Scribble Animal Challenge - Ten Minute Design

 

Occasionally we have challenges that come up as a result of circumstances, in this instance the opportunity came up for a design challenge that had a limited timeframe.

The students option was to use 'scribble' to design an animal which is one of the tools that is available from the main design page.   As shown left this student designed a cat theme for her design.   As it was created the purpose was a little limited, however when a pair of them were printed the student made the decision to convert them into a pair of ear rings.  We have printed and posted about these in the past, and how it is suited for 3D Printed designs and printing a class set or project.

After the first print was created the next step for the students was to look for ways to use scribble to improve the complexity of the design.   One of the other students in the classroom took the opportunity to use Tinkercads scribble to develop a silhouette of a cat.

Size: The cat measures 80mm from the top to the bottom, is 50mm wide and currently 10mm thick.  For a designed created in the timeframe available.

Timeframe: Forty minutes - given the timeframe and the length of time to design the animal.    The student was able to manipulate the design to their satisfaction.  In this example the student decided to print the design using glow-in-the-dark filament.

Other students have not yet to have the opportunity to print their designs however we have a range of designs waiting to be printed from the students.  A challenge for the students is to ensure that the scribble has linked with the students throughout the design to make sure that the print it is stable.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students:

There are a range of designs coming as this was set as a class task, and we have a class of twenty six students.   All of the student were able to produce work, and not all of it will make the process of printing, due to its format and function.  We have also asked the students to test the viability of the prints before submitting them for printing.  We also have the option of having the students AR/VR their design.

3D Printed Cat Designs - Revised Versions

 

Challenge: To produce a unique and original 3D printed cat.

Background: This was designed by the students in Tinkercad, using the main interface.   Of note with the design features several parts from Tinkercad that can be used as part of the template to easily build features.  The two that are most noticeable are the paws at the base of the design and the tail.

The student also used the main geometric shapes to produce the rest of the animal and was going to use eyes to create the features for the face.  The designs have developed considerable since the first versions of them that were posted on this blog.

A section was removed at the back of the animal to ensure that the design had a purpose, which was for storage.   

The student who completed this project and is continuing to work on it is an eight year old

Size: The main body of the cat is 70mm long 40mm wide and 40mm high.    The head a further 30mm and the tail was another 50mm long.   The student had intended for this to be larger however we wanted to ensure that a few issues related to this design was resolved before we upscaled it.   One of Tinkercads best features is the potential to scale designs up or down depending 

Timeframe: Three hours to complete the print.  As noted this is intended to be an upsized print once it is proven to be workable with the current features.

What we would do differently/next steps for the student: The student is being challenged by the facial features presented by the cat.  They have changed this part of the design several times as they attempt to complete something that they are happy with.   They are intending to use additional eyes for the printing process and to base the design something similar to the red cat that is shown here.

Dolls House 2025: Major Update

 

Earlier this year we spent a number of weeks working on a significant project involving our technology, as we attempted to rebuild and then fully furnish a Dolls House for the junior school students at Auroa Primary School.

It was always the intention to repair the original item and replace the pieces while maintaining as much of the original as possible.   The more that we investigated this and started the process, particularly with the chipboard that made up the bulk of the item the more that we realised this was not really possible.  MDF when it becomes wet becomes 'fluffy' and cannot be returned to its original state.   This was the case in a number of places for the original dolls house.

As a result we have undertaken an entire rebuild of the structure using the laser cutter to create the sides.   The junior students from the classroom used the printers to create the furniture to fit inside the dolls house, as the dimensions for the replacement are still valid and would work with the new structure.

The material that the students designed could then be inserted directly into the new .   This project has been completed with precision and accuracy and the students primary role has been to put the pieces together once they have been cut.

The final step for this project, now that the structure has been built will be to seal it, to ensure that it lasts for as long as possible and then combine it with the 3D printed furniture so it can be used in the junior classroom.

The dimensions of the project are extremely large as it is a regular full scale dolls house.  The laser cut measures 1200mm across the front, has a depth of 400mm and is 600mm high split into two levels.   Stairs and dividing walls for each of the sections of the house are going to be added.
 

Junior Masterclass: Monster Exemplar

 

Challenge: To create an original monster with storage as part of a classroom challenge.   

Background: This came as part of a general classroom challenge that was set for the entire class.   One of the students began to work on a design that was inspired by the Pixar Movie Monsters Inc.  The student used the main Tinkercad  interface for details such as the hands and the feet and spent considerable time ensuring that the creature had balance.   The hands were designed deliberately to complement the base of the monster and provide balance for the overall project.

Once the design was completed the student then applied the Tinkercad Apps AR/VR function to the design to their creation.  This allowed them to check the viability of the design prior to the 3D Printing.  As the figure itself lent itself to being comical the students spent considerable time placing the figure in a number of locations interacting in a range of situations and with others.

The final stage of the initial development was for the student to make decisions about the decoration of the print after printing.   The student wanted to spray paint the design, then spend time with the decoration of the eyeball as a dominant feature.   While this has yet to be completed the idea from the student is to use paint for the eyeball and then put the detail into the iris etc.

As shown left the student opted to change the colour of the red PLA by spray painting it lime green.    The student who created this design was a Y4 student making them eight years old - they have been designing for the second year using Tinkercad.

During the removal of PLA the teacher made every attempt to minimise the removal of the print itself, as it is always a delicate matter.   The print suffered some small damage with the horns and the teeth of the project.  

The teeth that were in the mouth also suffered some unintentional damage to some of the oversized teeth.   However enough structure was maintained in the model to make it a striking example.

The student was able clearly demonstrate as well that they applied a basic shape to the head which meant the the design had a purpose of storage and also reduced the overall print time.

Size: The main base of the print measures 100mm long is 70mm high and 60mm deep.   The arms as shown are 30mm across and 70mm long.    The print dimensions could work in a variety of sizes however this was intended as a large size for the storage purpose.

Timeframe: Six hours the arms needed support as did the base of the design around the feet and the teeth.   This was unavoidable in this instance but needed to maintain the integrity of the print.

What we would do differently/Next Steps for the Students: The student was thrilled with the result, it goes without saying however there are additional things that they want to focus on.  The horn has already been mentioned, needing to be more robust, the teeth suffered some damage when the rafting was removed - both these would need to have a slight increase in size.   The student has, as noted, made plans to change the eye of the design into a focal point.

3D Printed Glow-in-the-dark 2025 Edition

We have started the process of looking critically at each of our Market Day 2025 projects and asking ourselves how we can offer something different to our project and how we can increase the desirability of our products.  One of the discussion points that we have had was our students was how they might be able to integrate glow-in-the-dark filament into their current designs.   This filament would be used as a point of difference for a design as we see it used infrequently.   The process by which it is used in the classroom is identical to how regular PLA is used, the only difference that we have noted in the past on this blog was that the quality of the print was not as robust with this speciality filament.   This is not the case anymore as the PLA that we have been using has printed more or less exactly how we would expect it to print.   Previously when we printed using the special PLA it tended to be something we moved away from after a short space of time for that reason.   In this case we took three examples of Market Day 2025 Products and applied the same process to them.

Although the photographs shown do not completely show it, there is a clear level of illumination from using the product which gives it a point of difference.

Several of our Market Day 2025 products either feature light or light aspects (as we have shown night lights have proven to be popular).    As a result combining the design with the student creations have served the dual person of further innovation but also allowing a point of difference to be created.

Laser Cut School Tokens

 

We have a reward system for our students based around our school values.    Students are rewarded for behaviour and participating in school events, receiving a token in exchange.

This item is then put into a bank when it can be counted for the assembly on Friday.   This was produced on the laser cutter and cut into perspex.

This is something that measured 50mm across was 5mm thick.

It was able to be produced significantly and in large numbers.

3D Printed Market Day: Bath Toys

 

Our groups are currently preparing for our 2025 Market Day at school, which is being held at the start of next term (so this term we are completing the process of making of the personalised items).    As we have stated before one of the groups is based around the idea of bath toys.

They are now producing their items for our school event.   They have been testing the prototypes and also looking at refining their original ideas to ensure that they are unique but also viable to be sold for a nominal fee.

As we have detailed previously with a 20% infill as a default for nearly everything we print here in most cases the 3D print as a result is buoyant and will float when placed in water.

The group came up with the idea of producing a range of Octopi called 'Ollie the Octopus' which are produced in a range shown left.   The students have created features on their designs and also added some basic accessories for the design, although this created several challenges.

One of the most pressing has been the fact that when the print floats in water if it is too top heavy it will tip over instantly as is the case with the angled top hat shown left.   Students have addressed this issue by ensuring that the print is balanced.   The same issue arose earlier this year with our boat building challenge.

This has taught the student a valuable lesson in balance.  We also have had opportunities to test the prints.  Our junior students have a morning once a week where they have a discovery time at this time they are able to create and explore.   This past Friday one of the activities involved 3D Printed designs which have featured on this blog in the past.   These designs are now several years old however there has been no affect on the prints since they have been completed and they are constantly used as a point of reference.

We included prints shown left such as the butterfly from 2022, the Amazon Dolphin from 2023.    Students were able to interact with this prints, some of which floated and some of which if they had a hole in them, as a result of the printing process,