3D Printable QR Codes for 3rd Party Bambu Lab Print Beds

So… I don't have a label printer or a conventional 2D printer for paper… but I've got a 3D printer! Let's continue the age-old trend of 3D printing upgrades for printers by getting them to print QR codes to fool the Bambu Lab printer into thinking it's printing on an official Bambu Lab print bed.

This was a very quick & easy print (4 layers total, around 2 minutes of print time at 50% speed on a Bambu Lab X1C), you just need black & white filament to make it happen.

Preparation:

• I used a 0.4mm nozzle, which seemed to work fine, but maybe try 0.2mm if things aren't working for you with a 0.4mm nozzle
• Layer height is 0.08mm with a 0.2mm first layer
• Add a brim but don't plan to peel the brim away from the model (it will get trimmed later)
• Make the lower block (first two layers) printed in white, then switch to black filament for the last two layers

Implementation:

1. Once the print is done (in virtually the same time as it takes you to walk to the kitchen and pour another cuppa), peel it off the print bed, raft included
2. Take some scissors and trim off most of the excess brim, but leave a millimeter or two around the four edges
3. Stick the QR code black-side down onto the sticky side of some clear or semi-transparent scotch tape, being sure to rotate the QR code to be in the same orientation as it would be on an official print bed (look it up for the bed you're trying to spoof)
4. After sticking the QR code onto the tape, rub something hard over it to make the black squares from the QR code show up better through the camera (I used the back end of a pen)
5. Either use the guide from the model this is remixed from, or just do what I did and hold your 3rd party bed and another bed in the same orientation and eyeball where the QR code goes based on its location on the other print bed
6. ???
7. PROFIT!

Material:

I used PLA because it's what I had on hand and it was just a test to see if this idea would work and I was printing the “Cool Plate” tag (exclusively for PLA), so I'll be surprised if I need a high-temp filament instead. Even if it lasts a while but then fails, if I need to print it out again, it'll cost me another 5 minutes, 0.58 grams of filament, and piece of tape. 🤷♂

Notes:

I can't guarantee this'll work for you too, but it worked just fine for me on my first attempt of both eyeballing the application of the QR code to the print bed, along with then running a test print (of printing another QR code for the other side of the print bed), and the printer never complained about not recognizing the bed, so things seem to work.