3D-printed Circular Mazes for Petri Dishes - Drawings

Make 3D printed petri dish mazes using a hand-drawn picture on white paper.

This takes about 15 minutes.

Draw the Maze Onto White Paper

Using a thick black marker, trace the outline of the petri dish you want to use.

draw the remainder of the maze inside the circle.

Save the Image on Your Computer

Take a picture of the drawing with your phone or camera, or scan the drawing.

Save the image as monochrome (using filters on your phone) and email the picture to yourself.

Save As .SVG File

Open www.online-convert.com. Under image convert, select 'convert to .SVG'

Select the downloaded picture of the maze to convert. Under optional settings, set 'color' select monochrome, then download the .SVG output file.

Transfer Maze to Tinkercad

Go to www.tinkercad.com

Create a new design. Under 'import', select the downloaded .SVG file.

Resize the Imported Maze

For the standard petri dish (~87x87x11mm), the dimensions of the maze are: 85x85mm with 8 mm height. These dimensions of the maze fit snugly into the petri dish. If in doubt, make the maze smaller.

Download the project as an .STL file by clicking 'Design' then 'Download for 3D printing'.

Convert the .STL File Into a .gcode File to 3D Print

Open Tinkerine Suite on desktop and import the .STL file into the program.

Adjust settings as needed.

When ready, 'slice' the file (this will save the maze as a .gcode file).

Save onto SD card to print on 3D printer.