THE SUKAFU SHELVING UNIT - JACK DEIGHTON

To Design a Piece of Knockdown Furniture inspired by Japanese wood working techniques at affordable pricing.

To explore why people, choose to use knockdown furniture and why it is mainly mechanical fastenings.

The design should also explore the use of materials and colours. Just a quick glance at Yosegi I can see there is a variety of vibrant colours. Traditionally hardwoods are used for their tight grain and strength properties.

MINOR

MAJOR

JAPANESE WOODWORKING TECHNIQUES - MOODBOARD

PAGE CONCLUSION

To start with I thought it was a good idea to explore all kinds of Japanese woodworking techniques, i did this by making a mood board on Pinterest.

WHATS WORKS

Straight away it is clear to me that the woodworking techniques that make the most sense in furniture are the ‘Joints’ that use wedges / ‘loose tenon’ of some kind.

WHATS NOT WORKED

For right now there is nothing that I have found that could not be related to a piece of furniture, a lot of these are more decorative such as Yosegi and Kumiko, whereas more of the joints are very strong and integral such as the rabbeted tenoned mitre joint.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

For the next steps i believe it is key for me to explore more in depth of some different Japanese joints and woodworking techniques, this will be done through sketching modelmaking and book research.

REFERENCING

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/jackdeighton111/ major/japanese-woodworking-techniques/

WHATS WORKS

This page shows that I personally prefer the more simplistic joints that show an interesting detail such as the ‘Scarf Joint’. If i was to implement a joint into a piece of furniture for it to become ‘Knock downable’ it would need to be able to come apart and a joint with a wedge in it makes the most sense to achieve this goal.

I really like that if there was a loose wedge this element could be made from a contrasting colour to help enhance the joint.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Talking about joints with wedges in, there are some where the wedge will be in place permanently such as the split wedge joint. This page has shown me that joints like the dovetail is very nice and aesthetically pleasing, but to make it knock downable it is not possible and that is the same for many of these joints.

USER INTERACTION

The user interaction needs to be simple and easy to use, so far, a loose-wedges mortise and tenon and the scarf joint are prime candidates for easy user interaction as the only thing needed to put together and take apart is a mallet to hit it in or out.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

For further analysis into the joints themselves i have purchased a book called the art of Japanese Joinery by Kiyoshi seike from these i will be able to extract more knowledge about what makes these joints work the way they do.

THE ART OF JAPANESE JOINERY - KITOSI SEKE - JOINT EXPLORATION VIA BOOK RESEARCH

WHATS WORKS

The best joint to me is the mortised rabbited oblique scarf joint, as its very ‘unique’ not too common and its brilliant for extending 2 pieces of wood together, typically long pieces. some of the other joints are very interesting too but will not work well with many knockdown circumstances.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Some of the joints are more permanent than the others like with the split wedged joint and the rabbited tenon mitre joint which looks aesthetically pleasing but it appears its likely to break easily on the location marked, but further testing will prove this.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

The ergonomics that needs to be considered is how easily a ‘loose wedge’ is to insert and take out. Ideally a slight hit with a mallet will produce enough force which the user can do in hopefully a satisfying way.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

The scarf joint will need to be adjusted to become more unique to ensure it can be. I will explore this joint more and see if would be able to make it CNC’d to allow the design to be batch produced as with its current state the design will need to be performed by trained professionals with many years of experience in Japanese joinery. I will also continue to explore other Japanese woodworking techniques such as Yosegi and Kumiko.

REFERENCING

The art of Japanese joinery Kiyoshi seike

KUMIKO - RESEARCH - MODEL MAKING

“Kumiko is a delicate and sophisticated technique of assembling wooden pieces without the use of nails. Thinly slit wooden pieces are grooved, punched and mortised, and then fitted individually using a plane, saw, chisel and other tools to make fine adjustments.”

PAGE CONCLUSION

I really love the way Kumiko looks. It is made up of tiny little bits of wood when together it makes up a massive panel with a really satisfying aesthetic.

WHATS WORKS

After my exploration if have found out that it is not too difficult to generate these patterns, although i only experimented with some rudimentary patterns. it gave me an insight into how the construction of these go together. With the jig i was able to product exact angles that are key for repeating a pattern.

WHATS NOT WORKED

The element of Kumiko that can be annoying more than not working is that you need patience as this is a long and tedious process, especially as they are small pieces, and many have half laps to ensure a tight fit.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

As seen on ‘JAPANESE WOODWORKING TECHNIQUES - MOODBOARD’ i wanted to explore this as Kumiko can be used for structural elements while making them very aesthetically pleasing.

USER INTERACTION

The user interaction with Kumiko would be the same as any other type of panel, But with the addition to must be slightly delicate with it but with proper adhesion the pattern should not break easily.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

I will continue to explore other Japanese woodworking techniques and see how Kumiko could be implemented into the design of a piece of furniture better.

REFERENCING

https://www.tanihata.co.jp/english/takumi/ kumiko/index.htm

YOSEGI

ORGANISED CHAOS - CHAOS BOARD - MODEL MAKING

YOSEGI

Yosegi zaiku is a technique of creating patterns by joining wood together. “Yosegi” means “combinedwood”,and“Zaiku”meansanintricate work; the name represents the manufacturing process of combining various shapes and sizes of wood blocks into patterns. These patterned works are popular worldwide as they show the subtlety and elaborateness of Japanese crafts by hand.

CHAOS BOARD

I like the chaos / regimented aspect to Yosegi as at first glance for me it appears chaotic but at a closer look its typically all formal / regimented but that can depend on the design. Typically, there will be a repeat pattern in the design.

These make me think of a ‘chaos chopping board’. A feature that i like about both design elements is that you can use waste material and or by products off other projects.

WHATS WORKS

I am a really big fan of Yosegi as i love to see the many different colours, grains, and textures of different pieces of wood and the way it is done in Yosegi is brilliant in my opinion. to compare there is a more western version of this where i found of from youtubers where they will find all the scraps in their workshops and glue them together to create something call a chaos board. both are very similar but on shows order (Yosegi) and the other showing chaos (chaos board) both are brilliant, and both can provide many implementations.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Yosegi is made from veneers which are hard to make, the piece of materials and time it takes to make such a perfect veneer that has made up of many pieces of wood is difficult. the manufacturer of these veneers must be very skilled with a certain type of place that can shave just a fraction of a MM off.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

As seen on ‘JAPANESE WOODWORKING TECHNIQUES MOODBOARD’ i wanted to explore this as Yosegi as they are typically only made into Japanese puzzle boxes but if i could figure out a way to implement it on a bigger scale the outcome would be incredible.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

For this project as i know i am going to create something in the field of Japanese woodworking methods i think it is important for me to find out the history of it, this will hopefully give me a better insight on how to implement it into a product.

REFERENCING https://thegate12.com/article/208

WHY IS JAPANESE JOINERY A THING?

Japanese traditional architecture is dominated by wood. Due to the humidity, the risk of earthquakes, and the possibility of typhoons, wood became preferred over stone or other materials, as it led to proper ventilation to combat the climate and was durable in the face of natural disaster. In older Japanese homes, no paint was coated onto the walls of the buildings as a way of showing appreciation. They valued the wood, showing respect by not covering it's natural beauty to the eye. Further, many structures, especially temples and shrines, refrain from using nails. Instead, they shape the frames of the building to fit like puzzle pieces, interlocking them together sturdily this way known as tokyō. Japanese architecture values sustainability and deep connections to nature. The Japanese’s minimalistic use of materials says much about their mindset.

PAGE CONCLUSION

This page may not be directly important to the project. but i do believe it is important to know the origins of where Japanese joinery came from.

WHATS WORKS

After doing some quick research i found that the Japan is prone to a lot of earthquakes or at least more than western countries. so, creating buildings out rock and concrete materials would simply crumble whenever these would happen. but with the development of their woodworking methods, they were able to design very strong and structural joints that move and will not be destroyed when there are earthquakes.

WHATS NOT WORKED

From what i can talk about Japanese joinery is that these joints are very complex and would have taken a lot of brilliance and trial and error to get them to where they are today. furthermore, there are multiple variants of every kind of joint. the benefit of this is that a single joint could be adapted to suit almost any application within reason.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

With this information i have learnt that even though the woodworking might move the joints will not come part / become destroyed when facing heavy tremor as proven with ‘The Taipei 101’. so, to further my project i will keep this in mind and do testing on specific wood joints to ensure they are strong.

Next steps will be to explore CNC / plywood joinery and see how could incorporate the two to make a mass/ batched produced version of a Japanese joinery technique.

REFERENCING

The Taipei 101 is designed to withstand typhoon winds and earthquake tremors that are common in the area in the east of Taiwan.

https://www.makefromwood.com/ japanese-woodworking-vs-westernwoodworking/#:~:text=To%20the%20 Japanese%2C%20the%20approach,with%20 nature%2C%20not%20against%20it.

https://www.toki.tokyo/blogt/2020/4/8/eightelements-of-japanese-architecture

PLYWOOD / CNC JOINERY

PAGE CONCLUSION

With my initial thoughts on CNC joints, I have the opinion that these diminish the quality of work as there is not a professional handcrafted element which is a big part of Japanese joinery.

WHATS WORKS

The biggest benefit to using a CNC is that you will always have curves in the piece that is cut because of the router bit is rounded. but this can be a massive benefit as this can: - make a more organic shape - make a more secure / tight fit without needing to be a fully trained within handcrafted Japanese joints.

WHATS NOT WORKED

The biggest downfall of using the CNC is that you are restricted to mainly sheet materials which, is a stretch to call it a disadvantage because you can clean up solid timber to work on a CNC.

USER INTERACTION

This has potential for working well for user interaction as the CNC will produce a perfect representation of whatever the designer has modelled up on CAD. compared to being handcrafted there might be hard edges here and there compared to just allowing a fillet to ensure there are no Sharpe edges for the user to get caught on.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To experiment with CNC version of a Japanese joint and to think about how could implement some Japanese woodworking techniques into furniture like a stool.

REFERENCING

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/jackdeighton111/ major/plywood-joinery/

WHATS WORKS

As its not 100% clear what the outcome is going to be now the focused research as has gone on longer than expected but the benefit of this is now have more knowledge on my chosen subject.

WHATS NOT WORKED

As i have been focusing on the research section to narrow down the avenue i will go down ideation section of my project has been put on hold.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

My next steps will be to experiment with CNC version of a Japanese joint and to think about how i could implement some Japanese woodworking techniques into furniture like a stool?

MINOR

MAJOR

DISSERTATION

MAKING A SERIES OF STOOL MODELS FOCUSING ON A FORM OF JAPANESE WOOD

WORKING.

PAGE CONCLUSION

As i work better in solidworks compared to sketching i spent 30 mins exploring on 3D software of how i think some Japanese woodworking techniques could be used in furniture.

WHATS WORKS

By doing this it has figured out how to where it might be important on how to execute the joints in existing types of furniture. from this page i can go down 2 avenues one being a more decorative panel like the Kumiko elements. the other being a more practical and use it as the method for a KD feature.

WHATS NOT WORKED

As these were just quick ideations, I did not put too much thought into how well they would go together these designs do not make the most sense.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

As seen on ‘KUMIKO - RESEARCH - MODEL MAKING’ i was trying to incorporate a panel of Kumiko. i tried to do this in multiple ways and i think doing it at an angle / diagonal makes the piece unique. but i think this will have considerable racking/ twisting.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

Now there is not much consideration to how the user will operate the assembly aspects. but for my next steps i will need to think about how easy and simple to use these will be able to assemble.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As i am still a little fuzzy on some aspects of joinery, i will continue to do research on them and their possible western equivalent as i think about a perfect way to introduce the joint into a piece of furniture to allow it to be knockdown able.

PAGE CONCLUSION

Having a discussion with a fellow peer gave me some useful tips and insights.

WHATS WORKS

After talking to a fellow student, they gave me some useful advice and together we created a to do list for me to do after some being to go into more research about possible timbers i will end up using to create a product from. and to start thinking about the consumer and who sells Knockdown and or Japanese furniture.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

From the discussion i will continue to research some chosen topics as mentioned on the page.

REFERENCING

https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lWCfZo4=/

EXPLORING JAPANESE WOODWORKING METHODS

Japanese Woodworking Methods?

‘The tools of Japanese woodworking are vital to the formation of Japan’s unique carpentry aesthetic. The consequences of seemingly esoteric differences, like the use of tools on the pull-stroke, cannot be underestimated.

The extensive use of hand planes, and the modification made possible by their wooden bodies, is a fundamental aspect of how these tools encourage a rich craft culture. This is one aspectofthemorewidespreaduseofhandskillsinwoodwork inJapan,whichseemstoresultinacloserconnectionbetween maker and material.

Thewidespreaduseofwaterandfireastoolsshinesalighton the depth of knowledge Japanese woodworkers have for their material. The properties of wood, such as how it expands with moisture,arepositivelyembracedwithasmuchenthusiasmas they seem to be avoided in western woodworking.’

REFERENCING

http://www.hughmillerfurniture.co.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2016/04/WCMT - ReportFinal-Online-v2.6-Spreads-Smallest-FileSize.pdf

(IMAGES)

http://www.hughmillerfurniture.co.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2016/04/WCMT - ReportFinal-Online-v2.6-Spreads-Smallest-FileSize.pdf

https://themoneyfamily.com/our-favoritejapanese-woodworking-tools/

PAGE CONCLUSION

EXPLORING

What

Woodworking? ‘Green’

As my project is focusing on Japanese joinery / woodworking techniques i thought it would be valuable knowledge for me to research into a western equivalent and i think green woodworking is probably the closest we have. they are very different to one another, but the biggest similarity is the use of hand tools both sides have an extensive variety of unique hand crafted and forges tooling to create the woodworking.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To explore knockdown furniture more.

REFERENCING

https://www.lowimpact.org/lowimpact-topic/ green-woodworking/

(IMAGES)

KD FURNITURE (KNOCK DOWN)

Whats is KD Furniture?

Ready to Assemble/Knock Down Furniture is a form of furniture that requires customer Assembly. ... Not only does knock down furniture reduce the shipping costs andhencethefinalproductcost,butitalsohelpsreduce the chances of damage to furniture during the shipping and handling of it.

Why do people want KD furniture?

Transportation

Can be disassembled (move house)

Negatives of KD furniture?

Difficult to put together

Not all buyers have the correct tools.

KD Manufacturing?

Examples of Sellers of KD Furniture:

Made.com

Dunelm Arnold Ikea

Argos

Examples to the right explore Typical fixings of KD Furniture

CONCLUSION

By understand how the basics of flatpack / knockdown furniture will give me an insight how what type fastenings and such that they use. it is mainly mechanical fastenings that are very small cheap and hidden compared to Japanese joints, many of the mechanical fastenings could be replaced with a Japanese joint in some manor but the price to get someone to make these Japanese joints will be far too expensive. so, looking for an alternative using a CNC might be a good idea to go down for this project.

Then main reason why i like Japanese joints over using mechanical fastenings is that they just look so much better as most mechanical fastenings are hidden and end up making the wood look like butt joints which in the woodworking world is the most boring joint of them all.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To start to explore some Japanese woods using in their joinery.

REFERENCING

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/assembly_ instructions/svalnaes-cabinet-with-2-doorsbamboo-white__AA-1929458-5_pub.pdf https://www.dunelm.com/infodocs/ FitzgeraldDressingTable.pdf

https://dwellduo.com/semi-knock-downfurniture-living-your-nomadic-life-in-style/

JAPANESE FURNITURE

REFERENCING

https://www.miteigi.com/products/ antique-low-tea-table-with-a-bench-forjapanese-tatami-living-room-balconywindow-platform-coffee-cocktail-tablejapan-wooden-furniture

https://www.aliexpress.com/ item/32584249980.html

https://nakashimawoodworkers.com/ furniture/frenchmans-cove-ii/

https://www.devaantiques.co.uk/en-GB/ tables/antique-anglo-japanese-table/ prod_10623#.YMPh4_lKiHs

https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/asian-artfurniture/furniture/old-japanese-woodenbench-two-people-antique-long-chair-legstable/id-f_23759192/

https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/asian-artfurniture/furniture/mid-20th-century-oldjapanese-wooden-bench-chestnut-benchlong-chair/id-f_23743032/

MATERIALS

USED

IN JAPANESE

JOINERY WESTERN / BRISTSH WOODS THAT CAN BE USED

WOODS USED IN JAPANESE JOINERY: Sugi Magnolia obovata

Kiri Keyaki Hinoki Akamatsu

WESTERN/ BRITISH WOODS:

Oalk

Maple

Walnut Duglus Fur Ash Cherry SUGI

Endemic to Japan; commonly grown on plantations within Asia

Grain is straight; medium, even texture. Moderate natural luster.

MAGNOLIA

OBOVATA

Grain is straight, with a medium to fine uniform texture. Moderate natural luster. Generally easy to work with both hand and machine tools. Turns, glues, stains, and finishes well.

KIRI

Native to eastern Asia; also planted in eastern North America

Grain is generally straight, with a coarse, uneven texture. Very large pores give Paulownia a striped, porous look.

KEYAKI

Heartwood: Yellowish brown to Reddish brown. Grain is clear, beautiful and shiny. Strong and durable.

HINOKI

Its has an extremely fine grain and durable core and holds up well in humid environments. Strong and durable.

AKAMATSU

Grain is straight, with a medium, even texture and oily feel (high resin content). Wood is strong, light and highly resistant to rot.

REFERENCING

https://www.wood-database.com/ http://www.maruyone-trade.co.jp/en/1384/ https://www.eto-web.com/en/hinoki/#:~: text=Hinoki%20wood%20is%20beautiful%20 white,up%20well%20in%20humid%20environments.

OAK

Grain is straight, with a coarse, uneven texture. May have irregular or interlocked grain depending on growing conditions of the tree.

MAPLE

Grain is generally straight, but may be wavy. Has a fine, even texture.

WALNUT

Grain is usually straight, but can be irregular. Has a medium texture and moderate natural luster.

DUGLUS FUR

It is subject to low shrinkage and has good stability. It is strong and elastic.

ASH

Heartwood is rated as perishable, or only slightly durable in regard to decay. Ash is also not resistant to insect attack.

CHERRY

Has a fine to medium texture with close grain. The grain is usually straight or slightly wavy.

JAPANDI - ITS A MIX BETWEEN JAPAN AND SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN

REFERENCING

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20191018the-rise-of-japandi-style

https://www.heals.com/blog/japandi-designtrend/

What is Japandi?

‘In recent times, these shared attributes have produced a style known as ‘Japandi’ or ‘Japanese minimalism’ – furniture, tableware and interiors featuring clean lines, neutral tones and natural textures. “Japandi seems a very obvious fusion of the Japanese style and Scandinavian style, so it works,” says Kate WatsonSmyth, trends expert and author of Mad About The House.’

Japandi is a hybrid aesthetic, so it requires mixing elements of Japanese and Scandinavian furniture. To achieve true Japandi style, clean lines are essential to all furniture pieces, colour palettes are kept calm and subdued, and plenty of open space is left around furniture items.

PAGE CONCLUSION

Having a discussion with a fellow peer gave me some useful tips and insights.

WHATS WORKS

After talking to a fellow student, they gave me some useful advice and together we created a to do list for me to do after some being to go into more research about possible timbers i will end up using to create a product from. and to start thinking about the consumer and who sells Knockdown and or Japanese furniture.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

From the discussion i will continue to research some chosen topics as mentioned on the page.

REFERENCING

https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lWCfZo4=/

To explore Japanese joinery and woodworking technics that can be applied to knock down furniture in some way.

this project should focus on now an intricate joint that is inspired by Japanese woodworking for mass / batch production and a more affordable price compared to the handcraft element of traditional Japanese joinery, possible areas to research into are CNC Production that does not ‘ruin’ the joint.

for further development to analysis to examine possible woods and finishes used in traditional Japanese woodworking and their western equivalents, as well as contrasting colours and additional materials like metals and plastics (Resin).

VISUALISING JAPANESE JOINTS

PAGE CONCLUSION

To get a better visual of the joints to help me think of how they could be used in furniture I thought it would be a good idea to try and sketch them from different angles and how they could join.

WHAT’S WORKS

From this I discovered that the scarf joint was the most is the most aesthetically pleasing to me. from what I can tell both parts of the scarf joint are made up of the same part just twice. at first glance it looks very intricate and complex bit it is quite simple. this joint is used to joint long pieces of wood together.

WHAT’S NOT WORKED / PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As this is just sketching it is not a clear indicator on what the joints really look like I need to view these in 3D. so for my next steps I will try and produce some accurate 3D card models of these joints to help me get a better understanding of them. ideally, I would refer to see physical wood joints but by creating them out of card I can make them very quickly compared to wood version as I am also not professionally trained in traditional Japanese hand tools so it would take me significantly longer.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

Again, the scarf joint makes the most sense for the best user interaction as this joint can be taken part and if incredibly strong without using glue and just a wedge. with the fact that these can be made from different materials can make a very good contrast that makes the joint stand out even more compared to with they were all made from the same material.

REFERENCING

https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/theprecise-art-of-japanese-wood-joinery

VISUALISING JAPANESE JOINTS – MODELING

WHATS WORKS

By making these quick card models i and able to pick them up move them around a visualise them on a deeper level compared to just seeing sketches on a page. again, from this i believe the scarf joint makes the most sense to use and the joint to go forward with.

It is both complex and simple at the same time, and with the added benefit of a ‘locking wedge’ makes this the only joint viable to a ‘Knockdown’ factor.

By making these can visualise these joints better and thought it might be a good idea to give the ‘locking wedge’ of the scarf joint an added function but turning it into a hock. furthermore, it could be turned into a freestanding coat rack.

WHATS NOT WORKED / PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

By doing this i have now narrowed down my joint to the scarf joint, but this still has not provided me with how strong the joint is, so i will need to do some further research by manufacturing some wooden version possibly with some light alternatives to see what works best. i.e., size of the locking wedge, the length of the joint round wedge, square wedge?

WHATS WORKS

I really love the way this initial idea has come out, and I like how I have made the joints alternate and are not all on the same plane.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There are actually a few problems with this.

- there is do not need to be a hook that is all the way down at the bottom.

- the individual joint takes a lot of time to hand craft and a CNC would not be possible or at least it would be very expensive to product carving out on 2 different planes.

- without specialised and expensive tooling, it is difficult to cut through a large chuck of wood like this with fine detail that needs to be exact.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

I think the ergonomics and user interaction for this design could potentially be very simple and easy. and a possible market for it would be SCP’s ‘Boxed Collection’ where all these components would package into such a small container and take home the very same day.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

I will do some testing in actual wood to help me understand how well the joint performs under load in both vertical and horizontal. and determine whether handcrafted or CNC is the better approach for this design.

REFERENCING

https://www.scp.co.uk/collections/scp-boxedcollection

HANDCRAFTED WOOD JOINTS ARE HARD.

WHATS WORKS

I have found out that i used the wrong wood and i am not capable to making a Japanese joint cleanly and efficiently and most importantly it is very difficult, and my outcome was a failure.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Everything did not work on this. as i was not sure on a western equivalent that would be appropriate to use. i managed to get my hands on some old pine that has a tight grain thinking this would be a good option the grain split on the tight section as you can see.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As this was a complete failure will continue to trial what Japanese joints might appear as with a CNC approach, these joints will have radiuses, but this might not be a problem.

INITIAL SCARF JOINT MODELS

WHATS WORKS

These have worked far better than i could have imagined. i did 2 scarf joints and 2rabbited tenon mitre joints. i wanted to square of some so they did not have the round overs that the CNC machine will produce. the version that worked the best were the ones that i did not square off.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There were a couple problems. as i was using hand tools to square some of the round overs off i somehow still could not produce a perfect fit so when the 2 pieces of the joints come together there still are gaps. and again, with the rabbited tenon mitre joints they just will not work well as with this test i used as where the grain was more open than the previous example, the wood feels like it will just break there. (In future strength testing these mitre joints break).

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

Page: handcrafted wood joints are hard.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

My expectations where mind blown with these models especially the scarf joint as with the addition of the wedge it makes it so satisfying to knock the joints together and acts as a little stress release.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

I will continue to work with the scarf joint and possible do some colour options to help enhance the joint as this is what i was the world to see.

STRENGTH TESTING / QUICK COLOUR EXPERIMENTATION

PAGE CONCLUSION

- STRENGHT TESTING

WHATS WORKS

The strength testing proved that the scarf joint is incredibly strong it was able to hold my entire weight and it still holds strong.

WHATS NOT WORKED

But the other joint ‘the rabbited mitred tenoned joint’ failed and broke. the upside of this is that this joint was not the most aesthetically pleasing and deep down i knew i wanted to go ahead with the scarf joint.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To continue to come up with initial ideas on how to use this joint in some specific furniture while keeping the use of the scarf joint visible and ‘unique’.

PAGE CONCLUSION - QUICK COLOUR EXPERIMENTATION

WHATS WORKS / WHATS NOT WORKED

I am not sure what i feel about this, at first i thought it was a good idea because saw Adam Frames major project from a few years ago and those it was amazing. i especially liked the way the two woods meet. but after doing it in these joints they do show the joint off well, but it just feels a bit gimmicky.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

This page is mainly inspired by Adam Frames major project.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To enhance the joint more compared to colouring it might be worth me trying different woods or wood stains or adding in a chamfer to edges to show of the joint.

WHATS WORKS

By doing this page it really made me think of how to make proper use of how the scarf joint can be used. if i were to create a shelving unit this made me think that the legs will need to be and the front and back compared to the sides as i think this will help with front and back racking.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I do not think the multifunction of the wedges to support the shelves is a good idea, the only way i can see if this would work is if the wedges are made from metal rather than wood. The most important problem that i will face is a racking issue as there currently there are not many fixed components everything is ‘loose’ and quite open. a solution for this is to add a back panel or back panels to help counteract the balance.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

The idea of this shelving unit is for the user to assemble it themselves. there are not too many different components as there are a lot of repeated parts which should make the assembly of this piece of furniture go straight forward.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As this will be difficult to assemble as there are a lot of repeated components it might be worth making subassemblies to ensure an easier user interaction.

GREY CARD MODELS – FAIL

WHATS WORKS

From this i found that 150mm is probably just right for the 40 mm width so i think i should keep to this aspect ratio. and from this i found that doing a square version just seems a little odd.

WHATS NOT WORKED / PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

Making these out of card i was able to make them fast but it hard to see how well they would perform in real wood. For my next steps i will model some up more variants of this joint to see what works best and send it off the CNC technician.

WHATS WORKS

By doing multiple variants of this i can easily see what does work and what does not work. many of these joints do work.

But it is a matter of what looks the best what are the best qualities of all of them and can i combine to together to make a better joint overall. with this page i have highlighted some joints with a green star these are the 4 that i think worked the best and could be combined to make an even better joint

WHATS NOT WORKED

There were two joints that just do not work well with this series of testing. the wide version and the short version. they just do not cover enough tight surface area and just seem out of place compared to the other joints. and the longest joint is the strongest but is not necessary and the medium joint is incredibly strong and looks the best in terms of aspect ratio.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

The hardest part of putting these joints together is making sure that they all line up and i believe i have solved this issue with a simple half lap, although the detailing should be adjusted to suit the rest of the joint. but the reasoning behind this is that it makes it obvious that these two parts slot together thus the user will have no issue with assembling the product.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As i have not explored many other types of furniture other than shelving briefly i feel like it will be important for me to explore other types, i will do this via sketches. as well as modelling on solidworks to help me get a better 3d understanding.

TECHNICAL REVIEW FEEDBACK

WHATS WORKS

With my initial design ideas, the talk with the technicians made it clear than my project might lend itself well with an occasional range of furniture and combine all my chosen ideas into a range.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To start exploring this occasional range using sketches and models using solidworks.

SKETCH CONCEPTS - INITIAL IDEAS

Just some quick ideations, the problem with only sketching for me is that i just struggle to visualise what they would look like. i need to see things in 3D. but by doing this i think i have roughly narrowed down the focus of my project to be one of three products. - shelving unit - coffee table - side table / stool

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To continue to sketch and to develop these initial ideas through to solidworks where i will be able to get a better feel for the products.

SKETCH CONCEPTS - INITIAL IDEAS

PAGE CONCLUSION

Just some quick ideations, the problem with only sketching for me is that i just struggle to visualise what they would look like. i need to see things in 3D. but by doing this i think i have roughly narrowed down the focus of my project to be one of three products. - shelving unit - coffee table - side table / stool

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To continue to sketch and to develop these initial ideas through to solidworks where i will be able to get a better feel for the products.

WHATS WORKS

With the chaos of all the sketching i can lay everything out very neatly to determine what all the product look like paired against one another. as you can see i mainly focused on variants of shelving, side table / stool and coffee tables as i thought these are the pieces that i could show the joint of the best while allowing it to be functional.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There are many pieces in this where i realised they were just dumb / impractical to the project. like with the media unit, i could only think to put the scarf joint on the legs and the legs are the part no one really looks at.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

I will now start making 1-10 scale models as well as full sized MDF version to help me understand the products better. as well as providing me with ideas on proper sizing for the ‘final’ prototype later.

WHATS WORKS

Currently this is a strong design in my eyes, i really love the over hangs, it makes me feel like it has got a Japanese vibe to it which is what do what, but maybe these could be dialled back a little. i like that you do not have to store the ‘extra’ top somewhere else it has a purpose within the product when it is in the smaller configuration.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I can see the wood being too thin, so i might need scale these up for the scarf joints.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION / PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

I am also not too sure how easy this will be to assemble as the joints do go horizontal and not vertical so the table might just fall and be very difficult to counteract the weight of the top to try and extend it.

So, my next steps will be to make this full sized out of MDF to see if these are of concern or not and see what to do to overcome this or to change the direction.

EXTENDABLE COFFEE TABLES

WHATS NOT WORKED

i learn a lot from this, these both failed. They were too weak and flimsy, and very impractical i tried thickening up the legs on the second attempt but it still did not work. the process of extending the table just did not work well. the two halves fall apart and go all over the place.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

From this need to consider a different product or think about how else could use the scarf joint. i will continue to make full sized MDF models because they give me more knowledge of what works and what does not work.

POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENT

I need to strengthen up everything and these are some quick solidworks models that i think might work but still i do not think this is the correct approach to the project and i think i need to design a product the moved the scarf joints in a vertical position compared to horizontal.

WHATS WORKS

I really liked that these stool ideas produce such as small form factor when in flat packed position. and the section variant looks very elegant. i would be very interested in creating one with a glass top but for this design i do not think it would work well.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There’s twist, a lot in the 1st version slight in the 2nd version but now have a tilt problem, it can become off balanced when pressure is applied to certain parts of the top which is not ideal. but most importantly there is no difference if the wedge is in or not. the joint is just too weak there. i believe this is still the wrong type of product to make full use of this joint.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

Version 2 is an easy and simple product to construct by and user. there are cut outs ready for components to be slotted into and the legs are all the same so there are only 5 elements to the design.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To possibly go back to one of my 1st initial ideas like the shelving unit and explore this through solidworks and then prototyping.

WHATS WORKS

I decided to almost go back a few steps and re-access one of my earlier initial ideas, the shelving unit. and I am glad I did because after many further ideations i believe i have come up with a really good design that is both aesthetically pleasing and makes sense for the scarf joint.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Currently there will be a racking issue as it made up of lots of different parts with no back panels. so i will make this full sized how it is and go from there to determine the best plan of action to solve this issue.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

This entire page is a reference to an earlier one: ‘INITIAL IDEA SHELVING UNIT’.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

Now it is quite busy but possibly with the use of some small subassemblies to keep things aligned this shelving unit will be very strain forward to put together.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To explore in depth more on how this shelving unit can be assembled before getting it sent off to the CNC guy to get this all cut out.

SKETCHING

- HOW IT FIXES TOGETHER

This page is straight forward, this is how i think it will be put together. at this current time i cannot see anything wrong with this but the only way to find out is to make this full sized, to start with out of MDF as i do not want to waste nice expensive materials.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

Currently i am unaware what material to make this out of, nice hardwoods? or possibly sheet material? so far i have experimented with both and both work amazingly.

So, for my next steps i believe it will be important for me to explore some possible retailers that i think this shelving unit would belong in to determine a good material or materials that will best suit for their cliental.

THINKING ABOUT THE CONSUMER / RETAILER

POSSIBLE CONSUMER OPTION 1

Young professionals in city apartment living

POSSIBLE consumer option 2

Nomadic type user who moves around to different homes frequently so needs furniture to fit lots of different spaces. Both possible consumers, they would want to knock down pieces, or things that will not break in transport, or maybe just smaller pieces of furniture. so, with the ability to be packaged up at any time and transported would be ideal for these types of cliental. but also, not restricting the aesthetic properties in anyway like some knockdown pieces must sacrifice.

RETAILER OPTION 2 - MUJI

MUJi are a Japanese shop that are like Open Desk in a way where they mainly use sheet materials to manufacture their products and i thought if my design were sold in a Japanese shop, it would be ideal and it is heavily Japanese inspired. the materials they mainly focus on using are oak or walnut veneered man-made boards.

WHATS WORKS

At first thought my shelving unit idea is done on the CNC so it would make sense to seek companies that use CNCs to manufacture their products, and thus the ideal material would be a sheet material (most likely Plywood). This is just a brief exploration into possible consumer and retailer options to help guide me into a direction of what materials and costings i should be considering.

WHATS NOT WORKED

RETAILER OPTION 1 - OPENDESK

Open Desk would be a good option to choose for a company for my product to be retailed in as they use a variety of sheet materials that allow for some easy and elegant customization. but they also have inhouse manufacturing meaning they do not have to price up their products a lot to make a big profit compared to selling it to a Highstreet shop.

Although MUJI is a Japanese shop I do not think they are the greatest match compared to Open Desk as they just provide a better service in my opinion and i think they are missing a product in their line-up. currently they have 1 very simplistic shelving unit and i believe my product and be a higher end option for them. (Linnea Bookshelf - £422 ex VAT)

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

With these ideas in mind i can start planning better for my next steps, i will produce some CAD files for the CNC guy to cut my design out and now I will have that I can product some quick renders to see if it like the design still with it being in a better visual form.

REFERENCING

https://www.mujionline.eu/uk/furniture/ storage-furniture

https://www.opendesk.cc/57-street-design/ linnea-bookshelf#get-it-made

SHELVING UNIT CONCEPT RENDERS

WHATS WORKS

This page is a lot clearer on how the shelving unit can go together, these colours are not set in stone but i used two very contrasting colours to help enhance the joints better.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I think these materials that I have used are wrong for the design it just comes across as marmite.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH

As seen on the initial mood board: JAPANESE WOODWORKING TECHNIQUES MOODBOARD a lot of the joints used a combination of the walnut and what i think to be maple. that where the reasoning behind these material choice renders came from. But I mainly did this to show of the joints better.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

I really like this design and i think it will go together a lot easier compared to the table ideas i had before. you will not be fighting gravity; the user will be able to build it from the ground up.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To make this product full sized so that I can determine what possible problems I might face and find a solution for them.

SHELVING UNIT - MDF PROTOTYPE

WHATS WORKS

Overall, I am very pleased with this design and is the perfect piece of furniture to properly execute this scarf joint idea.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There are some slight design changes that need to be considered. but for now, my focus needs to be with the racking problem as its almost as bad as jiggling jelly on a plate. There are some simple solutions and the 1st one i can think of is to add a back panel but i want to try and keep it as open as i can.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To find a solution to the racking issue, will pursue this through sketching and full-sized prototyping.

TOO MUCH RACKING - SOLUTION IDEATION

WHATS WORKS

All these solutions work to prevent the racking as they provide a lot more support.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I am facing an aesthetic problem now, by adding these components in i have cluttered the piece and no I am not the biggest fan of it.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

Now i need to work out the balance of material and open spaces, currently the design is now way too cluttered. but it does not have back panels on very shelf so i could average it out for there to be a little gallery for example.

i will also consider how this product could relate to a range of products.

SOLIDWORKS DEVELOPMENT - EXTENDING TO A RANGE

CONCLUSION

I thought i had to change the direction of the project slightly and I thought to make smaller components when separately could be sued by themselves but could also be configured to joint together as seen on this page.

WHATS WORKS

The benefit of me doing this has expanded the product range.

- small shelving - coffee table - sideboard - cabinets

- tall shelving with cupboards from this i have made the product very modular

WHATS NOT WORKED

The problem now is that i think it has lost its essence and barley makes use of the scarf joint that this whole project is based on.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

In theory this design should be the easiest to assemble just take the yellow caps of and slot on one of the other sub-assemblies.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

As i am not the biggest fan of this outcome i will explore more of the previous pages design and try and refine it to still look elegant and open while still being strong. it might also be worth looking into some good contrasting colours and materials to use.

WHATS WORKS

The design feels solid to me, basically I have added a gallery / boarder to the shelves and thickened up the shelf supports to give the design some more meat to help with the racking.

WHATS NOT WORKED

If this design works all i will need to focus on is the fine detail, such as the round overs to the galleries and chamfer to the shelf supports.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To

FIXINGS + SUB-ASSEMBLIES

WHATS WORKS

This is the best configuration that I can think of to make this design as simple as possible for the user to assemble.

There are 6 different elements to this design.

WHATS NOT WORKED / ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

With these exploded views it looks like there are many components to them but i do believe it will be straight forward to assemble.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To help me refine the detail and proportions i will experiment with various laser cut models as these can be product very quickly and will allow for a quick physical representation of the design.

PAGE CONCLUSION

I sent this quick render to my tutor for some feedback, and he came up with some very good suggestions, although many of them would not actually work or would stop the functionality of the scarf joint entirely.

WHATS WORKS

It was a nice aesthetic detail to have the curved part of the back panel around the wedge to make it feel like it has got a purpose. but after talking with Rob that back panel needs to be attached to the legs to stop the racking, so a solution for this that we came up with is to simply move the wedge down and go through the back shelf panel to securely lock it into place.

WHATS NOT WORKED

For this previous element to become stronger it would be better to have two wedges going through which will stop any potential pivoting but the problem with this is that it will destroy the functionality of the scarf joint.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To help me refine the detail and proportions i will experiment with various laser cut models as these can be product very quickly and will allow for a quick physical representation of the design.

PAGE CONCLUSION

This was the 1st laser cut model that i made to help me understand my cad files a little bit better and without wasting materials in the workshop as well as my time as laser cutting can be done in just a few minutes.

WHATS WORKS

Currently with the back gallery in place the design has become considerably stronger, although there is still some racking in the piece.

WHATS NOT WORKED

The only problem with doing these models is that it is not the clearest representation of how strong the shelving unit will be at full sized as the materials and stuff will be slightly wrong.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

By making these lasers cut models I was able to get hands on experience assembling the shelving unit and it was actually very simple and easy to do so. at a larger scale I am hoping it will be just as easy but there is also the factor of weight, everything will increase but as they are smallish components, I am hoping individually they will not be too heavy.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To adapt the current full sized shelving unit to meet the dimensions and sizing of this shelving unit with hope that there will be no racking.

FULL SIZED REVAMPED SHELVING UNIT

PAGE CONCLUSION

There is racking, and a lot of it.

WHATS WORKS

Overall, the aspect ratio of everything I really like and thinks works well.

WHATS NOT WORKED

The piece is racking way too much. part of it is because the MDF is weak and flimsy and the model that i have been adapting has hole everywhere which has resulted in the piece becoming even more weak.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

Because the 1st laser cut model worked so well instead of me wasting even more time trying to adapt it without a solid plan will continue to work on some more laser cut models while doing this can also work on the fine details of some elements.

LASER CUT MODELS

PAGE CONCLUSION

WHATS WORKS

By creating all these lasers cut model I was able to explore many possible slight variations of the shelving unit. as seen in the annotations i have analysed each of these and concluded that number 12 was the best option.

WHATS NOT WORKED

There might still be a racking issue, but I will tackle that with the full-sized shelving unit. i wanted to try and keep the shelving nit as open as possible. I did mess around with coming back to ‘Kumiko’ as i really love this Japanese woodworking technique, because they are made up of small thin strips of wood i feel like they would break too easily especially if they were to be used as book ends like what I have been using them as. i might still explore this via full sized prototyping as i really love how those Kumiko models look.

REFERENCING THE RESEARCH ‘KUMIKO - RESEARCH - MODEL MAKING’

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

By making these lasers cut models I was able to get hands on experience assembling the shelving unit and it was actually very simple and easy to do so. at a larger scale I am hoping it will be just as easy but there is also the factor of weight, everything will increase but as they are smallish components, I am hoping individually they will not be too heavy.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To explore more in depth on possible retailers to go with, looking to their existing products and see where my product could fit in.

RETAILER OPTION 1 – OPENDESK

LINNEA BOOKSHELF

- this is a bookshelf from Opendesk that is priced at £422 - the complexity of this design is non-existent, the design is very, very simple an minimal. the design is put together using a lot of half laps which makes the user experience very easy as its some straight forward joinery that literally anyone can do. - if i aim my product to be sold at Opendesk i need to make sure that the design i produce is very simple very easy for the user to assemble otherwise why would anyone choose my design if its more expensive and harder to assemble.

- my design does looks complicated at first glance but essentially the design is just made up of half laps too but with a twist that i merged with a CNC scarf joint. - i think that my product would be more expensive than this design as it a more detailed an intricate design yet still very easy to assemble.

- both shelving units share some similarities the over haves of this design to me make it feel a little oriental which is a big element of my design. the feature that makes me feel this is the small overhangs, although with this design they are almost pointless as they are not big enough for anything whereas in my design they are, intern making my design better.

BUNDLE DESK

- this is a table from Opendesk that is priced at £469

- the design is simple yet elegant with the design mainly focused on the legs as they are very detailed and look similar to trusses.

- overall i like this design but i do not think it would fit the majority of the everyone’s home aesthetics.

- from these collections of products i can see that their design style is more modern and looks very minimal.

We’re changing the way furniture is made, by connecting customers to local makers.

this company only appears to use Baltic Birch Plywood.

- Birch plywood is characterized by excellent strength and stiffness properties, and thereforeitperformsverywellinapplicationsdemandinghighstrengthandrigidity.The raw materials come from sustainably managed Northern forests.

REFERENCING

https://www.opendesk.cc/designs

https://www.metsawood.com/global/Products/ plywood/birch-plywood/Pages/Birch-plywood.aspx

DIVIDE BIRCH

- this is a room divider from Opendesk that is priced at £366 - this is a simple room divider that can also be used as a white board depending on what you select.

- there isn’t actually anything to this design it’s just a board on wheels, do think that this is way overpriced for what it is but if that’s what the company is deciding to price it at. it proved that my design should be more expensive as there is a much higher level of complexity which i think this company is missing.

STAINLESS STEEL UNIT SHELF OAK WIDE S

- this is a shelving unit from MUJI that is priced at £195 - again, similar to the previous version my product wouldn’t match what this company is trying to produce. i like that this design is more open and the previous one, but it feels a little tacky to me and something is missing, i am also not the biggest fan for the solution of the racking that they have used. (Putting a big metal ‘X’ on the back).

WALNUT AV RACK 110CM

- this is a shelving unit from MUJI that is priced at £295 - this is a very basic small design 2 draws and an open space - at first i thought my design would match in well with this company as they do make some amazing products that also happen to be a Japanese shop. but after researching into their product and materials i do not think mine will work well with them.

- they appear to only use walnut or oak veneered MDF, and as proved with my prototyping this will not work as this material is just too weak, as well as the fact we would be able to see the MDF on my final shelving unit if this is the company i would base the product for.

- whereas with Opendesk they use plywood and the layers of the ply do work and look very nice a little detail on my design.

oak or walnut vennered man made board furniture

ThisVeneeredMDFBlackWalnutispart ofarangeofveneersthataresimilarin qualitytothatoftheveneeredPlywood. The Black Walnut itself is an attractive, darker hardwood that produces a great variety of figure types. This wood sheeting takes a thin veneer of that hardwood, and bonds it to standard MDF, producing a smooth and stable surface.

Created by bonding a thin veneer of attractive hardwood to standard MDF, theresultisasimilarqualityalternative to veneered Plywood, enhanced by the uniform colour and straight grain of Oak.

SLAT SELF 180

- this is a shelving unit from unto this last that is priced at £190 - this company is very similar to Opendesk in the fact that they have an inhouse workshop that allows them to save on retail cost and do not need a middleman.

- the main difference i notice is that their products are so cheap an i do not understand how this is possible, comparing to my design the material cost alone with a little over £100 let alone labour cost and such.

- i do think that my design would fit in well with their product range and they do make more visually appealing designs compared to open desk but i want my design to be higher end compared to this company as there i amazing detail that i think would be ruined by the cheapness.

SLAT SELF 180

- this is a shelving unit from unto this last that is priced at £160 - this company is very similar to Opendesk in the fact that they have an inhouse workshop that allows them to save on retail cost and do not need a middleman.

- the main difference notice is that their products are so cheap an don’t understand how this is possible, comparing to my design the material cost alone with a little over £100 let alone labour cost and such.

- i do think that my design would fit in well with their product range and they do make more visually appealing designs compared to open desk but i want my deign to be more high end compared to this company as there i amazing detail that i think would be ruined by the cheapness.

Whilstourwiderangeofproductscomesinmanysizesadaptabletoyourenvironment, as well as a variety of finishes and optional colours, we do not produce bespoke items from plan or specifications. Our project is to manufacture competitive and affordable furniture, made locally, on the high-street and therefore are not equipped to produce bespoke items.

materials plywood and laminates/ venners Walnut, oak, white laminate

ANGES WALL MOUNTED SHELVES

- this is a shelving unit from SCP - Boxed Collection that is priced at £400

- i wanted to explore a retailer that does not use sheet material and i thought my product would fit in well with SCP’s Boxed Collection. the focus of SCP’s boxed collection is for anyone to come instore and pick up a design within a neatly packaged box and take it home that day.

- think my shelving unit would work for this, although it is on the larger side of packaging i think this would still work. also, SCP do a whole plethora of designs and products so possibly extending the range to cater to these other products might be useful.

- the only problem with choosing SCP is that they use hardwoods and i don’t know how well my product will perform with natural woods compared to sheet material as sheet material is the only thing i have made the shelving unit from. there’s all kind of things to consider when it comes to natural grown woods and that’s that they naturally move with seasons so this might actually break the joint over time.

QUICK STEP STOOL

- this is a Stool from SCP - Boxed Collection that is priced at £235

SCP Boxed Collection

The premise for the Boxed Collection is simple, SCP invite designers to create new designs that can fit into a box that you can leave a store with under you arm. This can be anything from small accessories, to chairs or table lamps, or even new product typologies.

https://www.scp.co.uk/collections/scp-boxedcollection

MDF PROTOTYPE

WHATS WORKS

After thickening up the legs this has made the design so much stronger, even though the piece does still rack (but slightly). i continued to mess around with adding in some shelf sides to see if that helps strengthen the piece but it did not appear to change anything by the physical appearance by making it look bulky, so i shall leave these.

The benefit for doubling the thickness of the legs adds 2 things to the design, it makes it look and feel more stable and does make it more stable. and the other is as these joints have half laps it makes sense to CNC them out of 18mm sheet Ply and glue them together to make 36mm ply.

WHATS NOT WORKED

MDF is not the best material to use for proper integral model making as it is a weak material.

I am hoping that this is one of the biggest reasons to why it is still racking. after consulting with some industry people, they cannot see why it would not be fully structural when made from the actual material.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To start thinking about how the wedges can be manufactured.

RETESTING KUMIKO IN THE FULL-SIZED PIECE

PAGE CONCLUSION

As i am a really big fan of Kumiko i thought it would be a good idea for me to revisit this and see what it might look like when implemented into the full-sized shelving unit.

WHATS WORKS

I do think this looks good, but it is too distracting for the project I am doing. it almost hides everything about the scarf joint as your eyes go directly to the Kumiko pattern.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I do really think this is a good design feature to explore but for it to be the only design feature the product to have so maybe in the future i could design a sister version of my scarf joint design that mainly focuses on the Kumiko wood working technique as do this this is worth considering, but for this project it is just too much.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To start thinking about how the wedges can be manufactured.

MAKING OF THE WEDGE

PAGE CONCLUSION

The way made the wedges was by sneaking up to the fit using the disk sander and testing to see if it fits in the joint.

WHATS WORKS

The benefit of this is that it will always fit.

WHATS NOT WORKED

Although there are lot of bad elements to doing this.

- my fingers are getting way to close to the machine, and I will sand my fingers of if I am not too careful

- every wedge will be a slightly different size - very time consuming

There is a simple fix for this, a 2-part jig where I could hold the wedge inside it and ease it into the sander which allows my hands to be far away from the machine while getting a very accurate dimension. and the second part of the jig to almost the same as the 1st part but to account of the taper of the 1st sanding to ensure the rest of the side are equally tapered. this jig could also be used to lock the wedge in place which a small round over bit in a handheld router can soften the edges.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To explore what wood finished would be ideal for the wedges.

COLOUR

PAGE CONCLUSION

I liked experimenting with different woods for this to see what would work the best. and what material contrast works the best compared to the Baltic birch ply that i will be using.

WHATS WORKS

I think the best woods that worked the best are the darker versions, like the iroko and walnut. overall i prefer the darker colour of the walnut compared to the iroko as it just has a nicer richer sense to it.

I was mainly testing finishes on this page, i needed to have the wedge quite lubricated so that I can come out of the joint somewhat easily.

I tried using just beeswax as the finished, but it barely changed the colour of the joint and i really loved the way walnut looks with Danish oil. so i thought i would combine the two finished, first to apply Danish oil to get the nice aesthetic colour and then follow with beeswax to get that nice wavy finish to allow for easy insertion into and out of the joint.

WHATS NOT WORKED

I used oak, pine and plywood to also test out making some wedges and these just didn’t work as well, they just look too similar to the colour of the birch ply which does hide the joint a little, I want this element of the piece to be really elegant and unique and I believe making it from a luxury material like walnut at such a small quantity is a good option as this will not be too expensive to produce.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

To explore a little more on some of the fine details using solidworks to help as a visual aid.

PAGE CONCLUSION

i was trying to tie in the back shelf support and the bottom shelf support better by adding some detail that is related elsewhere in the design.

WHATS WORKS

i think it was a good idea for me to do so to find out that this was just overkill.

WHATS NOT WORKED

my eyes go straight to them rather than the join themselves so straightaway it’s too distracting. i think the best design choice is to go back and make the back panels squared and the bottom support to have the 45-degree chamfer.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

to start exploring how the design can be packaged to see how many components id have and how small i can get the packaging while still being easy to assemble.

PACKAGING

PAGE CONCLUSION

this page is exploring how small i can get the packaging.

WHATS WORKS

by doing this version of the packing, it means i have less components because the bottom shelf support is glued in place.

WHATS NOT WORKED

the problem with this is the components can’t sit together comfortably to allow for smaller packaging. as seen in these images there is also a lot of wasted space inside the box, but this is the smallest i could think to compact it.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

the ergonomics and user interaction with having less components are so much better as this means there is fewer small components to have to deal with.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE to see whether having more components to shrink the box size down would be more efficient.

PACKAGING

PAGE CONCLUSION

this page is exploring how small i can get the packaging.

WHATS WORKS

i think with making more components by separating some components allows for a much smaller packaging box as shown in the images.

WHATS NOT WORKED

the only problem with this is that there is more elements to the design, but i think this is a worth sacrifice as it almost halves the size of the packaging which interns means more of these can fit in transport.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

obviously, the user interaction is harder with this version, but it is still really straight forward the only addition it to screw in the bottom shelf support before assembling the product.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE now it’s time to make the final prototype.

- BUILD PROCESS

Straight of the CNC the parts are all in rough shape, so some clean-up work is required.

I cleaned the parts up by using a combination of a Stanley knife and some sandpaper on a sanding block. These worked well, and all the parts were cleaned up within an hour. This was just to remove all the ‘frayed’ parts left from the CNC.

The next process is to laminate the leg components together to make the half lap feature. This is the only way could achieve this with the tooling at university. I believe it would be far more efficient if a thicker piece of plywood went on the CNC and the entire part gets routed out together. The router bits were too small to achieve this at university but in industry this should not be a problem.

To follow the next step is to sand everything at 240 grits for a nice finish.

This is just everything neatly stacked ready for the next steps.

Now marking where the dominos are needing be located, i messed up here and should have thought better on how i would attach the side shelf supports better and included the locations in the cad file to get the side supports exact. But this wasn’t too much of an inconvenience, just added to the time.

To follow the next step is to sand everything at 240 grits for a nice finish.

Now all the locations are marked now it is time to domino everything.

FULL

PROTOTYPE - BUILD PROCESS

I have used the domino machine on everything now just need to assemble.

Now that i know that everything lines up perfectly it is time for the big glue up.

As seen in this image it is very easy to insert the dominos. Everything is ready for assembly.

Proving that the shelving unit is strong and sturdy.

Doing a dry fit to ensure everything is seated correctly. Applying finish

STEP 1 STEP 2

STEP 3 STEP 5 STEP 4

WHATS WORKS

this page has been vital for the project, within these 5 simple illustrations, 4 simple steps to help explain how simple it is to assemble the shelving unit.

WHATS NOT WORKED

as i am not the skilled artist, tried my best to illustrate the process. i believe it does explain it well but it would be better if a skilled drawer illustrated them instead.

ERGONOMICS / USER INTERACTION

this page shows clearly on how the user interaction and ergonomics are, most importantly the shelving unit is simple and easy to assemble.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

to demonstrate this process via a video and think about extending the range.

To explore Japanese joinery and woodworking techniques that can be applied to knock down furniture.

This project should focus on now an intricate joint that is inspired by Japanese woodworking can be made at more affordable price for mass / batch production in contrast to the handcraft element of traditional Japanese joinery

The knock down element should be easy for the consumer to assemble and disassemble when needed.

B LEG PART 2 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 4 1

C LEG PART 3 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 2 0.75

D LEG PART 4 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 2 0.75

A LEG PART 1 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 2 2440MM X 1220MM X 18MM (1.5 SHEETS PER UNIT) £72

E SHELF PART 1 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 4 0.75

F SHELF PART 2 BALTIC BIRCH PLY 18MM THICK SV TIMBER 1 0.25

0.5 (FOR CNC X £45) (4 X £45 = £180) 8 HOURS (8 X 25) (LABOUR COST) £372.50 £558.75 £11175

G WEDGE WALNUT 18MM THICK WOOD SHOP DIRECT 16 25MM X 25MM X 900MM (1 LENGTH PER UNIT) £8.72 0.5 (FOR MANUAL LABOUR X £25) (0.5 X £25 = £12.50) TOTAL N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A £80.72 N/A £192.50 £200

as i have chosen to base this project for the retailer Opendesk i think my costings will fall around the £558.75, as shown in the bill of materials page of my technical pack i have calculated this price. it makes sense for my design to be more expensive than the Linnea bookshelf as the Linnea bookshelf is a very basic design with very basic joinery (all being half laps) i think that Opendesk can branch out a little and start making products that a little more visually interesting like my shelving unit.

With current trends craftsmen ship is becoming more and more popular so it would be a really good idea for them to expand their collection with something like what have designed as it’s a little nod to a very beloved Japanese joint - the scarf joint.

i severely underestimated much research i would end up doing as well as all of my modelling and prototyping.

WHATS WORKS

by going more in depth with everything, model making, sketching, full sized prototyping i believe my project has become better in the long run.

WHATS NOT WORKED

as i did not know what this project was going to entail at the beginning i had to delay my initial ideas and model making. if i was to do this project again i would work a lot harder at the beginning instead of being flustered with work towards the end.

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

my next steps are to write the evaluation.

Hi Jack,

Thank you for sending through your major project.

Our initial reaction is to the overall concept and aesthetic is really positive.

This shelving system adheres to the current trend for craftsmanship and attention to detail. It is all about classic Japanese joinery meeting Ikea flatpack - ‘Japandi’, so to speak.

However the fact that this is not just another screwed together Ikea flat pack, but that it celebrates the joinery and the peg assembly will allow the customer to feel that they are ‘making’ the piece of furniture, rather than just assembling it.

The way it knocks down and is assembled is great.

The production would need to be very precise on the joint cutting, but this should not be a problem.

What about the finish? It would be interesting to see other colour options and to find a way to subtly highlight the connection points on the system, without it looking visually too busy.

Finally, I can imagine other pieces based around this design. Have you thought of other items to work as part of a range, if so it would be good to show this, even in sketch form?

Great to see something as predictable as shelving looked at in a different way,

Good luck

Best regards Royi

EVALUATION

POSITIVES

It is a very aesthetically pleasing and strong joint. The joint is elegant and somewhat unique, with its smooth profile of the joint compared to its original form of being all square and boxy. the joint also has a really satisfying effect to it when hammering in the wedge, this also works out as a little stress release as you can whack it as hard as you want it to have a snug fit. As my brief is to design a piece of knockdown furniture that is inspired by a Japanese joint I believe I have done this in a very successful way.

It can be Knockdown and assembled quite quickly and easily. As shown in the build process and instructional page of this development pack there are a few processes to follow to assemble the shelving unit, can be done with one person but far easier with two people. Alone the shelving unit can be assembled within seven minutes. Hence a successful piece of knockdown furniture.

It puts a twist on the traditional shelving unit. with most shelving units mad today that are knockdown pieces they always keep to using mechanical fastening. which isn’t a bad option they are very strong and very cheap in comparison to hand crafted Japanese joinery. the only difference is the aesthetic properties of them. mechanical fastening is typically hidden so all the users will see on the outside is a simple but joint which is not that attractive. By incorporating the scarf joint as the way, the shelving unit is assembled put the twist on it as this with the combination of the contracting colour of the wedge makes this shelving unit unique and stylish.

This shelving system adheres to the current trend for craftsmanship and attention to detail. Has brilliant user interaction. The user interaction of the customer assembling it is similar to the relationship to a Japanese carpenter making Japanese joints, it has a similar personal touch. Customers feel that they are ‘making’ the piece of furniture, rather than just assembling it. This type of user interaction is very important as this shelving unit is not like every other shelving unit out there.

It gives a nod to traditional Japanese joinery. I really like that this project has given a subtle hint to Japanese craftsmanship even though it is all made via a CNC machine.

NEGATIVES

Time management.

As i did not know what this project was going to entail at the beginning had to delay my initial ideas and model making. If I was to do this project again I would work a lot harder at the beginning instead of being flustered with lots of work towards the end.

I wish I had the time to extend this into a range.

As this shelving unit is quite modular in the way that it is assembled i believe it can go hand in hand with an occasional range of furniture such as media unit, coffee table, side table, sideboard, console unit etc. as well as a possible bedroom range.

I could not get in contact with open desk.

Coming to the end of my project I reached out to Opendesk but sadly I currently have not heard anything back from them yet.

I wish I could have thought of a way to also include Kumiko into the design without it drawing the eyes away from the scarf joint.

I was held back by the quality of tooling within the workshop mainly the CNC router bits they were too small where you can purchase longer bits which the university would not do.

The product does have a little racking left in the design but nothing too serious.

WHAT I HAVE LEARNT

I learnt that this project could only be developed through physical models compared to sketching and CAD software. This was mainly because of there was a lot of racking with the design being made up of small parts and being open, there was a lot of trial and error with full sized MDF prototyping and many, many, many 1-6 laser cut models to get some of the profiles working the best that I could think of.

I learnt to develop a Japanese scarf joint (a joint that takes years to master) into a unique CNC version.

FUTURE DEVELOPMENT

I wish to explore the possibilities of extended this product into a range of furniture.

As this shelving unit is quite modular in the way that it is assembled I believe it can go hand in hand with an occasional range of furniture such as media unit, coffee table, side table, sideboard, console unit etc. as well as a possible bedroom range.

I want to find out how the shelving unit would react if the product was made from all hardwoods compared to sheet material. This might help solve some of the racking problems.

To get feedback from Opendesk to see what their opinions are.

POSSIBLE RANGE EXTENSION

PAGE CONCLUSION

This page is just exploring some possible outcomes for a range which i think would work well. obviously, there are some kinks to work out and some of the ‘modular’ element will not work for others but more to add to the collection within aesthetics. with more time i would like to properly refine these to a fully functional manor.