Omer Cavdar | Fab Academy 2026

Week 5 – 3D Scanning and Printing

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Assignment

design, document, and 3D print an object that could not be made subtractively (small, few cm3, limited by printer time)
3D scan an object (and optionally print it)3D Print

3D Scanning

I am going to scan my self and use the Einstar scanner and Einstar Scanning Software EXstar software. I pulleg in the Einstar scanner and oppened the app. Generating the point claude was fairly easy. I selected the setting to scan a person since I was going to scan my self and followed the on script instractions to keep my distance fairly even and not miss tracking. After the scan the result was a bit noisy

So I selected the points that were not supose to be there by selecting them by using various selection tools like paint brush or the lasso to select the points.

Then I just deleted theese selections.

Then I used the convert to mesh fuction after selecting all of the remainging points

Here is the final result:

3D Printing

I am going to use Bambu Slicer and Pla to print a object that could not be made subtractively at least in the confides of a FabLab.

Designing the a Ball in Cube

I will use Fusion360 to design.

I started skethcing a square for the cube.

Then I extruded the square so it is a cube of 45 mm

Then I sketched over each face of the cube and cut through the cuve using that sketch.

Then I added a sphere using the sphere tool which in diameter was smaller then the cube but was both wider and taller then the cut outs.

Then I exported the file as 3mf and imported it to bambu slicer. Then Configured support settings so there was actually material that the ball can be printed on. I configured it to only support on build plate and also tree support since it is easier to remove. I also cut down the sparse infil density to %10 from the defualt %15 since this is not a functional part and I do not need it to be strong so to save material I chose to cut down the sparse infil. I also used generic PLA as the filement setting since Porima PLA which is what I am using is not profiled by BambuLab like their own filement (or some other international filement producers.)

Then I send it to the X1Carbon by pressing Print Plate.

After the Print is compelete the print bed looks like this:

Here is a close up to the Result:

After the removal of results the ball is traped in the cube as intended.

Final cube shaking (video)

This I think is particularly hard to manifacture subtractivly since you would need the subtract all the space between the cube and the ball while ensuring a solid mount of the ball until the maching ends but after some searching I found out that people actualy machined this exact same thing using mills probes and custom fixtures mounted vises. But I still think it is considebrly harder to subtractivly machine rather then additvly manifacture.

Week 3 – Computer Controlled Cutting

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Introduction

This page documents the work completed for Week 3 – Computer Controlled Cutting.
Here I will describe the machines used, the materials tested, and the workflow from design to cutting.

Assignments

This week our assignment is:

Vinyl Cutting
- Cut something on the vinyl cutter.
Laser Cutting
- Design, laser cut, and document a parametric construction kit, accounting for the laser cutter kerf.
- Extra credit: design it to be assembled in multiple ways.
- Extra credit: include elements that are not flat.
- Extra credit: engrave as well as cut.

Vinyl Cutting

I designed a sticker for my laptop using Inkscape and cut it on the Roland GS2‑24.

I wanted to have a sticker of our FRC team’s motto, “Ad Astra per Aspera”, which is a Latin phrase meaning “to the stars through hardships” according to Wikipedia. I started by inserting the text and choosing a font. Then I used Object → Object to Path to convert the text into paths and duplicated it. On the duplicated text I applied Outset to create the background, then used Fill between paths to fill the gaps in the background, and finally used Union to merge everything into one path. I then used Simplify to make the curves smoother.

When the design was finished, I imported it into Illustrator to adjust the stroke color to the GS2‑24 preset cut‑contour colors so that, when I exported it as .eps and opened it in the GS2‑24 software, the machine would recognize where to cut. I also separated the two colors (white and black), since I needed to cut them on separate rolls with different vinyl colors. I started with the black background since it was a single piece and much easier to weed and apply to my computer.

I used a needle tool to weed out the excess vinyl from the main roll.

I then stuck the black vinyl on my computer by hand.

Next, I loaded the white vinyl roll on the GS2‑24 and cut the text. To transfer the letters, I used transfer tape, which is a slightly sticky tape that picks up the cut vinyl from the backing.

Then I transferred the white text onto the black background and used the needle tool again to weed the unwanted vinyl inside the letters. In retrospect, choosing a simpler font with less detail would have made this process much easier.

Laser Cutting

For the laser cutting assignment, I designed a parametric construction kit for a model satellite.

I started by designing the side panels of the satellite.

The side panel design is a simple rectangle with two smaller rectangles sticking out from the middle of the longer sides to act as joints for connecting to other parts. A key detail is that I made the height of the joint rectangles equal to the material thickness, so when they slot into other 3 mm‑thick parts they do not protrude.

Next, I designed the top and bottom panels of the satellite.

For these, I drew a hexagon and added rectangular slots inside it that serve as connection points for the side panels. Then I used a circular pattern tool around the hexagon’s center to duplicate this rectangle evenly around the shape.

The initial assembly looked good, but I wanted it to look more like a satellite with solar panel wings, so I added those next.

I designed a modified side panel with a cut‑out in the middle where the wing elements could attach.

I cut the design from 3 mm plywood using the xTool P3 and its software, xTool Studio. I started from the material presets in xTool Studio and then adjusted the kerf using the kerf offset setting. At first, I entered a kerf offset of 1, assuming it would offset the cut inwards, but it worked the opposite way and made the joints too tight. Using that information, I adjusted the kerf offset again until the joints fit correctly.

In the end, I obtained a parametric hexagonal satellite whose wing positions and overall dimensions can be adjusted by changing the parameters in the design. The parts press‑fit together thanks to the kerf compensation, and the model can be assembled in different configurations.

Files and Resources

Week 1 – Project Management

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Introduction

This is the first official week of the 2026 Fab Academy Season. This week we have a couple of assignments: 1A Principles and Practices: - plan and sketch a potential [[Final Project]] 1B Project Management: - download, read, and sign the student agreement, and commit the file to your repo - work through a git tutorial - build a personal site in the class archive describing you and your final project In this section of the documentation I will cover the 1B part of the assignments for this week.

Git Basics

Getting Started

So to get started with git I will use the official git documentation. I will start by following the installation guide on the documentation for Windows x64 since that is what matches my computer. After I download the setup exe file using the link in the documentation and run the installer I should be ready to go. To check if git was installed correctly I will open command prompt and run the following command:

git --version

to check both the correct installation and the version of git. the command returns the following text:

git version 2.52.0.windows.1

which indicates git has been downloaded correctly.

I will be using git for version control and here are the general commands that I would be using also indicated in git documentation cheat sheet.

Common git Commands:

Start a new repo: git init Clone an existing repo: git clone <url> Add untracked file or unstaged changes: git add <file> Add all untracked files and unstaged changes: git add . Make a commit: git commit -m 'message' Push the current branch to its remote “tracking branch”: git push Fetch changes and then merge them into your current branch: git pull

Git Labs

Know I will setup an ssh connection with my local computer and my gitlab repo that was created for me in the Fab Academy GitLab. So I can commit to the proper repo for my website. Here is the Guide I used.

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "<GitLab Key>"

to generate the ssh key. Then I enter the location the ssh key should be saved and a passphrase to generate the key. I will use

ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

to add the private key to my local computer

I will use:

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub | clip

to copy the public ssh key. I will paste this into powershell since it is a bash command. Then I will paste the copied key into User Settings>Ssh Keys.

Hugo

I will use Hugo to generate my site. To setup for the site I will use the following commands to open a folder in my documents folder to create the site in.

cd documents
mkdir 2026FabAcademyWebsiteOmerTunaCavdar
cd 2026FabAcademyWebsiteOmerTunaCavdar

Then I will use

git clone git@gitlab.fabcloud.org:academany/fabacademy/2025/labs/hisar/students/omer-cavdar.git

to clone the current gitlab repo into my folder. I will follow the quick start guide for hugo to setup my site

choco install hugo-extended

I will use Chocolatey as package manager to install hugo since I already have it installed.

I will run the following commads to create my template site.

hugo new site 2026FabAcademyOmerTunaCavdar
cd 2026FabAcademyOmerTunaCavdar
git submodule add https://github.com/CaiJimmy/hugo-theme-stack.git
echo "theme = 'stack'" >> hugo.toml
hugo server

then I uploaded my md files in to the theme and custimized it to my liking.

Then I used

git add .
git push

to push the website into tbe GitLab Repo

About Me

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Hi! I’m Ömer Tuna Çavdar, a high school graduate from Hisar School in Istanbul and a FabLab Assistant at HisarSchool Fablab. I am currently in an Gap Year from University and I intend to attand to Northeastern University as CS and BA major for 2026 Fall Term. I am currently working at Hisar FabLab as a fablab assistant as I mentioned, Doing Fab Academy as you might have noticed and I am mentoring our highschools FRC(First Robotics Competition a HighSchool Robotics Competition) team.

Final Project

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Ciki Ciki(Not sure of the name)

What is it?

CikiCiki is a Land Based Open source modular robot education kit mainly focused on primary and middle school kids which aims to teach them basic robotics programming, mechanical mechanism, tinkering(what I mean to say is that a lot students some how have not seen a type of fastener or have seen it and has no clue what it does) etc_

Why is it?

_There is lots of similar educational kits like the Mbot which also our institution use but these educational kits are designed so that they only work within their ecosystem so if I was a High school senior or a University student that wanted to improve on the educational kit that wanted to improve or have an addition to one of these kits I wouldn’t be able to and since it is a closed system and the kits and modules start to add in price as well they are relatively expensive on their own but when you decide to buy them in numbers for example for a workshop as an edu institution it adds up quickly. The second reason of the existence of this project aside from being a fully open source alternative is the fact that it is to be designed to be fully modular so ideally you should be able to upgrade or make addition to this kits without reproducing the whole thing. And the final reason that this project exists is that it will reimagine an old concept so many of the robotics edu kits do not support ai integration on audio feedback, visual recognition or personality.

In short

It is an edu robot ment for primary and middle school students
It aims to be an open source alternative to existing retail solutions
It aims to teach kids about software Along side mechanics and electronics on a basic level
It aims to be modular and the software to support you to add and build your own modules (Example module categories can be driving/movement systems, Sensors like ultrasonic or camera, out put devices like speakers or led matrices or even mechanical mechanism like arms or elevators)
It aims to integrate AI so users can program their own robots behavior and/or embed other models to achieve autonomous driving or other various tasks
It’s software aims to be a web based block programming focused text based programming optional user friendly software

Challenges(At least the ones I foresee)

How to achieve a simple block coddle way of programming behavior with ai that has a educational meaning and is also simple enough for the age range and block code
How to make electronically connections of the modules so it is flexible and robust enough also being accessible and easy to use
How to design the main module so it keeps a slim profile while being able to pack enough futures for module expendability(Ports spare motors etc)

Similar Project

Mbot 2

What is it?

it is the 2nd version of the one of the most popular edu robots by make block that aims to integrate concepts voice input, Enviorment interaction(they call it this it is image processing with a bit of more sensor data involved) they have more then 1 version of the mbot2(it is the same main frame with other add ons) like a rover one which changes the drivetrain from a 2 wheel supported by a caster wheel to a tank drive system. It has a smart world add-on which basicly allows for interaction with the world via mechanical mechanisms like a claw.

In short

Commercially available product that offers a classroom or a individual robot solution
Offers to integrate newer concepts through ai
offers digital fab solution through modulated electronics
They offer C and U chanelles and mechanical componenets to kids to build custom mechanical mechanisms using on board electronics

Example mBot project

Hp Otto

What is it?

The HP Robots Otto is a modular edu robot that focuses on modularity

In short

Modular, programmable robot
Obstacle avoidance
Line following sensors
Addressable color changing RGB lights
Integrated buzzer robot sounds
Wi-Fi connectivity
USB-C serial communication
Easy-clip connectors and no soldering is required

Otto example project

Otto expansion example

Ciki Ciki Future List

Fully Open Source
2 style drivetrain systems that are quick changable like otto and room for expension.
Additional spare motor outputs so it can power mechanical mechanism modules
Sensor modules with quick connection
- Ultrasonic
- Light
- Color
- Humidity and Temparature
built in sensors and output devices for basic and core functionality
- Camera and image proccesing capibilities to make the robot have emitions and autonomus drive
- IMU for both driving and detecting real world interaction like shaking
- Round displays for displaying emotions
- 2 spare motors for mechanical modules
- 2 motors for the drivetrain
Plug and Play (Built by students pre designed) Mechanical Mechanisms
- Pivot Basket
- Claw
- Elevator with Basket
WebApp:
- Block code capabilities
- Python Support
- Behaviour Coding Support
- Pose Estimation Support
- Autonomus driving coding support
- Course Material for Educators
- Tutorials for Individual users

Student Agreement

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Fab Academy Student Agreement

The Fab Academy is responsible for:

Teaching principles and practices of digital fabrication
Arranging lectures, recitations, meetings, and events for the class
Evaluating and providing feedback on student work
Offering clear standards for completing assignments
Certifying and archiving student progress
Supervising class preparation
Reviewing prospective students, instructors, and labs
Providing central staff and infrastructure for students, instructors, and labs
Fund-raising for costs not covered by student tuition
Managing and reporting on the program’s finances, results, and impacts
Publicizing the program
Promoting a respectful environment free of harassment and discrimination
Encourage a diverse, accessible, and equitable community

I am a Fab Academy student, responsible for:

Attending class lectures and participating in reviews
Developing and documenting projects assigned to introduce and demonstrate skills, in enough detail to be able to reproduce them
Honestly reporting on my work, and appropriately attributing the work of others (both human and machine, including AI prompts)
Being prepared to answer questions about my work
Allowing the Fab Academy to share my work (with attribution) in the class for purposes compatible with its mission
Working safely
Leaving workspaces in the same (or better) condition than I found them
Participating in the upkeep of my lab
Ensuring that my tuition for local and central class costs is covered
Following locally applicable health and safety guidance
Recognizing limits on lab and staff time
Promoting a respectful environment free of harassment and discrimination

Signed by committing this file in my repository,

Ömer Tuna Çavdar

Search

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000