My Final Project

To start my Fab Academy journey, I chose to adapt a project idea I was developing for a Spring Camp Program I’m developing for Moonlighter FabLab. The theme is Build-A-Board and is all about teaching campers to come up with their own board game ideas, layouts, game pieces and rules.

Project Design Intent

To design a game board that can adapt to various board game formats. This device connects to an app that controls the light display, tile layout, movement sequences and player tracking.

Design

Using a PCB layout similar to a keyboard, each tile will act as a key clicked with each player move. The cells will be numbered to follow a typical chess board I will need to study keyboard and key assemblies. The general idea is that the key assembly would allow the tile to click smoothly while the RGB LED shines through uninterrupted.

Components of the Project

User Interface - A program to track moves, control LED patterns, track players, track time, and randomize outcomes.

Output - LED lights in tiles for game layout and response to player moves.

Input - Key strokes from players moving on board.

Weighted Game Pieces - Make a full set of chess pieces to match the board.

While working on the concept I saw so many possibilities for integrating software and hardware. I am still at basic level when it comes to most electronics and programing so my first thought was to make the prototype using the Makey Makey interface. I was soon advised by my instructors that I would need to advance my thinking as soon as possible. I had a very enlightening conversation with my friend Alie who is a genius when it comes to electronics and LEDs. We walked through the options for sensors, types of boards, how i should breakdown the variations of the projects to save time while maximizing progress. It was this conversation that got me thinking about a keyboard functionality with integrated LEDs. This is my goal however we also discussed incorporating NFC readers to better track specific game pieces.

3D Model in Rhino 8

I started a 3D model using Rhino 8. I have been using this software for a few years and have learned new techniques and workflows with every new project. For my board game, I began designing the basic shape. It would be a square layout of 8x8 tiles. I used the BOX tool to create the shapes and moved them arround as needed.

The next stage of my design was to test component details. I designed a place holder for a standard switch focussing in the connections between the switch and the tile. I used BOX tool and the boolean operations to create the final geometry.

I jumped ahead and created a more detailed version of the board design. I continued using the BOX tool along with BOOLEAN DIFFERENCE to create hollow top and bottom shells. I also used the CHAMFER EDGE tool to make the design more comfortable to handle. By adding materials and colors to the tiles, I was able to prepare the model for rendering.

Rendering in Twinmotion

In Twinmotion, I was able to sync the 3D model and apply materials and lighting effects. I also added park scene using grass, bushes, park furniture and people. You can see the results of the project in the short video.

Logo Design in Adobe Illustrator

To make a logo design, I started with rounded squares in Adobe Illustrator. I have used Illustrator for several years in a variety of applications. Logo design is one area in which I have a lot of passion. The challenge for this project was to design a usable logo in as little time as possible. I arranged the square into 2 overlapping diamonds to form an '8' configuration.

I rotated the shapes to the desired orientation and used the SHAPE BUILDER tool to unify the elements. I always like to copy my elements before combining them as to maintain a backup in my file.

To create the font, I used the same shape as a base and arranged it to form the letters of the name of the game. I used the SHAPE BUILDER tool again to unify the elements and used the SCISSORS tool to remove the unwanted line segments.

Nest I had to layout my elements. I tried adding the '8' in place of an 'I' for Magic. I then used evenly spaced vertical lines to maintain the proportions of the elements.

I copied the logo to test different variations. By changing the stroke thickness, I was able to make the text more bold and feel more prominent.

I also changed the '8' fill to black to increse the visual weight.

The final steps were to move the '8' to be centered above the text and create an 'I'. This became a variation of the original design, however, I think I prefer how it was before.

Vinyl Cutter

Materials

Qty	Description	Price	Link
Material one	22.00 $	https://amazon.com/testoe	Order many
Material two	22.00 $	https://amazon.com/testoe
Material three	22.00 $	https://amazon.com/testoe
Material four	22.00 $	https://amazon.com/testoe

Project Plan View full details →

Task list and timeline for the Magic 8 project.