested in capturing time-lapse videos of my 3D prints. I want to show you a way to capture time-lapse videos for FDM and SLA resin printers.
Whether you have a smartphone or a DSLR camera, the easiest way to create a time-lapse video is to use the time-lapse function built into the camera. In your camera settings, you can turn on the time lapse mode and it will take a picture at some set interval, whether that's 30 seconds or a minute. Then, at the very end, you can stitch all those pictures together into a time-lapse video. The problem with this approach is that the video is often motion-blurred, and you can't see your 3D print clearly. This is especially true when you're using a bed slinger type printer. It's like trying to take family pictures with a toddler. If only the printer would just hold still while you take the picture! If I can figure out how to get the print bed and the extruder to hold still while the photo is being taken, then the problem will be solved. Fortunately, this is easier than it sounds. In the settings of most 3D printer slicer software, you can insert some custom G-code that executes at the end of every layer. All I need to do is tell the extruder to go to a specific spot after each layer, pause for a certain amount of time, and then resume the print. It’s like telling the printer to stop and pose for a picture at the end of each layer! I’ve had better luck setting the exposure and focus manually on the camera because I don't want those things changing from picture to picture. With that part out of the way, next, I need to figure out how to trigger my Canon DSLR camera.
Most DSLR cameras, like my Canon, have a remote trigger port on the side. I can take an ⅛” (3.5mm) TRS cable and plug it into that port. TRS describes the three conductors in the cable, the tip, ring, and sleeve. If you connect the tip and the sleeve signals, that's the same as pressing the shutter button on the camera. Other brands of cameras may have a different triggering method, so check your camera’s manual for specifics. So how can I get the 3D printer to connect those two signals? The answer is a limit switch. To make this work, I'm going to use a female ⅛” TRS connector and a small limit switch. I’ll connect the normally open and common terminals from the switch to the tip and the sleeve pins on the TRS connector. Once I solder these two components together, I'll be able to push the limit switch to trigger the shutter.
On my FDM printer, I know that the X-axis does its homing sequence on the left-hand side of the gantry. I'm going to put the camera trigger limit switch on the right-hand side so that I don't interfere with that homing cycle. To help me do that, I designed and printed a little 3D-printed bracket. The limit switch slides right into it and sticks out the other side, and I can plug the TRS cable into the connector. The bracket will mount to the aluminum extrusion using a t-nut. In my printer’s slicer software, I can edit the custom G-code settings from earlier and adjust the pause position as well as the position of the limit switch so that the wheels on the print head just touch that limit switch. Now that everything is set up on the printer and in the slicer, I can take pictures using the limit switch and create a time-lapse video! I need to use video editing software to stitch together all of the still images into a video file. There are lots of free options as well as paid options to do this.
That covers the process for FDM printers, but what about SLA resin printers? They only have a Z-axis that moves the build plate up and down. How can I trigger the shutter on my camera? After a little bit of research, it turns out that there's a clever way to do this. With an SLA resin printer any time there's a new layer, the UV light turns on and exposes the resin for a certain amount of time. If I can use the UV light to trigger the shutter, this will work perfectly. I will use the same TRS connector port on my camera to trigger the shutter. It turns out I don't actually have to close the circuit between the tip and the sleeve. I can just reduce the resistance low enough that it triggers the shutter. Instead of using a limit switch, I will use a photoresistor inside the enclosure of my printer. What I need to do next is find a photoresistor that's the right value so that when the UV light turns on, it lowers the resistance enough to trigger the camera shutter. After digging around, I found a photoresistor that is around 10k Ohms when no light is shining on the sensor, and when it’s exposed to a bright light, it goes down to about 100 Ohms. This should work. Now, I just need to do the same thing I did before. However, instead of soldering on a limit switch to the TRS port, I'm soldering on a photoresistor.
I make sure to unplug my machine before I remove the back panel of my SLA resin printer. I need to drill a small hole that will fit the TRS connector. On my first attempt, I soldered the photoresistor directly to the TRS connector, but it didn’t trigger the shutter. I need to position the photoresistor closer to the UV light source, so I’ll use some extension wires and a cable tie to secure the photoresistor next to the light source. Now, I can insert the TRS connector in the hole, thread on the nut, and put the enclosure back together.
Now, it’s time to start a print and see if it works! At each new layer, the UV light turns on, which triggers the camera shutter! As I said before, I’ll need to use video editing software to stitch all of these still images together into a video file. With a little bit of extra effort and a few components, you can improve the quality of your time-lapse videos using these tips and tricks.
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