02_COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN

2d design | 3d design

Probably the project will change over the course of the semester, but this exercise has been very useful to develop a process for it.

2D DESIGN

Drawing and scanning

The first thing I did was investigate about trikes and cycles. I searched on the internet for images about “Recumbent Trike” to get an accurate idea of the dimensions and angles of the lounge chair and the pedals. I also searched about press-fit unions, MDF board thickness and measurements, and metal tubes commercially available, to be considered in the fabrication.

The device consists in three parts:

  1. Interior structure (made of metal pipes and plates / welded and screw-connected)
  2. Exterior structure and lounge chair (made of MDF board / press-fit unions)
  3. Concealed mechanism (gear box + dynamo + electronics)
drawing

Illustrator

I scanned the freehand drawing, redrew it using vectors and indicated its parts using the text tool. Then I saved it as a PNG file, so I could edit it in Photoshop afterwards.

2d_illustrator

Photoshop

I modified the colors of the image to use it in the index page of my website.

2d_photoshop

3D DESIGN

The interior and the exterior structure were developed using Rhinoceros: to draw the curved profiles and set the dimensions; and Grasshopper: to parameterize the model and apply a press-fit definition to the chair. I also tried Sketch Fab for the first time and I think it is very useful to share 3D models.

Rhinoceros

First, I exported the image that I made in illustrator and I redraw it using Control Point Curves and considering real dimensions. When I had the model in Grasshopper, I baked it in Rhinoceros and changed the material settings.

Sketch Fab

What I liked most about this online software is that is very fast, you just need to upload the 3D model, modify some parameters and send the link. The recipient can view it online in three dimensions, without download it. However, you cannot customize the render so much; in other words, it is far away from V-ray.

https://sketchfab.com/show/738f9e6b8dd3440194302520b7432777