3D Printed Basic Tap Design

Tap with block insert pictured right

Challenge: To create from scratch a tap (faucet for our American friends) that would be viable and working suitable for use with a worm farm.  Students involved were Y2-Y4.
Background: Junior School students from another classroom had been creating a realistic sized model of a worm farm for a showcase (parents eventing).   They had mocked up a model but the teacher as looking for something extra to complete the display.   Our class released two students to work with the junior school students.  For both sets of students this was their first original Tinkercad and 3D Printing designs.

Tap with square insert to act as block

Level of Difficulty: Medium to High.  The inital design process involved a challenge to the students to produce a working tap.  With little design experience they attempted to design a working tap - however they were redirected to keep it simple, by producing a tube shape with block that could be inserted into it to act as a block (as shown above).  Once this was successfully printed the students would then start to examine the process of engineering related to a tap and more advanced.  Ideally this would lead to a repeat of the process where the students would look at a more complicated solution.  One of the basic designs 'block' piece did not seal the pipe successfully the student had not considered the implications of producinga square block instead of a round one.   The
Timefame: Initial prints in the series (not featured) were 45 minutes.  This allowed the students to refine their design (as pictured) which put the design (including the block) at two and half hours.
Size: 7cm in length, 2cm high (the deisgn was of course hollow which included significant internal rafting which then needed to be removed using pliers). 
What we would do differently: This print is a work in progress.   The intended progress is to give the students design experience and advance them forward in the process.  Although the 'tap' concept with initially daunting the students concerned have made an excellent start and are already looking to refine and improve their design, hopefully showing a considerable improvement and refinement as they progress with the ideas.