Blog 3

Week 5

Week 5 focuses on hand sketching and Computer-aided design (CAD) drawing using Autodesk fusion 360

Hand sketching: 

This is what we do for warming up:

It is important to make full use of your whole arm when sketching precise shapes and curves. By maneuvering your wrist and elbows properly, it allows you to sketch a clean, precise stroke.

1 and 2 point perspective:

We went on to sketch images in 1-point and 2-point perspectives. Originally, I couldn't differentiate and tell the difference between 1 and 2-point perspective. it was after this lesson and watching the video that Dr. Noel showed that I realized 1-point perspective drawings have only 1 vanishing point and all strokes converge into 1 single point. Whereas 2-point perspective drawings have 2 vanishing points.  

1 point perspective - 1 vanishing point only 

2 point perspective - 2 vanishing point 

Our chemical product design of portable heater :

Computer-aided design using Autodesk fusion 360:

The class went on to draw on the CAD using a software known as Fusion 360.

We began by trying out different sketches:

this is a dumbell :')

 This is the Photoframe I drew after ALOT of hard work :)

This is a design of a keychain: (p.s neoneo is my instagram @, feel free to follow me thanks 🙈)

Using the CADD was a challenging task. It was difficult to build the photoframe as well as following the instructions given. However, I managed to overcome it by trying the different tools given and understanding what each tool does. After multiple tries, I was able to create a photoframe before going on to make a keychain. By right clicking on the mouse, there are several option that will come out and using those options, you can work your way around it. For example creating the circular holes on the four corners of the photoframe. 

Practical 2: Cardboard joinery

This practical focuses on cardboard joinery without the help of any other materials like glue/tape/ziptie/anything to bind 2 materials. Together with me on my team are Hannah, Tristan, Ruba and Alvin💥

This is my group's creation. It is a Treehouse but also a scarecrow/robot/monster figure😀 We were tasked to use all 6 cardboard joinery- flange, L-brace, Tabs, Slot, Slot + tab, holes. 

1. Flange

Flanges were used to join the trunk of the tree down on the board for our tree to stand. We decided to go with flanges as it was the most simple and feasible way for a cylindrical shape to stand as compared to other methods like tabs which would be tedious for us to tape the bottom down. The flanges also acts as the roots of the tree :)

2. L-brace 

The L-brace was used to make the body of the house, in which we joined 2 L-brace together to create a square. It was also used to build the roof of the Treehouse using triangular L-braces. 

3. Tabs

Tabs were used to secure our campfire down. It also utilizes the slots method of cardboard joinery.

4. Slots 

Tabs were used in the branches of the tree trunk to join the leaves and the branches as well as the campfire.

5. Slot+tab 

Slot + tab were used in joining our branches to the tree trunk. Using the penknife, we cut slits on our tree trunk and inserted the branches after cutting the tabs in a triangular shape so it will be more securely joined. 

6. Holes

Holes were used as the windmill on our Treehouse. Using the hole puncher, we punched a hold on each blade of the windmill and secure it onto the roof using the fastener. This way, the windmill is able to spin freely.

Takeaways:

The practical was a fun and engaging experience after all. Through this cardboard joinery, I was able to understand the importance of prototyping. It enables us to bring our ideas to life and identify any design flaws which may occur and since prototyping is a scaled-down, inexpensive version of our design, it can easily be modified and corrected to our liking. 

This practical has also taught me the importance of teamwork as it was through having a strong team spirit that my group was able to complete the whole prototype on time. We divided the tasks and worked together, at the same time, conceive ideas to overcome any hurdles faced. For example, as we were building the body of the house, we realized that we did not make use of all 6 cardboard joineries. It was also too late to change a new idea and hence, we decided to make use of the L-brace joinery to built the house instead. We were also racing against time, which really put our teamwork to the test. 

Although we completed our prototype as we wanted and by the time given, there were improvements that could be made as well. For example, we could have come up with an idea we want to build before entering class so we didn't need to waste time brainstorming. This would help us to save some time and maybe even have a better model to present. Additionally, it would prevent time wasted in planning and calculating the dimensions of the tree trunk and branches. This was not the only challenge that we faced as there were also disagreements along the way. Tristan and I were discussing the dimensions of the tree and how we should utilize the cardboard pieces. It was through much reasoning, that we finally made a decision to stick with. In addition to that, we had to also use the hot glue to attach the tree down to a base as it was too heavy and, hence, we did not utilize any cardboard joinery methods that we were taught. 

These are some pictures of us during the creation of our prototype. 

After the practical, we were given miniature cardboard models to analyze how no glue or tape were used at all and the joineries were purely the methods we learned. 

From the cardboard sheep model, 

1. The way the made a slot + tab to connect the sheep's head to its body can be implemented at the bottom of our houe and the top of the tree to connect the 2 figures together. 

2. The slit used in making the legs of the sheep can be used to connect the body of the house to prevent the need of glue 

3. The checkered pattern used in the body of the sheep makes it strong and not easily compressed. This can be used in the body of the house or the trunk to make them more sturdy.