All of these methods would have been too expensive, the latter one as the "cheapest" method still at a cost of more than $1200.
Furthermore one of the goals to achieve also is to spend as less money as possible for our DIY-scanner.
We tried to build the frame by ourselfes as well, but we just didn't manage to get the necessary precision to make all parts fit as planned.
For some days we let the project rest and started focusing on the electronics and software that is another big task yet to come.
I was working on the flowchart that the software-process will follow when I finally found the solution for the fabrication cost-issue: I divided the frame in layers, each with a strength of approximately 6mm or 0.25 inch, extracted like stories of a tall building one by one.
This way the need of a three dimensional cutting or printing could be reduced to a comparatively simple 2D-cutting from several sheets.
During the process of splitting up the model, the weight could be calculated more acurately, what made us switch from the choice of aluminum we first thought we would go for to a much less weighing PETG-Plastic.
Even though we now are one step closer to the final 3D-Scanner construction, we are facing the new challenge of glueing the cut sheets one on top of another which seems not as easy as on the first sight in case of the material used.
Another problem that is yet to be solved.
