Project 2: Cutting
This week was all about computer controlled cutting. We gained proficiency in both vinyl cutters and laser cutters. I used the vinyl cutter to make a sticker, an I used the laser cutter to make a parametric construcion kit. In this kit, you can make animal figures with ruminate animals native to the Northern Rockies including bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, moose, and pronghorn antelope.
Vinyl Cutting
I used the vinyl cutter to make a sticker of an elk skull for my water bottle.
I found this silhouette of an elk skull online, imported it to Adobe Illustrator, then downloaded it as a .svg file. During my first print, the image got distorted, and I got the following print.
I rescaled and reprinted with the correct, desirable dimensions. Check out the video of me applying the final product below!
Laser Cutting
For the laser cutter, I started by making two identical combs with different width joints, and a key-hole feature with varied sized holes. For the comb, I had 7 slots. The middle slot was the measured width of the cardboard (0.115"). The slots to the right increased by 0.005" increments, and the reverse was true for the slots to the left. The post was designed to be 0.2" wide, and the middle of the 5 holes had the same width. Hole sizes were modulated in the same way as the slots.
I first measured the kerf with calipers, which was about 0.018". I wasn't convinced by this measurement. I then removed both combs and measured the width of the key feature and each of the holes. I found that the key width was 0.013" small and the hole widths were, on average, 0.021" large. I trusted these last measurements most, which effectively measured the kerf on both sides. By averaging and dividing by two, I determined the kerf to be 0.0095". Unfortunately, my comb design relied on measurements from a piece of cardboard that was slightly thinner than the HTMAA stock material. My joints fit very snugly in the largest slots, and the key fit in the largest two holes well.
I then used solidworks to design all of the figures for my parametric kit.
My parametric kit is composed of components necessary to make 21 different animal figures. There are bighorn sheep, pronghorn antelope, elk, deer, and moose. There are both male and female versions, and a variety of different tail combinations.
