Module 3 FABRICATION
Weeks 7 8 9
Bill, Jackie and Sarah
MODULE 1 SUMMARY
Module one saw the exploration of ideas in and around the concept of a second skin and feelings around personal space. Different materials and joining methods were explored. Playing in Rhino was difficult, dispite the hours of tutorials watched. The drawing and measurement aspect of the object and the ideation was very enjoyable.
VIEWS OF PERSONAL SPACE
Jackie Personal space is highly important at the back as it is more vulnerable. At the front personal space is more flexible and should be adjustable. Personal space is definitely situation dependent, though generally protection should be more secure at the back than the front. Sarah Personal space reflects on the context, where the individual decides the boundaries depending on the situation, where individuals sense of personal space is either comfortable or heightened. Personal space also indicates a boundary of protection. Inflatable systems have the ability to create an illusion of protection, where a soft extension of the body merely creates a security blanket. Personal space also relies on the consent given by the person to enter this space, and how comfortable they feel with the level of interaction. Bill Personal space is about the surroundings of a person, and varies depending on what they depict as their comfort zone. In order to remain comfortable for many people, a layer of ‘extra space’ is required to ensure a level of security is reached.
EXPLORATION OF IDEAS
EXPLORATION OF IDEAS
DESIGN PROPOSAL
DESIGN BRIEF
MODULE 2 DESIGN PROCESS SUMMARY IDEAS
INSPIRATION/PRECEDENCE STUDY
FORMATION AND CONSOLIDATION OF IDEAS
FIRST DEVELOPED DESIGN IDEA
RETHINKING DESIGN IDEAS
RHINO PANELING OPPORTUNITIES
FINAL DESIGN IDEA
FIRST COMPLETED PROTOTYPE
RIGHT HAND SIDE
BACK VIEW
As a result of making this prototype we realised this is the direction we would like to head towards for our final design. Building this prototype showed us how the physical volume of inflatable and panel and fold systems work well together. It also showed us that it is difficult to join different based shapes fluidly together.
LEFT HAND SIDE
FRONT VIEW
READING [Lost In Parameter Space] What are the key differences between 'abstraction' and 'reduction'? Abstraction is the quality of dealing with ideas rather than events, therefore something that exists only as an idea. Reduction is about finding the optimal way to deliver ideas without altering the content already proposed. Key differences: Abstraction - Reducing the amount of information needed to describe somethingAbstracted models generally tries not to contain as much information as possible, but enough information to describe the properties explicitly. Reduction - Doesn’t throw away information, but rather uses all the information it has to maximise the concept. Does weight most of the information, however, uses normalisation, as a method of eliminating anomalies. Computer-aided design (CAD) is a system used by architects in design modelling, which has been developed to eradicate most math complexities. Non-uniform rational b-splines (NURBS) allow the precise definition of complex shapes through control points, which can be used to abstract a mesh surface. Can you relate these ideas to tasks you undertook in Module 1? Having to make an inflatable object using rhino involved using control points, which could be manipulated to help form the desired shape. Whilst modelling the shape, a way that reduction was used was through refactoring, as the object would be cleaned up from any unnecessary lines or points that weighted the model, creating more technical difficulties.
MODULE 2 PRESENTATION FEEDBACK Issues highlighted included a proposed rethink of the complexity and size of the inflatable element of our design. The bigger the better seemed to be the way of inflatables. Strong suggestions were made as to the level of finish of our model and the jump that would have to be made in order to achieve in Module 3. The composite depiction of personal space (spiked and inflated) was acceptable to the panel of judges however emphasis was placed on the nature of the shoulder joint. Particular care will need to be taken in its design and execution
READING Digital Fabrications: Architecture and Material Techniques This fantastic documentation of innovative digital fabrications directly reinvigorated personal interest in the fabrication of our personal space design. Chris Bosse revealed in “Digital Origami� a shape that can be tessellated, which we realised, could solve the inflatable section of our design. This tessellating shape required a dodecahedron, which we discovered after hours of experimentation on Rhinoceros and further research and prototyping.
INSPIRATION FOR FRONT DEVELOPMENT OF IDEAS
PROTOTYPING BUBBLES
Connecting different types of plastic to the panel and fold system
Printed and cut dodecahedron
BUILDING BUBBLES ON RHINO
Different colours represents different shapes required to produce a tessellating pattern. Bottom of shapes are cut to create a flat surface suitable to fit on a body.
WEEK 8 LECTURE We learned about the grasshopper plugin for Rhino, which once we learned how to use the plugin, made the process of making tabs a lot easier and faster. With the recent shift in technology, the way in which we deal with materials has significantly changed the world of designing and how we think. As we worked through our design of a second skin we at first had a lot of difficulties with using Rhino due to the complexity of the program. Though once we learned how to effectively manage the program, we found that using technology was a significant advantage when fabricating our second skin. Having suitable machinery and materials accessible for our use allowed us to easily make prototypes with the same materials and techniques that would be used for the final fabrication. This gave us an accurate representation of how we could improve our design. Technology has enabled greater precision for an expanding spectrum of uses ataffordable prices.
UNFOLDING SHAPES IN RHINO
Illustrated are 5 different shapes that are repeated throughout the design
UNFOLDING FOR FAB LAB PRINTING
WEEK 9 LECTURE From Michelle’s lecture in week 9, it was really brought to our attention that in order to produce a functional design that comes together effectively, multiple prototypes must be first constructed. These prototypes can allow you to realise faults in a design, or bring to mind new ideas that would not have been possible without a physical representation of the design. This definitely applied to our experiences, as we used prototypes to shape the direction of our design.
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
PROTOTYPE Fabrication Issues - The way in which the tabs joint with each other and how they would glue together. - Some of the tabs overlapped each other which made it difficult whilst gluing the panels. - Cleanliness of design (glue). The prototype was left with glue smudges which don’t make the design seem professional. - Originally I was folding against the score line, meaning the edges of my polygon were rounded and in precise whilst others where two edges joined were more precise. It was only until after the completion of 20 modules that I was told that the scores were to be folded the other way. Edges became more precise and neater fold lines. - Alignment of the panels to form the geometric shape. We discovered that the alignment of panels wasn’t correct once the file was printed, which led to the mismatch of forming the bubble we had intended to create. Short term fixes for fabrication difficulties that arose. Short term fixes for fabrication difficulties that arose - Surfaces had to be reorientated which led to the process of cutting of panels and re adding them with tape Rhino 3D modelling learning process - From Rhino, when unrolling and reorientating panels, it is important to pay particular attention to correct orientation (Photo of incorrectly orientated panel) Rhino 3D modelling learning process - From Rhino, when unrolling and reorientating panels, it is important to pay particular attention to correct orientation (Photo of incorrectly orientated panel) - Some of the common commands used during this process included: orientating, change layer, polylines, dupborder, unfold. - What was most difficult during this process was unfolding the bubble and enabling that each panel will fold correctly together once printed - Things that made a big change to process (eg. Making tabs)
FINAL DESIGN FABRICATION
FABRICATION PROCESS
FABRICATING INFLATABLE SECTIONS
INTEGRATING INFLATABLES WITH PANNEL AND FOLD SYSTEM
DEVELOPMENT OF BACK DESIGN MOTIVATIONS Spikes are used to ensure a small barrier between the person and everyone else (an extended layer ‘second skin’) Extends the length of the back We decided to make the spikes a lot larger so to have the spikes act as a warning system, so people won’t want to approach from behind (larger spikes are more threatening) We shortened the extend of the spikes to maximise the movement possible by the wearer of the second skin We tailored the spikes so there are large spikes in the center (most vulnerable area), then decrease in size leading towards the head and the lower back - More freedom for movement. The transition between the spikes (panel and fold) and bubbles (inflatables) are important in order to create a well designed join that is interesting.
DEVELOPMENT OF BACK
PROTOTYPING SHAPES
Through making the prototypes of different shapes that could be used as ‘spikes’, we discovered that a square based pyramid would work best, as they would tessellate nicely, and many of the other shapes would result in large gaps, and a messy appearance. This was realised from their application in nature in the form of the crocodile.
MODELING ON RHINO For this test we were looking at making the points quite even around the entire shell, and making it look even and relatively spread out. For this test we were also looking at making the points more exaggerated towards the centre, while having more subtle points on the edges. At the same time we wanted to make the points subtly and point in different directions in order to make the design more interesting. This test is preferred out of the two we did and we would like to make these points exaggerated and more pronounced. Each point came out slightly bent and curved on their edges, which would cause a problem with printing in Rhino.
PROTOTYPING SHAPES
UNROLLING FIST TIME
Made the top two spikes quite short to enable a transition
Problems we countoutered In the process of unfolding, we deleted each base face, so we then had an open pyramid. We soon discovered that in order to successfully create a base layer on our design, we would need that extra face. We also realised that in order to make the fabrication process a lot more fluid and succinct, we would need to unroll the spikes with as many as possible connecting to one another.
UNROLLING SECOND TIME Colour coding to make unrolling easier and more organised
FULL SIZE PROTOTYPE
Through making a full size prototype of the spikes at the back, we realised that the small two spikes at the top were quite unnecessary, as they were too small for a transition into the dodecahedron shapes and also looked a little messy. We also realised that in order to neatly connect each row of spikes to one another, we would need to have a tab on every second base. We also made a mistake of putting two tabs connecting the same edge, resulting in a clash, so we had to fix this up for the final.
FINAL DESIGN OF SPIKES
Spikes appear to be threatening, and would successfully ensure that approaching people would be aware that this individual would not wish for others to enter their personal space.
FINAL DESIGN
REFLECTION
This process has streatched our imagination, our groupwork skills and our motivation. Along the way the physical design took a firm course in developing protection against unknown elements from behind that may hinder ones personal space and simultaniously attempted intimacy interchangable with rigidity on its forefront. The process was felt by all three as somewhat of limiter of our imaginations capacity to comprehend the possibilities that were infront of us. Concurrently, dispite this strugle we have been inspired by the course content at times and provoked to learn some very useful skills.
EXPLODED SHOULDER JOINT