3D Printed Junior Tinkercad Progression Design

 

Challenge: To produce a label that is suitable for a adult to use to attach to a gear bag, designed, reshaped and redesigned by a junior.

Background: One of the things that we like to do with the 3D Printer is to try and get the students using Tinkercad and revising, remodelling and improving their design until it has changed significantly or served its purpose.   An example with the process, involving a seven year old (Y3) student designing independently without the input or supervision of a teacher.

The task was straight forward and relatively easy, involving creating a tag for a bag.  We actually took a photograph the cow tag (shown above left, yellow) and used Markup to draw the design.  This gave us a starting point for the student to take the design and bring it into Tinkercad.  We also had the object to refer to the student to ensure that the size was correct.   While he did use the measurement aspect of Tinkercad clearly when the student created prototype (shown above) was compared to the original object in terms of size it was clearly not the correct dimensions - It was 60mm long and 30mm high.

The second design, when revised came from the feedback that was created for person who wanted to use it.   The tag design was more clearly evident and also the top of the design, with a narrow neck for the first one wasn't considered robust enough for a high use object.  Again as can be seen by the example shown left, the dimensions again were not as intended and therefore the shape was requested to be redesigned.   The student was again able to redesign the shape - it should be mentioned that the redesign here is very basic as the student is grouping different designs with lettering and the basic shape with a hole inserted - three basic steps.

The final form of the design was then created by the student.  Again using the tag as the guide this produced a result which finally reflected the dimensions that were originally intended.

The final completed version is as shown left.  In this example the dimensions are correct, while not exactly perfect these were close enough in the range to ensure that the person the design was intended for was happy.

Size: The final design measured 60mm across and was 80mm high.  This design was 5mm thick which significantly allowed a number of the final designs to be published.

Timeframe: Forty five minutes to complete the print.  This allowed multiple versions of the same print to be printed.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students: This print was able to be reshaped and redesigned several times and was shown to the student as a way of having it in their hands to ensure that they understood the changes that needed to be made.   Tinkercad is perfect for junior students to use in this instance to work independently on design - we didn't AR/VR this example before printing it but of course this is something else that could have been done.

3D Printing: Projects Currently Operating

 

Print shown left: A thirty two hour significant print, this was a commercial designed and available version of the Britannic, sister ship of the Titanic.   We have a student at school who has a particular strong interest in this class of ship and wanted to do something special for him, to allow him to have more projects that would develop off it.   In this case it was locating a design of a ship in the series, and printing it.   The size really tested the limits of our Snapmaker Printer - it took thirty two hours to complete and during the process we were constantly checking to ensure there was no PLA issues and the print remained robust and the print worked.   While there were no design features that the students created with this we have already had significant and detailed discussions with the student about the boat, the painting scheme and what else we can add to the project.

While the integrity of the boat remained during printing there were some very subtle features that did not survive the removal of the rafting, chiefly a radio mast at the front of the print and a corresponding print at the back that would have been no more than 1mm across.   

We are continuing to experiment with our 'rainbow PLA' and range of others that have allowed us to print in a finished state without the students wanting to then spray paint the results, saving an additional step.

The examples shown left are student designed labels for multi-purpose items, the labels measure 60mm long and are 20mm wide as well as being 5mm thick.

The print time for these is thirty minutes.

3D Printed Badges 2024 Exemplars

Challenge: Produce a unique name tag.

Background: Student is a Y4 student who has shown a keenness to get involved in creating projects and processes wanted to create a series of labels that could be used to show ownership of items that belonged to them.

The student was able to work independently to produce the prints shown on the left.   They were created in Tinkercad using the basic main design page - none of the aspects of designs took more than thirty seconds to add towards the final product.   The student was able to present to the teacher the final product which was then just printed without any adaption or adjustment.   

Level of Difficulty: Low - completed by the student independently and perfectly.  

Size: The print was 5mm wide and the font for the lettering was a further 5mm up.   The badge measured 80mm and was 60mm high.   These dimensions are perfect for this print to meet the completion of the task.

Timeframe: This print took two and a half hours to successfully print.  There are no plans to change the size or composition of the text or the print.

Next step for the student/what we would do differently: None.   A student driven project that was completed independently by a student to a high degree and would be considered successful.

Laser Cut Basics 101: Phone Holder

 

Basic Project Laser Cut Phone Holder

Once again the challenge for a student using the school laser cutter is to look at projects that could be completed and completed using design (Sketch Up) for the base and the back of the phone and Gimp to locate the karate kicking figure that provided the balance for the stand.

The stand measured 80mm across at the base and is 150mm high.   The design in its current form took two minutes to laser cut out.

A revision of the form is required as the student discovered that the stick figure while providing balance and looking humours and eye catching also was quite fragile.  The design was only 6mm thick as it had been cut from 6mm MDF wood.   Testing showed that if it was dropped that the weight of the base could easily cause a crack in the figure as the legs were quite.  The intention to address this issue with the print is to 3D Print the figure and combine it with the base of the laser cutter and then spray the two elements to link them together.

Basic 3D Printing Projects: Labels and Tags

We have in the past provided extensive details about the process where prints are created, because of that we are going to supply a link to previous years work here and further examples here.

One of our most popular posts on this blog is a 'how to beginners 3D Print' created by some of our students.   This video is linked here.

This design here shown left is a Y3 student designing something for the first time with Tinkercad.   The design measured 65mm across and 50mm high in addition to being 5mm thick.   This print has a total time for completion of just under two hours.

Reimagined Student Name Tag

Challenge: Produce something unique to label items.

Background: The use of the 3D Printer to produce unique items that are student driven or student designed is and has always been one of the key strengths of the technology.   Nearly every student that has completed a 3D Printed design has started with the variation of a name tag/label as these designs typically are highly useable and functional.

Typically the students are able to design these within a few short minutes of using Tinkercad for the first time.  Since we started this blog (in 2015 no less) we have occasionally used other apps for design, however for educational and schooling purposes we have used Tinkercad almost exclusively for its versatility and dependability.  Its educational/classroom set up for the students has been extremely well developed.   In contrast we have changed 3D Printers machines once significantly since the start of this blog due to better machines clearly being available and we have not looked back.

Level of Difficulty: Medium/Low - students should be able to produce something like this independently using Tinkercad in a relative short space of time, there are a few elements with the design that make it a little bit more noticeable - the key feature would be the name being sunk into the design instead of  sticking out above the print - this means that the lettering would not fall off as experienced is the lettering had been inversed.

Size: 70mm long, 50mm across and 10mm thick.    This produced a versatile print that was robust and strong enough that there would be no concerns with its durability.

Timeframe: Ninety minutes.  Given that the dimensions listed above were what was required there would be no change to the printing time as no adjustment would be made to the print.

What we would do differently/Next Steps for the students: Nil/None.   This print has designed and executed perfectly from the point of view of the student (who is a Y7 students, twelve years old) and the point of view of the classroom teacher (who is not myself, the student brought me the finish print and asked that this be printed as it was).

3D Printing in the Junior School - Independent 2023

Due to change in the school organisation for 2023 the classroom for this teacher for this year is students that are Y3/4 these students are eight and nine year olds, for the most part they have had very limited experience and use of 3D Printers and using software to design objects.

We have started the year with some basic designs to get the students excited and to see who might be able to create and design.  As a starting point we used the same template and instructions that we might have expected to have worked with more senior (older) students.

We have a 1:1 iPad classroom, the students are using Flipped Video content for their instructions, videos made on this site in the past by students from various classrooms.

The students within the first week of class were independently producing some basic shaped prints following this formula, successfully.   As a result we are encouraging their design and thinking as much as possible.      We have allowed them to print and keep their first initial prints and brainstormed ideas to look at repairing and making things in the context of the school to keep them designing and making.    Theses prints have come in as short as half an hour, with sizes in the 50mm range.    

The last step as usual is the spray painting of these shapes.   

Some of the student have had to make slight adjustments but these have been minimal.

Further details on this process can be found by locating some of our tutorials and designs linked via this blog here.

2022 Introductory Projects: Refining Basic Ideas

One of the issues when having a 'new' group of students in the classroom as we have this year is we have been pushing out 3D design to some of our younger classrooms, so when the students make it to our room they are already well versed and experienced in using Tinkercad and have in many cases already completed basic designs.

One of the options here for their first individual prints is to look for examples that are 'different' or more creative.   One is example is sinking the lettering into the design rather than have it, a very basic version of this is shown left - the design here is only a 45 minute print, the name of the student stands out by virtue of it being cut out of the design, while the strength is maintained by the print.   This is the standard 80mm by 60mm design - the student in question here wanted to look at redesigning the hole in the top right hand corner, he queried whether or not his design was not perfect, resulting in the rough edging (it was not, it was a result of the plate of the printer having been adjusted by the previous student and not returned to the correct place.   If you have an eagle eye on this blog and an excellent memory you may recall a variation of this design was created two years ago, which is featured in the exemplar section.   This is the same student who two years later is continually using the point of difference created by this in his 3D design and creation.

This design, shown left while it may appear a standard version of the usual tutorial actually has a detail setting it apart from the regular print.   The student concerned wanted to incorporate an arc into the design, and spent a small amount of time making the arc work in terms of design and the overall presentation.

She was able to produce something for someone with a unique name that could not be sourced elsewhere.   The print took sixty minutes to complete and was 90mm by 60mm with the typical dimensions.   The print was created by a student in ten minutes and they spent time refining it to ensure that it met the expectations of the student (who is ten years old).

The arc of the print can be clearly seen in the photograph to the left showing the arc.

The student has been tasked with using spray paint to decorate the design and think about additional aspects of it that can be added to the finished print.

3D Printed Projects: Individualised Basic Projects

Challenge: For students to create (independently) a variety of designs that were original and created and personalized for the purpose of a gift.
Background:  Having completed the 'sound lure' project for the year the 3D Printers here at School were available for a variety of projects.   The students were asked to create a concept or idea, which was original, which allowed them to personalize something and then created it independently.  Some of these projects were inspired by work from the past, which has been already featured on this blog.  Full details of those projects are available in the links next to the photographs.

   Left: An introductory name plate for a student completely new to 3D Printing.  The instructions for the student was prepared by another student who tutored the student, and also in the form of a flipped video that students produced earlier in the year.

This is a basic design/concept/idea that has featured many times on this blog which is detailed here.

This took four and a half hours and was 90mm by 60mm and was 5mm thick with the lettering another 5mm (and star) out from the design,

Another project was similar but 'Christmas Themed' with an insert Reindeer, and hearts that wen through the shape, the name of the student in this instance was sunk into the design of the plate (in contrast to the design above when it was raised up from the base).    The student was also working for the first time on a 3D Printing project and like the student involved in the above project is ten years old.  They were able to be paired up with a student who had worked Tinkercad before and the design was original and personalized.   It was 100mm by 100mm and 5mm thick, with a five hour print time.  Again the tutorial video was used as a back up resource to assist with teaching, and there are considerable Christmas themed examples of this on this blog running from simple designs with a name to individually created 3D Projects based around Christmas ideas (such as the Sleigh featured here).   These projects range in difficulty level from basic, which would take five minutes to much more advanced and complicated designs that would potentially require reworking and remodelling.

A slight variation of the above themes saw the creation of this badge for a child's room, which was created by a student following the format above.   The PLA used by the printer is extremely durable and wearing, meaning that the designs themselves seldom fade or can be broken.  We have been testing this theory with a number of prints to show the evacuation assembly area at school, which when put outside in an exposed area have maintained their shape and form for approaching two years.   This print was 5mm thick, with the lettering and stars an additional 5mm, 60mm high and 140mm across the print time was four and a half hours.

In the final design that we wanted to highlight, a student wanted to create a gift to mark a family members, first Christmas.   Again the basic design format was followed as with other designs in this group.   The design featured no 'rafting' o additional PLA required to complete the project, the student was able to created, design and complete the project themselves while meeting the criteria that was created at the start of the project.   The print measured 140mm across, was 10mm thick (including the lettering in the middle) and featured a whole in the top of the design to attach it to a Christmas Tree.   This took four hours to print on our default settings.

3D Printed Exemplars - Name Badge

Challenge:
Student to produce an original name badge that could be used to identify their property or themselves (for instance a label for their bag). 
Background: An introductory challenge to our students.  This is something for a student who has not produced previously anything using a 3D Printer.   The idea was to produce something that would be basic that could be easily produced and allow the student to be successful, leading to them developing further 3D Printed ideas.   This student went further, producing a pair of 'racing stripes' that provided balance and depth to the print.   The student was thrilled with the result - a large numbers of this print and variations of this task have been produced  - however I would rate this amongst the best in the series in the past few years.   The result had the balance between practicality of the design, being able to be produced as a print and it working - without it being too elaborate, and the size of the print.  As mentioned on this site essentially one printer is running non-stop in a single classroom of twenty seven students to produce as many prints as possible. 
Level of Difficulty: Low - this is produced in five steps, students are currently editing a video which explains these steps as a 'how to' tutorial.   The student mastered this concept easily (it also should be pointed out the student involved is seven years old.
Timeframe: Two hours.   This print benefitted from having the stripes which reduced the print time.   The choice of font size also reduced the amount of filament in the final design and print.   To balance the affect of the design its size relative to its role etc was nigh on perfect.
Size:   The dimensions of the design measured 130mm across, 50mm high and had a width of 5mm. 
What we would do differently: Other than possibly a different base PLA there is very little that we would change.   The final product could have potentially been spray painted, however the student was extremely excited with the design and no further adjustments was required, hence its exemplar status.

3D Prtinted Badge on stand

Above: Design shown from above

Challenge: For student to produce a unit and personalized badge of themselves, their first 3D Print which they had worked on individually.

Background: Student has been wanting for a considerable time to complete his first significant print.   He had seen projects and designs from other members of the classroom and wanted to experiment with the use of feet as a stand.  He was using standard Tinkercad settings and creation options.   He wanted to involve the 'chicken feet' option for the base of the design.  He also was interested in using the new 'Dinosaur' design that has recently been made available to create.   The design of the name itself was basic and the holes that the student had potentially available were made redundant by the fact that the student decided to mount it on the chicken feet.  These feet proved to be slightly problematic.  The feet themselves are thin when printed and removal of rafting around the base of them can lead to them breaking.  In this case a block need to be attached to the top of the leg, super glued to the base and then held in place until it had set. 

Level of Difficulty: Medium.  The issue was with the feet of the design, and the dinosaurs claws that were on the far side of the design.
Time frame: Four hours for the base of the design (this also included the claws that can be seen in the photograph).   The feet were printed in forty five minutes and the blocks that were used to mount them to the base took forty five minutes.
Size: The main base is 120mm by 60mm.  It had a width of 20mm.   The feet are shown to scale.
What we would do differently: The project was more of an attempt for a student to try his hand at 3D Printing for the first time that produce a completely coherent print.   The student was very positive about the experience and enjoyed the final product.   He thought that the chicken legs were unique.  The base with his name raised into it was basic and could have had the students name with a capital letter.  There was no need for the hole in the base of the design, this was created to hang the design from the wall. 
Next steps for the student: This student has taken his first steps with 3D Printing and has made considerable steps and plans already with more complex projects.