Applications and Implications

 

After reviewing the possibilities of implementing my final project, I decided to change because creating the electronics for an OCR reading device for visually impared is way out of my scope taking into account the time frame of fab academy. Because of this, I decided to change for a more realistic project which is creating a digital fabrication scape room, where I can create the puzzles using digital fabrication tools like 3d printing and create the electronics for the devices I create, all focused on my requirements.
The idea of the scape room is to have different puzzles and clues hidden in a room, which need to be solved in  a sequence to be able to escape the room. It is a game, where each team with around 4-6 members each have 60 minutes to solve challenges and riddles to escape the locked room

 

My idea will be to design and prepare the following tools, either using 3d printers, laser cutters and create the electronics needed to open and lock the mechanism if they can decipher the codes:
Components and tools

1. Bottle Lock. This device will be designed in CAD and 3d printed. This will help have a clue locked, and only until they find the solution they can take it out of the bottle.

 

                 

2. LDR/Laser Code Machine. This box will be designed in CAD for laser cutting, and the electronics will be manufactured and created from scratch. The idea is to have 4 different LDRs, and when target with a laser which each team needs to find (and batteries are also hidden in the room) then will display a code for them to find the next clue.

 

3. Iris Mechanism with lock. This puzzle will also be laser cutted or cnc machined, and will be used to keep a clue locked until they can find the solution to a previous task

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4. Paper Lock. Laser cut. Also used for keeping clues locked

5. Double Spinning wheel mechanism. This one will be cnc routed. Its a double spinning wheel mechanism used thank when placed in the correct position will show the code to unlock a puzzle. It will have a bearing for easier rotation, and the numbers will be embossed in the surface.

 

As a list of components, I will need:

1. 16 3 digit combination locks
2. 12 mm MDF
3. 3mm Acrylic
4. 3mm MDF
5. PCB copper sheet
6. electronic components
7. 4 laser
8. Batteries
9. Bearing

And as a list of fab academy topics, my final project will require:

1. Computer-Aided Design
2. 3d Printing
3. Laser Cutting
4. CNC machining
5. Mechanical Design
6. Electronic Design
7. Electronic Design
8. Embedded Programming
9. Input Devices
10. Output Devices

 

STEM digital Fabricated Scape Room

Four teams of 4 participants each are locked in a room. The game host hands each team a laser pointer with no batteries and tells them that it might me useful to escape the room. He explains that inside the room, they will find several hidden clues that they need to find and solve in order to be able to escape the room and that only the first team to escape will be the winner.

Hidden inside the room, you will find the following elements:
A box with 3 locks where the batteries for the laser pointer are kept.

 

After designing and fabricating all my puzzles, I will create my escape room and test it with different target audiences to make sure the puzzles have the right level of complexity to be solved, and I will propose it as a workshop and want to test it during Fab15 in Egypt!

# what will it do?

It will be a kit that any professor can follow to create a digital fabricated scape room for any topic they want to evaluate.

 

#who has done what beforehand?

Today, many scape rooms exist, but not many are digitally fabricated and opensource, so that anyone can do it.

 

# What will you design?

I will design 5 puzzles, for people to play in a sequence from puzzle to puzzle.

 

# What materials and components will be used?

MDF and acrylic, PCB, PLA or ABS, locks, and electronic components.

 

# Where will they come from?

Locally sourced in Saudi, but as an open source project, they can be procured anywhere in the world for them to cut.

 

# How much will they cost?

I expect the whole kit to be less than 200 USD.

 

# What parts and systems will be made?

Codebox, Iris, LDR Box, DIY laser and Bottle Lock

 

# What processes will be used?

1. 3d printing
2. laser cutting
3. cnc machining
4. vinyl cutting
5. pcb fabrication

 

# What questions need to be answered?

think of the sequence and design a board to be able to solve the puzzles I have in mind.

 

# How will it be evaluated?

As a kit, it should have everything to setup an escape room, where the actual questions to solve the puzzles canbe personalized to evaluate any topic the teacher has in mind. Once the puzzle is solved, the kit will just guide it to the next puzzle.