Phew! What a project! Here’s how we did it.

2D Modeling and Brainstorming

We started off with many ideas during the brainstorming period for the midterm project. We wanted to try a mechanism that would rise and lower with a pump the way a chair with adjustable height would. For a theme, we decided we would work with an Avatar: the Last Airbender theme. We went off to take a look at 507 Mechanical Movements to figure out which one to use. We wanted to try mechanisms 24 and 93 and tried to hand draw our ideas. We settled on setting up a stage where our Avatar characters would “run” around (they would be fixated on a big gear, that would then be rotated by a smaller gear that we would turn with a crank – mechanism 24). We also wanted the sun and clouds to move using mechanism 93 in the background. This would be achieved by adding the sun and clouds to the yoke part of the scotch and yoke mechanism, mechanism 93.

Adobe Illustrator 

To model our ideas, the most important files to create were for the mechanisms. We figured characters and extra items could be added on later. We used this website to create our gears for mechanism 24. For mechanism 93, lots of Youtube videos were looked at and research was done in order to understand all the important moving pieces. Creating Illustrator files for our characters and other photo pieces proved to be a little difficult at first. The whole process was something similar to this:

• We downloaded the images we wanted from the internet. 
• Then we image traced and expanded.
• Created a box around the image.
• Sent to the machine for cutting.

 

We got lots of practice using Illustrator in this project.

Laser Cutting Cardboard 

To present our low fidelity model, we made cuts on cardboard using our pre-constructed Adobe files. For the stage, we double-cardboarded each platform and placed tight-fit dowel sized holes in one of the cardboard pieces on each platform so that the dowels had a place to sit when the stage was put together. Then, for the gears, the single cardboard cutouts often got stuck, so we triple-stacked them. The parts for mechanism 93 were also easily printed on cardboard and assembled well.

Washers and Dowells

The ready-to-use dowells that were available to everyone were very helpful throughout the project. There was a large variety to choose from, but they needed to be cut to the correct lengths for our project. We used the hand saw. The dowells in our project were used for support, handles, as a rod, and as little stands for our characters. The washers were super useful in providing stability to the gears as well. We even laser cut out our own washers to ensure a snug fit around our dowells. These items were tools we didn’t consider initially in the project. They’re great because they reduce friction and give stability.

Aesthetic Qualities Decisions

After we successfully demonstrated that our mechanisms worked on cardboard, we decided it was time to really think about what sort of aesthetic elements we wanted to incorporate into our final design. We wanted to create a sort of box that gave the illusion that a “play” was happening within it. So we decided that we wanted to stain all the visible areas with dark wood stain, sew a red curtain that could be drawn to the sides of the stage, make a sky background on the back screen, and print out a vinyl cut sun-and-clouds to go with mechanism 93.

Laser Cutting Wood 

Working towards creating a high fidelity prototype, we thought we could just print the adobe illustrator files that we had made for the cardboard pieces and quickly assemble them. However, we had a lot of trouble with getting different wood pieces to line up so that the holes were even enough for the dowells to fit through. So we played around with Illustrator a bit more, and that solved the issue. This step of the project requires lots of patience and iteration because the same settings/dimensions for cardboard were not the same for wood material.

Sanding

For the gears, sides, and the platforms of our theater, we used the orbital sander to achieve a smooth feel. We used 240 grit and then 400 grit. We tried to take the suggestion of a TA to try sanding the charred sides of the laser cut wood pieces, but it wasn’t coming out uniformly so we stopped trying to sand the edges.

Staining

For the sides and platforms of our stage, we used the black stain as finishing. Our initial idea and hope was to use the mahogany stain because we really love the way it looks, but we were unable to find any. The first layer of staining wasn’t very appealing because the top layer of stain would crawl its way to the back. It was slightly messy and splotchy. And wiping off the stain did not look very nice. Then we went in for a second round of staining with the black. This time, we did not wipe away any excess and we were content with the final look.

Vinyl Cut Pieces

Using the vinyl cutter was very simple. In our project, the cloud and sun in the background as well as the twinkles on the sides of the stage have vinyl on it. There wasn’t much to worry about except dimensions in the file and spacing on the vinyl sheet itself. It took a few tries, but the process was stress free and great. The only odd thing that we found was that some vinyl wasn’t sticky enough on the back so we could place it on our part, but that may be just a situational incidence.

Waterjet Cut Pieces

We wanted to waterjet cut the handle/crank for our mechanism, so we tried to cut out the file seen below. However, despite following the instructions thoroughly, the machine was unable to cut all the way through the metal. We tried to cut out our design on both steel and aluminum pieces, but we were unsuccessful. The lab assistant stated that the sand was not working properly, so we tried again the next day, and were successful in printing out a handle. Some of the etching from the previous attempts were still present on the metal, so we decided to cover it with a vinyl cut piece. However, the vinyl cutter had stopped working by that time, so we resorted to using filler primer to attempt to give the handle a smoother finish.

Background Stage

Due to the limited choices of colors for finishing and staining, we decided that painting the background of our theater would be a good option. It turned out very well. Acrylic on stained wood dried super quickly but it didn’t provide much coverage in certain areas. Luckily for us, it went along with the aesthetic of our project, especially regarding the gradient.

Our Characters

Initially, we wanted to use the acrylic material to water jet cut out the shapes of our characters. We thought it would be cool to see what engraving looks like on the acrylic. Sadly, the next day when we came into the OEDK, the acrylic sheet that we had set aside had disappeared. Also, based on internet research, we discovered that acrylic paint does not work very well on acrylic material, so we decided to forego using acrylic. 

To prepare the illustrator files of the characters, we had lots of trouble trying to create a file with only one path. Another problem was trying to isolate solely the image. We learned how to use the image trace function and added a square around each character. In the end, we acrylic painted the back of the laser cut wood pieces to symbolize the color of the cloaks the characters wear in the cartoon.

The Elements

The first idea was to draw on the sides of the theater and then use the acrylic paint to paint it in. Given how the background screen turned out, we decided that engraving on the laser cutter would be a better choice because of the uniform appeal and ease. We weren’t entirely sure what would happen if we engraved the stained wood (Is the stain flammable? Would the cut be visible?). So this is when we decided it would be better to glue on the element symbols to the side of the theater. We printed out engraved pieces and then stained them with polycrylic. It gives such a beautiful finish. We also stained the character pieces and our name plate with polycrylic.

The Curtain

The curtain bit was very simple. We measured out the distance between the height of the pole we had set up would be places and the bottom of the stage, cut out a piece of red fabric, folded it over a bit, and stitched a single line across the top, leaving enough space for the pole to go through. Then, we cut the that red fabric in half, hung them up on the furthest ends of the curtain pole, and tied each piece with white string so that the character pieces didn’t get stuck on them as they went around the stage.

Gluing Together + Mechanism 93 Fails

The most important step that we saved for last was that of gluing everything together. We purposefully post-processed and finished our pieces so that we wouldn’t have to worry afterwards. It left some amount of anxiety because our peers had reported having trouble with their mechanisms after putting everything together. We weren’t able to see any potential issues until we were in the process of gluing. Our project worked on cardboard, but wood came with its own sets of problems, as the tolerances are different and the staining process affected the surface of the wood. We used wood glue to hold everything together. At first, we thought about putting in tiny screws to secure the side pieces and the platform. However, a TA said that we didn’t need to do that and that gluing would be sufficient to hold the pieces together. Some things we didn’t foresee having issues with were the spacing and placement of the back screen. The space was limited and we wanted to make sure we were not interfering with the path of the crank backstage while giving the characters on stage enough room to move around. Furthermore, mechanism 93 needed a bit more work in order to be functional for the project. The hole positioning for the back screen and sides of the theater were not in agreement to allow for proper movement. Also, the staining process had made it difficult for some pieces to interact with each other.

What We Could Have Done Differently

There were several areas we would have liked to improve on or would do differently if we did this project again. For the character shapes, we would have liked to get the silhouette of each characters with identifiable engravings of their features, instead of the outlines etched out on a rectangular wood piece. We also ignored the back portion of the stage, which is completely black and has some paint and glue stuck on it, so we could have cleaned that area up and put up a wooden silhouette of Aang in the Avatar state, for instance. Additionally, our sky background could have been covered with some sort of stain, or something that could brighten it up, because it currently looks dull. Finally, we really wish we could have gotten mechanism 93 to work. If the background screen had been raised a bit higher allowing for better mobility of the mechanism, it might have been successfully incorporated into our project. We would also spend less time creating illustrator files and more time printing things to see what works and what doesn’t work. We should also have worked on the project more consistently instead of doing all the work in spurts to meet the various check-in deadlines, because some of the issues that came up could have been solved with more consistent work.

Financial Model

• Materials: 
  • 4 sheets of  28” x 40” of wood
    • ~$15.39/sheet of 2 ft x 4 ft wood
    • Our cost ~ $60
  • 2” x 1”  of aluminum
    • ~$40 for a 12” x 12” aluminum plate
    • Our cost ~ $2
  • 11” x 10” of red fabric and thread
    • $7.99/yard
    •  Our cost ~ $0.75
  • 3 dowells
    • $2.39 each
    • Our total ~ $ 7.17
  • Vinyl Sheets
    • $1.49 per 12” x 12” sheet
    • Our cost ~ $0.75
  •  Miscellaneous Materials : Acrylic Paint, Filler Primer, Black wood stain, Polycrylic and Sandpaper: Provided by OEDK and own supply
• Labor: 1 week total ( 40 hr week) x $7.25 x 2 engineers = $580 
• Total Cost: $650.67
• Machines Used: Laser Cutter, Water Jet Cutter, Orbital Sander, Vinyl Cutter

Images of the Final Product

Video of the Final Product

PowerPoint Slide Deck