10 professional sketches
For this project we had to do ten professional sketches. I had a lot of fun with this trying to figure out good objects to draw. I really tried to focus on shading. Most of my drawings were done in pencil, I did two in ball point pen, and I did one with pencil and colored pencil. After seeing the final picture colored in, I wish I would have done more with color. I think that one was one of my bests.
softball lamp
My softball lamp is perfect for any softball player who wants to spice up their room! There are 3 ASA certified softballs, an easy on/off switch, and an energy smart light bulb! The softballs can be signed by teammates to celebrate special events and really make this lamp meaningful.
I came up with this project because I have played softball my entire life and it is my passion. I knew that I somehow wanted to do something that incorporated softball. Since I moved into my new apartment this year, I realized that I needed a lamp for my bedside table. So I figured why not make a softball lamp! I first thought of using a small bat as the center tube of the lamp with the balls being used as the base. Unfortunately I couldn't find a lamp that would work with this idea as well as figure out a way to drill all the way through the bat. So I decided to go with my second idea which was to put softballs up the center tube of the lamp.
I bought three new softballs and a lamp. I quickly realized hat in order to put the balls on the tube I was going to have to remove the on/off switch, the plug and the base of the lamp. So I unscrewed the switch, cut the cord to remove the plug and then slid the base off of the cord. Now it would be easy to put the balls on the tube. But first I had to drill holes through the softballs. I found a piece of scrap wood and drilled a hole into it so the softball would be anchored while drilling. I used a 15/32 drill bit to drill through the balls so that there would be a snug fit onto the tube. I had to make sure that the view from the side was the view I wanted to see on the lamp before I started drilling. After it was lined up, I drilled a hole through the center of the balls. Then I was able to slide the balls onto the tube of the lamp. Next I slid the base back into place and screwed it back on. I then reattached the on/off switch. After that I made the lamp shade by following the directions from the box. The last thing I had to do was reattach the plug. I had to buy plug that you could open up to reattach the wires. Then I stripped the wires and attached them to the new plug. After this I closed up the new plug and the lamp was ready for use!
I really can't wait to start using this lamp!!
I came up with this project because I have played softball my entire life and it is my passion. I knew that I somehow wanted to do something that incorporated softball. Since I moved into my new apartment this year, I realized that I needed a lamp for my bedside table. So I figured why not make a softball lamp! I first thought of using a small bat as the center tube of the lamp with the balls being used as the base. Unfortunately I couldn't find a lamp that would work with this idea as well as figure out a way to drill all the way through the bat. So I decided to go with my second idea which was to put softballs up the center tube of the lamp.
I bought three new softballs and a lamp. I quickly realized hat in order to put the balls on the tube I was going to have to remove the on/off switch, the plug and the base of the lamp. So I unscrewed the switch, cut the cord to remove the plug and then slid the base off of the cord. Now it would be easy to put the balls on the tube. But first I had to drill holes through the softballs. I found a piece of scrap wood and drilled a hole into it so the softball would be anchored while drilling. I used a 15/32 drill bit to drill through the balls so that there would be a snug fit onto the tube. I had to make sure that the view from the side was the view I wanted to see on the lamp before I started drilling. After it was lined up, I drilled a hole through the center of the balls. Then I was able to slide the balls onto the tube of the lamp. Next I slid the base back into place and screwed it back on. I then reattached the on/off switch. After that I made the lamp shade by following the directions from the box. The last thing I had to do was reattach the plug. I had to buy plug that you could open up to reattach the wires. Then I stripped the wires and attached them to the new plug. After this I closed up the new plug and the lamp was ready for use!
I really can't wait to start using this lamp!!
My clay model of a mouse
For this project our goal was to create a clay model of an object that you can hold in your hand. I chose to do a model of a computer mouse because I really like the contoured shape of the computer mouse that I own. Since I was working with a lot of really messy and sticky materials some of my pictures unfortunately came out a little blurry, but you can still get the idea.
First I made a small box out of cardboard and filled it with the expanding foam. After I did that I worked on cutting out the rough shape of the mouse in the foam. After I created a shape that looked similar to the mouse I started adding clay on top of the mold. Once I covered all of the foam, I worked on smoothing the clay. The clay still wasn't exactly where I wanted it, so I started shaving clay off of the mold using the provided tools in the lab. I got all of the contours of the mouse, then again smoothed the surface so it would have a nice finish. Lastly I used a knife to draw the lines for all of the features on the mouse.
First I made a small box out of cardboard and filled it with the expanding foam. After I did that I worked on cutting out the rough shape of the mouse in the foam. After I created a shape that looked similar to the mouse I started adding clay on top of the mold. Once I covered all of the foam, I worked on smoothing the clay. The clay still wasn't exactly where I wanted it, so I started shaving clay off of the mold using the provided tools in the lab. I got all of the contours of the mouse, then again smoothed the surface so it would have a nice finish. Lastly I used a knife to draw the lines for all of the features on the mouse.
The bow buddy
The Bow Buddy is a bow tie to store your headphones when you aren't using them and to keep them from tangling! To use the Bow Buddy, first you insert the cord end into the hole and pull all of your cord until you come to your ear buds. Then you start wrapping the cord around the center of the bow tie. Once you get close to the end of the cord you can the insert the end of the cord through the hole again to keep everything in place. The Bow Buddy is small enough to fit in your backpack or pocket and since it is made out of silicon won't break if it is dropped or sat on.
Katy and I came up with this idea because we are always pulling our headphones out to use and getting annoyed that we have to untangle them first. We thought that this would also be a nice Christmas present to give to our friends and family.
We designed the shape of the Bow Buddy in Solidworks making sure to have draft angles in our part to aid in removal from the mold. We also made sure not to have any sharp corners that would be hard for the silicon to flow into. Once the part was made we reverse engineered the two piece mold. We made one half of the mold without the hole and with just a sketch for the aligning pieces so we could use that to make both halves instead of also trying to design the other half of the mold. On one half we extruded the aligning pieces and on the other half we extrude cut. This way we knew that they would match up and fit together. Lastly we made the column that would make the hole in our part. We wanted to ensure that the two would fit together and not keep let silicon between them as well as keep the mold from closing. We make the smaller cylinder on the larger on and a cut out for the small cylinder on the other half of the mold to ensure that no silicon would get between the two. We also made sure to keep it just a tiny bit shorter than it had to be to guarantee that the two halves of the mold would fit together.
Once our mold was printed, we went to the lab, sprayed mold release on the inside of our mold, and followed the directions for creating our part. Although, we did do one extra step to ensure all of the air bubbles were removed from our piece. After we poured the silicon into the mold, we put the mold back into the vacuum. This ensured that all of the air bubbles were out of the mold so the part would come out being the exact shape of our mold. And as you can see from the pictures above, we succeeded!
Katy and I came up with this idea because we are always pulling our headphones out to use and getting annoyed that we have to untangle them first. We thought that this would also be a nice Christmas present to give to our friends and family.
We designed the shape of the Bow Buddy in Solidworks making sure to have draft angles in our part to aid in removal from the mold. We also made sure not to have any sharp corners that would be hard for the silicon to flow into. Once the part was made we reverse engineered the two piece mold. We made one half of the mold without the hole and with just a sketch for the aligning pieces so we could use that to make both halves instead of also trying to design the other half of the mold. On one half we extruded the aligning pieces and on the other half we extrude cut. This way we knew that they would match up and fit together. Lastly we made the column that would make the hole in our part. We wanted to ensure that the two would fit together and not keep let silicon between them as well as keep the mold from closing. We make the smaller cylinder on the larger on and a cut out for the small cylinder on the other half of the mold to ensure that no silicon would get between the two. We also made sure to keep it just a tiny bit shorter than it had to be to guarantee that the two halves of the mold would fit together.
Once our mold was printed, we went to the lab, sprayed mold release on the inside of our mold, and followed the directions for creating our part. Although, we did do one extra step to ensure all of the air bubbles were removed from our piece. After we poured the silicon into the mold, we put the mold back into the vacuum. This ensured that all of the air bubbles were out of the mold so the part would come out being the exact shape of our mold. And as you can see from the pictures above, we succeeded!
Keep outs
Keep Outs are safety goggles that are fit to your face! All incoming students will get their faces scanned to have their very own custom protective goggles, CPD. The base components will be available at all laboratories on campus, while students will just be required to keep their custom part handy if they want to use the lab.
I wanted my design to cover every opening that there was, so I made sure to have a top, bottom and sides to prevent things from getting in your eyes. I went with a press fit to connect the base component to the goggles because if this was made out of acrylic I thought that having snap fits would eventually crack the acrylic. The press fits were designed to fit pretty tightly so that the goggles would not slide if you looked up, they would stay exactly where they were when looking straight ahead. Everything had rounded edges to keep the goggles and base component comfortable to wear for the user.
I wanted my design to cover every opening that there was, so I made sure to have a top, bottom and sides to prevent things from getting in your eyes. I went with a press fit to connect the base component to the goggles because if this was made out of acrylic I thought that having snap fits would eventually crack the acrylic. The press fits were designed to fit pretty tightly so that the goggles would not slide if you looked up, they would stay exactly where they were when looking straight ahead. Everything had rounded edges to keep the goggles and base component comfortable to wear for the user.
Any leftover pizza box
You order pizza and have leftovers, so now what do you do with them? The box the pizza came in is probably too big for all of the left over pizza, so what do you do with it? The Any Leftover Pizza Box solves this problem, if the box is to large for all of your leftovers, you can tear the box along the pre-drawn lines to have a smaller box that better accommodates the amount of pizza left. This gives you more room in your fridge! Also since you are using the box it came in for storage, you are using less plastic wrap and bags!
I decided on this design because every time I order pizza, I never know what to do with the leftovers. Do I leave them in the box and try and squeeze it in somewhere? Or wrap all of the pieces in aluminum foil or plastic wrap or bags? I feel like that is a huge waste as well. So I thought that if you could use the box, but make it smaller that would be ideal by saving on space in the fridge as well as waste for wrapping the pizza in something else. If I could have found larger cardboard I would have made a large, medium, and small cutouts inside of the box for more options for your leftovers.
I decided on this design because every time I order pizza, I never know what to do with the leftovers. Do I leave them in the box and try and squeeze it in somewhere? Or wrap all of the pieces in aluminum foil or plastic wrap or bags? I feel like that is a huge waste as well. So I thought that if you could use the box, but make it smaller that would be ideal by saving on space in the fridge as well as waste for wrapping the pizza in something else. If I could have found larger cardboard I would have made a large, medium, and small cutouts inside of the box for more options for your leftovers.
The Paper gripper
The Paper Gripper will help keep your office or home uncluttered and organized. This magnetic paper holder will hold at least 3 sheets of regular printer paper. Paper can be easily placed and removed from the Paper Gripper with this sleek design. The plastic used in this product was recycled from other laser cut parts as to make less of an impact on the environment.
For this project, I wast trying to think green by recycling scrap pieces of acrylic from previous projects. This also made my life easier because I couldn't get on the laser printer since it was so busy. So I went in to the lab and just started bending my piece of acrylic until I found a shape that I liked. Once I found that shape, I heated it again to open up the curve to fit the metal ball inside, then heated it once more to fit the ball inside. Unfortunately when I tried adding the magnets onto the back I had trouble getting the paper to go into or staying in the gripper. I had to keep heating the acrylic and it became very frustrating. Once I finally got it, I went to glue on the magnets but had to remove the tape to glue down. I must have shifted the magnets because then I had to reheat and shape the gripper for probably about the 20th time by that point. I know that this ended up not working as well as it could have but unfortunately I gave up trying to reshape it out of frustration.
For this project, I wast trying to think green by recycling scrap pieces of acrylic from previous projects. This also made my life easier because I couldn't get on the laser printer since it was so busy. So I went in to the lab and just started bending my piece of acrylic until I found a shape that I liked. Once I found that shape, I heated it again to open up the curve to fit the metal ball inside, then heated it once more to fit the ball inside. Unfortunately when I tried adding the magnets onto the back I had trouble getting the paper to go into or staying in the gripper. I had to keep heating the acrylic and it became very frustrating. Once I finally got it, I went to glue on the magnets but had to remove the tape to glue down. I must have shifted the magnets because then I had to reheat and shape the gripper for probably about the 20th time by that point. I know that this ended up not working as well as it could have but unfortunately I gave up trying to reshape it out of frustration.
The Carabean
The Carabean is a cup-holder that is used in conjunction with the Campfire Coffee Cup. After the Campfire Coffee Cup is taken off the fire, it is too hot to grab. The Carabean has an ergonomic handle that keeps your hand from getting burned so you can enjoy your hot beverage. This product weighs less than 0.05 pounds and can be clipped anywhere with a carabineer, so it will not be a burden on your long hikes!
I knew I definitely wanted to use a handle in my design, this would keep the hiker's hand from being burned. I also wanted something very simple because I was afraid that working with a heat gun and acrylic would be difficult (I learned that this was not so true!!). I was thinking about things that hikers would have on them that they could use to hold the cup holder, I didn't want to make a clasp or something like that because it would add more weight. I wanted to keep the design as light as possible. Some hikers keep carabineers with them to use for various different things while on their hikes. I thought that using a carabineer to clip the cup holder anywhere was the perfect way for the hikers to carry it.
I knew I definitely wanted to use a handle in my design, this would keep the hiker's hand from being burned. I also wanted something very simple because I was afraid that working with a heat gun and acrylic would be difficult (I learned that this was not so true!!). I was thinking about things that hikers would have on them that they could use to hold the cup holder, I didn't want to make a clasp or something like that because it would add more weight. I wanted to keep the design as light as possible. Some hikers keep carabineers with them to use for various different things while on their hikes. I thought that using a carabineer to clip the cup holder anywhere was the perfect way for the hikers to carry it.
Cool Grips
The Cool Grips coffee jacket features an ergonomic handle which protects the customer from the hot beverage in the cup. This sleeker coffee jacket can easily be assembled by the customer and is an alternative to other commonly used pesky heat jackets. Cool Grips is made from only paper, it is 100% recyclable!
I wanted something with a handle that kept the user's hand away from the cup. I wanted a handle that would fit nicely in your hand and not feel awkward. I chose to have the coffee jacket almost completely cover the cup to add more insulation to the cup as well as to protect the user's hand in case they do need to grab around the cup.
I wanted something with a handle that kept the user's hand away from the cup. I wanted a handle that would fit nicely in your hand and not feel awkward. I chose to have the coffee jacket almost completely cover the cup to add more insulation to the cup as well as to protect the user's hand in case they do need to grab around the cup.