Abstract: Based on the development of rapid prototyping (RP) technology, a new extruding deposition head fed with bulk material in granulated form is presented through analyzing the characteristics of existent head systems in the fused deposition modeling(FDM) process. The difficulties of the head realization are the miniaturization of extruding screw and the steady feeding of the granules. Therefore, a feasible design method of small extruding screw is founded, and a novel feeding set is adopted. Through a series of experiments, the new extrusion head technology is proven feasible. With further improvement, the deposition head can be used to fabricate prototypes with thermoplastic elastomer or biomaterial material.

Key words: Bulk material in granulated form, Extruding deposition head, Extrusion screw, Fused deposition modeling, Rapid prototyping