Tag Archives: Head Bust

Workshops and Busts

This week in class we had a workshop day where we got in our groups and worked on getting a prototype in for our project to begin printing! My group and I got together and we began to finalize some small details on our base design for our pour-over coffee contraption design. We were able to split our design into two parts: the base with funnel part and the water reservoir section. We were able to get two printers running with each of the two parts of the contraption printing. We were able to watch over the prints while in class and as we left the room the last time we saw the prints they were doing well. I was not able to get a look at the prints but cannot wait to see how it came out tomorrow when I visit the lab to get a look at them.

Additionally, I was able to fool around with the scanning technology that I unfortunately missed in the last class and scan a part of me to make a printed bust of myself. I was very impressed with the detail that the scanner was able to get from the scan in order to make a 3D image that resembled me pretty well! I was very impressed and thought it was so cool that I was using the technology that first got me interested in 3D printing in the first place! When I was a freshman here on campus, my best friend (who since then has transferred out) was working on a project for his art class that involved using a Kinect scanner to make a 3D printed bust of himself. So for me to be able to use the technology that got me interested in it in the first place was so satisfying and so much fun!

3D Scanning & Project Tinkering

3D Scanning My Head

Hi everyone! This week was one that I have been looking forward to since the beginning of the semester–we learned about 3D scanning! I have always been intrigued by the capabilities and implications of 3D scanning; it is so cool that we can use cameras/sensors to scan a physical object and create a digital representation of it. We learned about some different consumer-level 3D scanning products and were able to test one out that we have in the lab (we have an iPad attachment). Each of the class members scanned a bust of their head. We were then able to load these files on TinkerCad and fill-in/smooth-out any imperfections in our scans. We then put the edited files into Cura so we could obtain .stl files to then send to the 3D printers! Check out my Cura model and final print below:

Cura Model

Final Print

A fun fact that I learned was that the Xbox Kinect sensor has the same scanning capabilities as the 3D scanners that we talked about in class. This was exciting for me because I have an Xbox Kinect sensor at home! The way it works is the Kinect sensor gets connected to a computer and we can then 3D scan an object with the proper software installed! Check out a video on this topic here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cKb3oEM47E.

 

Project Tinkering

My group is waiting on one of our parts (the 7-Segment display) to come in so we can dive into the building of our prototype. However, this did not deter us from making progress on our project this week. We each performed different parts of our research needed, and I also started tinkering with our perfboard and wires (see picture below).

Perfboard/wire tinkering

The picture may look overwhelming with the wires, but this exercise was actually very beneficial in helping me understand the use of perfboards. Physically maneuvering the wires along the board allowed me to see where the different ports connect and which positive/negative currents would be affected by certain connections. I feel much more confident moving forward in the coming weeks when it comes to connecting our 7-Segment display and sensors.

One additional update that we have for our project is that we are going to utilize a push button counter instead of a sensor for our first prototype. This is because we want to be sure that our 7-Segment display is going to work with our creation before we dive into the depths of coding. Utilizing the push button will allow us to ensure that our prototype is properly created because we will be able to see our number on the display go up and down as we knowingly push the button. Alternatively, it would be more difficult to see where our prototype is correct/incorrect if we use the sensors right away because it would be harder to narrow down if an issue is with the sensor, coding, or wiring of our prototype.

 

Extra Note

While my group’s project most likely will not require soldering, I found a useful video on YouTube that gives further insight on this topic incase we any group does: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3N3ApzmyjzE. This video was beneficial because it allowed me to see how another individual used a perfboard and made his own creation. The more that my group learns about these boards and their different functionality, the better off we will be in using our creativity to make the best possible prototype!

 

Thank you!

Thank you for tuning in this week. More project updates are to come next week once we have all of our parts!

 

-Scott Provenzano