Week 12, Mechanical Design, Machine Design

Overview
Resources
Group Assignment
Enclosure
Sticker
Paper Preparer
Files

Overview

This week, I created an enclosure for the machine, I created some stickers, and I created a thing with 3D design and the 3D printer to help with preparing paper for the plotter to use. I also learned how to use a machine named BN-20A.

Resources

This is the computer image I used.
I used Cuttle to create the enclosure.
I used Inkscape for the stickers.
I used Fusion 360 for the 3D design.

Group Assignment

This is the website for our plotter machine.

Enclosure

I first sent the design to the laser cutter computer.

I arranged two of the three pieces I'm supposed to cut. I also set the speed and power parameters to 30 and 70, respectively.

The machine is cutting:

I cut the other one with the same parameters. Here are the pieces I just cut:

The pieces didn't fit, however.

I added the kerf parameter to the design.

I cut 10 1cm squares to test the kerf of the machine.

The kerf is 1.93 / 20 = 0.0965mm.

I updated the parts and was printing them again. However, just as I was about to print the ones with the female points, I realized that I set the kerf wrong for these specific parts (I accidentally wrote "+kerf" instead of "-kerf" to these parts). So I fixed the design. However, when I tried to put the parts together, they didn't stick to each other.

I started to test with smaller pieces:

These fit perfectly.

I started to think of the differences of my design from Mehmet's design. I realized that I used points and edited them separately while he used boolean rectangles. Then I realized that, when I was adding kerf to Mehmet's design, I didn't do it properly. Since, when I was adding kerf to the rectangles, I wrote "+kerf" to the parameter of the part, the height and width of the rectangles only expanded by half the amount of kerf I wanted it to have. I had to write "+ 2 * kerf" to the height part (and the width part) to give both the top and the bottom (and the sides) an increase in length equal to the kerf.

I changed Mehmet's design while taking this into account and printed the parts again; however, it didn't work this time as well. That's why I decided to just design another one.

I created some components and parameters. Some of the parameters I've created are global, some are private to the components themselves.

As you can see, I decided to add a total of 3 intersections.

I used the pen and added the parameters to the design.

I did it for the other components as well:

I wanted to test the new design so I only printed some of the pieces. The pieces can finally stay together!

I opened a cable hole in the back of the enclosure.

The top part of the enclosure is done.

We printed the bottom part and finished the enclosure!

Sticker

Final Version

Process

I first started by creating a 100mm by 80mm circle, which will be the sticker's size.

I made the face. The first sticker is done. I used the spiral tool and the ellipse tool to make the eyes. I used the calligraphy tool to create the nose and mouth.

For my second sticker, I drew a weird character using the calligraphy tool.

Then, I used union on it with an ordinary circle.

It turned completely black.

Then, I filled the inside with white.

Then, I increased the stroke width.

I repeated this procedure for the other eye as well.

The second sticker is done.

Now, I'll create the third sticker.

I first drew a " .) ".

I gave them faces.

These stickers are all done.

I grouped them accordingly.

I don't know what the others'll create or whether they'll create some stickers at all, but, either way, the plotting robot needs some goofiness, which is why I drew these goofy stickers.

Now, I'll create a sticker to indicate that you can put your computer on the enclosure.

I first imported this image and set its size to 150mm by 177mm.

Then, I right-clicked and selected "Trace Bitmap".

I clicked "Apply" and ended up with this:

I deleted the text.

I created a text and took a photo of it. For some reason, text doesn't get generated in the Cricut website, so I'll do the same I did to the computer image.

The text is ready:

This sticker is now finished.

Since I didn't know the password to the Cricut account, I asked for help from my friend Emre Dayangaç (also in Fab Academy); he helped me with using the BN-20A machine instead.

They're out.

As you can see, there was a problem when printing at first. For some reason, the machine stopped halfway; however, after starting the machine again, it was solved.

Paper Preparer

Idea

I want to create something so that people can quickly (and with little effort) cut 21cm by 21cm paper, which is needed for our plotter machine.

Final Version

Process

Sketch:

I first set the parameters.

I sketched the four legs of the paper preparer. The four big rectangles represent the desired paper (and, as such, have the parameters pwid and plen in their size equation).