FABLAB PERU

Group Assignment:

Do your lab's safety training
Test runout, alignment, fixturing, speeds, feeds, materials, and toolpaths for your machine

Individual Assignment:

Make (design+mill+assemble) something big (~meter-scale)
Extra credit: don't use fasteners or glue
Extra credit: include curved surfaces

Group assignment

As part of the group work, we received an invitation to participate in a meeting with colleagues from the Fab Lab Academy. Through the Fab Lab iFurniture program, Evelin gave us a workshop on occupational risk prevention and safety at work.

Group Training

The group training on safety measures in the workplace of a Fablab was given by Evelyn, manager of Fablab iFurniture. This talk was interesting because of the way she shared her experiences and knowledge in the workplace on computer-controlled machines dedicated to CNC routing and cutting.

Individual assignment

Make (design+mill+assemble) something big (~meter-scale)

Extra credit: don't use fasteners or glue

Extra credit: include curved surfaces

To complete this project, three types of joints were used to connect the pieces precisely and functionally. The choice of joint type is crucial to ensure the stability, durability, and ease of assembly of the parts. Each part is designed to adapt the assembly to different design and functional needs. Each type has its specific advantages, whether it provides a stronger, more flexible, or more adjustable connection.

Design of 2D plans

The first step is to create a 2D plan using CAD software. The plan is then drawn with the corresponding dimensions, joint shapes, angles, and component views of the parts.

Vectric VCarve Pro Software for CNC

To perform the cutting on the UCCI-owned CNC router and with the support of Alexis, I will be using VCarve Pro, a software that provides a good solution for cutting parts on a CNC milling machine, including large pieces larger than 24" x 24". It includes tools for 2D design and 2D and 2.5D toolpath calculation, along with the ability to import and plot toolpaths from a single 3D model (STL, OBJ, etc.).

Import 2D image

The next step is to import the 2D image of the Autocad design into the VCarve Pro window.

View image

The next step is to view the imported image

Plans in execution

Here we can make modifications to the design in terms of measurements and shapes.

Union type

Adjustments are made for the type of union

Final views of the design

Here are the final views of the 2D design.

Importing the design

Next we can import the design into the CNC machine software ShopBot Control Software.

ShopBot Control Software

The latest version of the ShopBot Control Software is always available here for free download. This is the software that runs ShopBot CNC Tools. With the ShopBot Control Software, you can enter individual commands to move the tool or run a ShopBot Part File, a cutting file created in a CAD/CAM program such as the ShopBot Design Software Suite, to cut out a part.

Material selection

To carry out this work, I chose as a base material a pressed wood board measuring 1.5 mm thick and 1.40 x 2.40 m. I placed and fixed this board on the work table of a CNC router from the SHOP BOT brand.