index

Principles Practices project management

Computer-aided design

Computer-controlled cutting

electronics production

3D scanning and printing

electronics design

molding and casting

programming

Computer-controlled machining

input devices

composites

interface and application programming

output devices

networking and communications

mechanical design, machine design

applications and implications

invention, intellectual property, and income

project development

final project presentations

Computer-controlled machining

For this assignment I worked with high density polyurethane foam and a milling machine. I had the foam´ seller information that this material had the D-46 specification that in Brazil, means the quality of the foam density. The material is visually similar as the image in this link: Here the link So, for the first experiment in order to test the milling cutters I did a simple drawing in Rhino Here the Rhino file The materials used in this first experiment: High density polyurethane foam block (310mx170mmx100mm) Milling cutter with 6 mm diameter rounded cutter.

The first experience milling video:

Assignment 08 First Foam test from Alex Angelo on Vimeo. The photos for the first experiment:

Last photo:

The result was not satisfactory when using the rounded milling cutter so I changed it to a 6 mm diameter flat bottomed mill in order to do the final piece. Here is a link that further explains about the differences between the flat and rounded milling cutter: Here the link The Second experience: I drew a simple Voronoi pattern with Grasshopper and changed the heights randomly to create a topography. Here are the files I drew: files

The materials for the second experiment: High density polyurethane foam (875mmx500mmx45mm) Flat bottomed milling cutter with 6 mm diameter. Strategy: I did a first milling to create the topography and a second milling to refine it. For that I needed to do two GCodes, one for the 3D topography and another to mill only the edges of the drawing in order to achieve a better finishing. Video about the 3D topography being milled:

Assignment 08 Foam cutting from Alex Angelo on Vimeo.

Assignment 08 Finishing cutting from Alex Angelo on Vimeo.

One problem was when the material whirled around the milling cutter, I solved this problem by pressing a stick of wood against the material stuck on the milling cutter. So it´s important to keep the surface clean during the milling process. Video:

Assignment 08 Foam twirl from Alex Angelo on Vimeo To achieve a better finishing result I created a second GCode that informed the machine to mill only the inside edges of the topography shapes. Videos:

Assignment 08 Second finishing from Alex Angelo on Vimeo.

For this assignment I had the opportunity to test different materials in the CNC Milling machine. Because the high density polyurethane foam was never tested in our lab it took me some time to find a better mill to achieve a better finishing for my object. After finding the best mill among the ones we had in our lab I tested milling a new Gcode to refine the edges of the milled surface. I intend to work further in this idea of foam flooring mat in order to adapt this idea for a game in which the kids can explore the geometrical shapes and learn while train their motor skills. The experiment detailed above would work like a module that would be fitted in other modules in order to create a larger area to play.

Also included: Software CAM : Vcarv , CUT 3D, MARCH 3 http://blog.kaziunas.com/?p=4839