3D Printed Panda - Tinkercad vs Minecraft

Challenge: To create an authentic Minecraft animal using Tinkercad

Background: Prior to our School Market Day one of the projects that we looked at in-depth was the creation of Minecraft animals, creatures and locations (such as buildings) using the medium or tool of Tinkercad to create it.  There were a series of prints that were created - nearly all of these we 

One of the stand out early designs was the Dolphin which was so successful it ended up as a item being sold at the School Market Day as an item (when converted into a keychain).

The other standout was this Panda.  In this instance the student used Tinkercad and coloured the different parts of the design to create the famous black and white pattern.

The figure looked fantastic as a design and worked extremely well as a AR/VR creation that the student was able to project into the classroom and around the school in different locations.

The final step was the printing of the design and looking at what might be completed or have the print turned into something.   This was completed when the students had finished the design, checked on its viability and then printed it out as a physical print.     

Level of Difficulty: Medium/High.  This student choose deliberately a challenging animal to create in Tinkercad - which had distinct features and a very distinct colour combination.   This lent to a discussion about the students using two different colours to complete the print in future (using black and white).

Size: Printed as it was designed the print measured 70mm across was 60mm deep/wide and was 80mm high,  A key factor in determining the final size will be the purpose of the print once the students have assessed it.    

Cost: This was printed on the Bambu H2D as part of the software for printing we are able to determine that the print used 28g of filament and cost $0.75 to produce.

Timeframe: This was completed on the Bambu H2D.   It took one hour to print - if we had used the Snapmaker machines there would have been considerably more rafting, less detail and the print time would have been approximately double.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students: This print would have absolutely benefitted from a different colour scheme and as a result we are intending to reprint it once its purpose has been determined.   The creation was completed by an eight year old.

If you would like to see additional ideas from our students with regards to cross over designs you can click on the links to further Minecraft vs Tinkercad designs here.   You can click on this link to see our students combining Tinkercad, their iPads and Pic Collage here.

As always a reminder that you can use the search bar top right to use keywords such as 'Minecraft' and 'Pic Collage' to see the designs and creations that our students have been working on and various projects from the last ten years.