An Innovative Approach for Multi-Colored 3D Printed Food: Assembling a Reversal Valve to a Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm 3D Printer

This study aims to enhance selective compliance assembly robot arm (SCARA) 3D printers to enable the reproduction of colors and the creation of multi-colored 3D-printed food. SCARA 3D printers offer a promising solution for multi-colored food printing, overcoming the small printing spaces and poor scalability of delta 3D printers. A reversal valve was assembled onto the SCARA food 3D printer and synchronized with the movement of the robotic arm. This system realized collaborative two-color ink printing, and its reversal positioning accuracy was tested. Additionally, composite printing was designed using SCARA's own programming language. The printed pancakes were subsequently processed in the kitchen to evaluate the effectiveness of the printing system. The reversal positioning accuracy test showed that the system has good precision for collaborative printing effectively. Kitchen processing of the printed pancakes results confirmed that the system can accomplish multi-colored 3D food printing, and the quality loss of the printed product was nearly 45% under baking at 180°C for 20 min. The assembly of the reversal valve allows for collaborative printing, color reproduction, and the creation of multi-colored 3D-printed food. Furthermore, this study provides the equipment basis and preliminary research for the potential development of 3D-printed cookies.