3D Printing: Customised Box Junior Engineering

 

Challenge: To produce a customised box for a localised engineering project.

Background: We are always trying to find ways to interact and share with the local community so our students can engage with interaction and learning opportunities.   

In the past we have gone out of our way to talk about the technology available at our school and created projects specifically for locals shops, stores and clubs, these are still in use many years later, including our own school versions as we have detailed in posts such as this.   

In this example one of the members of our local community sought us out to help with a project involved the creation of a specific adaptation of a piece of farming equipment.   For this the individual wanted to have a customised box.

The dimension of the box are not particularly challenging for our Y4 students (who are eight years old) but the person concerned has a specific dimension that he needs.    For the initial design the dimensions of the print didn't match, so the printed design (shown left) was adjusted as the student needed to have the draw in the area marked by the silver pen, and cover the top of the print.

The positive thing was that the student was that the member of the public (a parent from another classroom at our school) is able to pop into class at the end of each day, check on progress and provide feedback to the student about adjustment, so that in a short space of time the print was designed and revised several times.

Size: The specific measurements for what the parent is after is based on its intended use to work in conjunction with an electric fence.   The box measured 50mm across and was 50mm long.   The inside sleeve or box needs to be inside by 20mm, hence creating an insert that is 30mm wide.

Timeframe: The first version of this print took just over sixty minutes, the revised version of the print was slightly expanded on this (the difference being the location of the slot.   This is being refined and will be very specific but is not going to be significantly larger than this.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students: It is going to very much depend on the member of our community.   The potential to get a engaging project working has meant we have been making the students available to adjust the print and return it the following day - for the students the benefits is targeting their design, for the adult they get custom made pieces that are getting completed at 24 hours notice.  It is a partnership we want to encourage and continue with.

3D Printed Original Articulated Animals - Highest Degree of Difficulty

Challenge: To create and successfully print an original articulated animal of challenging design.

Background: The student who has been responsible for creating the original articulated animals including the Kiwi, the Lion and other animals featured on this print was looking for ways to extend her designs and her animals, one of the animals she felt could make a striking design.     She choose an Octopus for this purpose.   The challenge was based around the legs of the Octopus and have them interact with the body of the Octopus.   This took several versions of this print to get correct so the student was happy with it.

Versions one and two featured legs that didn't have the width to support the print and were too fragile and needed to be replaced.   The third completed version the student was more happy with - this however left her thinking about other design aspects - one was the length of the legs, the second was whether it was robust enough to allow it to be repeatedly handled.    Finally the use of the arms as they stand led the student to look into creating a hook for the Octopus so it might be easily hung from the roof and then sway in the wind.

Level of Difficulty: High - this was specifically to challenge this student who has shown a high degree of design, thinking - this was not for the faint heartened and nor was ever intended to be.   

Size: The main body of the Octopus was 60mm across and 45mm high.   The tentacles are currently 50mm long although as noted the student is examining options to develop this further.   

Timeframe: The final version of this print took three and a half hours, earlier versions which were not considered successful were one hour and two hours.   These resulted in the tentacles of the Octopus not being robust enough.   Even with a three hour print examining the eyelets of the tentacles they are looking considerably weak in locations.

What would we do differently/next steps for students: As noted the student has spent considerable time reworking this design at present and is continuing to refine and work on the design this student is showing an incredibly aptitude towards being creative and challenging themselves.    It is anticipated that she will rework this design again considerably.

However this is a student who is twelve years old working independently to an extremely high standard.