Design of functionally graded materials and multifaceted quasi-isostrength beams through jigsaw printing in fused deposition modeling

Abstract This paper introduces a novel fused deposition modeling three-dimensional (3D) printing technique for producing high-strength, lightweight components, referred to as jigsaw printing. The proposed method can effectively integrate the filling patterns and filling densities of multiple 3D-printed internal structures into a single component. The filling density of the printed part can be continuously varied along a certain direction, thereby achieving a functional gradient. Notably, this method is simple, effective, and compatible with standard 3D printers without the need for specialized slicing software. By utilizing this approach, we design and print a novel quasi-isostrength beam using a single resin material. The density of the fabricated beam changes continuously along its length through a combination of regions of high and low filling densities. Unlike conventional equal-strength beams, the proposed beam demonstrates a uniform external appearance and achieves almost the same strength across multiple surfaces compared with the 100% uniform beam. The proposed method reduces material consumption and printing time while retaining approximately 94%–95% of the strength of a 100% uniform beam with similar dimensions. Moreover, the weight of the fabricated beam is only 67% that of the 100% uniform beam. Testing indicates that the specific strength of the proposed beam is 1.42 times that of a 100% uniform beam.