Week 2 - Computer Aided Design

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Hero shot:

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TL;DR

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This week’s topic was Computer Aided Design where we discovered various design types and tools. 2D design is mainly divided into raster and vector. 3D design is represented in 3 different ways: Boundary, volume, function. This week’s assignment was to model a possible final project using various design types and tools. I used Gimp for raster, Inkscape for vector, and Fusion 360 for 3D modeling.

2D Design

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Raster

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Raster designs use pixels to represent images. So, when you zoom into a design, you can clearly see the pixels that make up the image. File types: jpg, png, gif, tif

Gimp

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Gimp is a free software that lets you create raster designs.

Before working on my final project design, I tried to figure out how Gimp works. I realized there are a bunch of different brushes so I tried them :3

Even drawing a brown rectangle was quite time-consuming for me. I found it very hard to navigate around this software and did not like it. I don’t think I will use it in the future if I’m not required to. Even so, I managed to finalize a very very basic design of my final project.

Vector

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Inkscape

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Vector designs are designs that define images using the mathematical expressions of geometric shapes. On the right side under “Layers and Object” you can see this:

I have used Inkscape before, although briefly. And I can assure you that I like it much more than Gimp. I designed my final project as below:

3D Design

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For 3D design, I wanted to use the tool I am most familiar with but not very pro at.

Fusion

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I have used Fusion before in my engineering classes. I think it is one of the easiest and capable tools from end-to-end designs. I love that you can create models, technical drawings, and even use it to generate g-codes for CNC machining.

One of the best features in Fusion is its parametric modeling capability.

I used parametric modeling for to create the 3D design of my final project. However, for now, it is just a beginner level design to visualize my idea. I will have to make a plan on how to produce it and create the 3D design according to that plan. ![Fusion 360 Render](./hero-shot.jpg “

Here is the video of how I designed it:

File Compression

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Images: Squoosh
Videos: HandBrake but eventually decided to link to Youtube.

CAD Files

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• Fusion 360 (STEP): ZenbienceCAD1.step.zip
• Gimp (XCF): zenbience_gimp.xcf.zip
• Inkscape (SVG): zenbience_inkscape.svg.zip