3D Printed Student Business Container

Completed print with the lid in place

Challenge: Students to produce a working sample model container for a business that they are running.  Sample container needs to hold a variety of liquids and other items that the business could potentially produce - the students were still developing a business model and idea when they decided to work on the containers.
Background: The students had shown an interest in running a small scale business (they are ten years old) they had limited experience with 3D Printing, and took some inspiration from the class next door who had produced mock up models of these for a project evening where the parents and the local community came to view the students term work on display.  Their intent was to produce a container that could hold a sample of product that they were looking at producing such as lip balm or other cosmetics.  The successful construction of a container that would be water tight and potentially sealed would allow a variety of products to be produced.

Base and lid clearly shown

Level of Difficulty: Low - the print consists of two parts, with a hollow out centre.  The shape is obviously heart inspired and was created using the Tinkercad main interface.  There was potentially additional features that could have been added (see below).  Both students had experience in 3D Printed in the classroom this year and we looking to extend themselves by creating this project from scratch without the input of others. 
Timeframe: Three and a half hour total print.  The lid as shown has a significant hole in it, which allows the product inside to be easily viewed.  The base was hollowed out to allow the container to hold liquid and 'product'.   Additional features could potentially be added (see below). 

Size: The box is 8cm across, has a length of 6cm and is 4cm high.    The width of the sides of the box was 5mm.  The depth of the lid likewise was 5mm.
What we would do differently: Nothing (again see below) the print worked exactly as was intended.   The students were wanting the package to guide their products and influence what they were able to manufacture.
Next Challenge for the students: The business that they are developing could have its name, or the initials of the business inserted into either the lid or the base.  The students contemplated doing this however there have been some issues with lettering etc on smaller prints (and again we were using a 8mm nozzle not a 4mm which could have potentailly improved the detail but would have significantly increased the print time).

3D Printed Glow in the Dark Container

Container with lid

Challenge: To produce a working container for a School display that is functional and able to store items.   Glow-in-the-dark filament was used to create a point of interest/wow factor.  Container would need to feature a working lid that worked in conjunction with the base.
Background: Group was looking for an item to feature as part of their display for a school and cluster (group of schools) showcase taking place for the parents and local community.    The students had a background in design using Tinkercad having spent most of the year working on the projects featured on this site.  Students were nine and ten years old.   Design was created using Tinkercad and Cura for Printing.
Level of Difficulty: Low.  The students design was complicated only by the filament used.  With our experience with the glow-in-the-dark-filament, instead of regular PLA the quality of the print tends to be compromised slightly, we have investigated changing the print settings but tend to get more challenged prints.   The basic Tinkercad interface was used to produce the base, the lid, the drop

Filament 'burn' shown on container

down lid on the inside and the handle.  We ran the print twice to get a better result from the filament with exactly the same design and settings (this was the first of the new roll of filament).
Timeframe: Six hours.   Print times are exactly the same regardless of the filament used.  The shape could have been slightly refined depending on the purpose of the container of what it was holding.
Size: The base design was 8cm across and 8cm high.   The width of the internal walls was 5mm.   The lid had similar dimension being 7cm across, a 1cm depth in total (including 5mm drop down lid) the handle was 3cm high.    As noted these dimensions were created by the students with the design of the container in mind rather than specific for the project.
What we would do differently: The name of the students and the group that they working as part of could have been included in the design - the lid itself while it had a drop down aspect fitted losely.  Both these things could have added considerably to the design and the project. 
Next steps for students: Research the temperature settings for Glow-in-the-dark filament and then experiment with alternative temperature to reduce the 'burn' part of the printing process shown.   As noted above the container could have been more personalised. 

3D Printed Delux Business Project Container

Container with lid in place

Challenge: Students are creating a contained suitable for holding liquid.   Container needs to be accessed by a lid which is able to work in conjunction with the base. 
Background: Y4 Students were producing a 3D print for a student based business, which was be presented to the local community for an evening event.  Students in this classroom had produced smaller versions of this previously document on this blog.  Students were using Tinkercad for the first time, with the basic interface was utilized.

Box shown with lid.

Level of Difficulty: Low-medium.  Nearly every previous print in the sequence had issues with the lid matching the base.  In this case the students designed a lid that fitted perfectly. 
Timeframe: Ten hours were required to print the base and the lid.  The size of the container had been designed by the students and perhaps could have had reduced dimensions (see below).
Size: The base of the container  had a length of 8cm, a width of 8cm and a height of 10cm.   The width of the size was 5mm.  The size of the lid reflected these dimensions with a total width of 1cm split into the lid and the drop down aspect of the lid (as shown top right).
What we would do differently: Given the aspects of the design and it originating from a student creating something for the first time, it was an extremely successful print.  The student was using a printer for the first time, the design features while basic meant that the student was thrilled with the results.
Next Step for the students: A handle could have been added to the print to allow it to be easily removed, which would have been a basic step to take, the student could have also experimented with design features.