AZIMUTH the World's First 3D Printed Compass

The working of a compass has always fascinated me, and a few days ago I gave myself the challenge of making what could be the first open source 3D printed compass in the world. this is where the AZIMUTH project was born.

For this project knowing how to use a 3D printer, a laser engraver or a "CNC" would be a great asset but not necessarily necessary :).

For supplies we need :

1. one neodymium magnet size D10x4mm
2. Two colors of 3D printed filaments of your choice (orange and grey PLA for me)
3. a 2mm sheet of transparent acrylic, size 100x200 mm
4. Cyanoacrylate glue (I use the super glue 110 brand)

for machines we need :

1. a 3D printer
2. a laser engraver cutter or a CNC machine

AZIMUTH is a magnetic compass composed of an external 3D printed housing, two transparent acrylic parts with a graduated dial and a two-color needle (orange and gray) composed of a neodymium magnet; the orange part of the needle always points north. The acrylic needle and dial were added during printing.

Simply download the attached DXF file. you can use a cnc to have a 3d rendering of the engraved text (due to the milling cutter). In my case I used the Mekanica cnc of which I also attached the gcode file.

place the acrylic sheet on the machine, attach it, engrave it and then cut it out. You will have two pieces

be careful after engraving do not remove the protective film yet

In this part we are going to slice the piece which will serve as a direction needle. The needle is made up of two parts with different colors: gray and the onrange tip (you have the free choice on the colors to adopt).

To start you must import the attached 3D file into your favorite slicer for me I used the ORCA slicer. Depending on the slicer used the method to configure the file will be slightly different but here is a summary of the steps to follow:

1. import file
2. paint the faces of the tip in a color other than that of the body of the needle (which will allow double color printing)
3. enable manual filament change for printers with a single extruder or without AMS !!!
4. slice and print

You can read the comments on each image to better understand

Remarks:

1. regarding the files the one named (needle config) has already been configured for orca slicer (the faces have already been painted)
2. for those who have a printer with only one possible printing color, in the slicer you have the possibility of activating the manual change of colors
3. for those who do not have the possibility to change colors automatically or manually you can print in single color and then paint it by hand

For this step the first thing is to determine the polarity of the magnet and then place it in the needle.

On a non-magnetic surface place the magnet on its side. It will automatically orient itself towards magnetic north. using a compass (on your phone) and you can then determine which side of the magnet is oriented towards magnetic north.

Now place the magnet in the needle, making sure that its face facing north is oriented towards the colored tip of the needle.

Adjust the needle so that it is in the middle of the magnet and you can add the glue to bind everything together (be careful with your fingers).

Finally place the whole thing on a table to ensure that the point of the needle actually points towards the north.

Here we will use one of the two dials to be able to print the top landing there. The top dial is made up of a bearing which allows the compass magnet to always remain in the middle. Its manufacture is described in the following steps:

1. download and open the attached file in your slicer
2. slicer and add a printing pause on the layer which is just before the landing (refer to the images)
3. i choose this printing parameters:
4. filling:50 percent
5. layer height: 0.3 (I use a 0.4 nozzle)
6. type of filling: gyroid
7. material: PLA
8. copy the Gcode file to your printer then start printing
9. Once the machine reaches the pause height, remove the protective film on the dial, add it to its slot then resume printing
10. at the end of printing you can add the needle to ensure that it turns freely as in the image

Remarks:

Take care to ensure the correct orientation of the dial with these different methods:

1. the key located on the dial and the printed support helps you find the correct orientation of the compass rose
2. make sure that the engraved side must be facing upwards as in the images

Here just like in step 5, download and open the attached file in the slicer of your choice.

1. don't forget to add the two print pauses (for each dial) in the slicer
2. then go to the printer, wait until the first pause, add the second dial then continue printing
3. for the second break, remove any angel hair using tweezers then add the needle plus magnet assembly
4. add the first dial that had been manufactured then continue printing.

Once the printing is finished you have your magnetic compass. It should be noted that this compass only indicates magnetic north to have the position of geographic north you will need to add or subtract a certain number of angles depending on your position.

Regarding the precision of this compass it would be necessary to have it tested by a professional and to be sure.