Assignment: Model and 3D print something
This week, we were assigned to model and 3D print something. My original idea was to print out little jumping frogs, like these:
After modeling my design on Fusion, I printed my first iteration. Ultimately, the legs were too thin and would break off while I tried to remove the support material. Additionally, the tab used to push down would not bend as needed.
I ended up going through a few iterations before I switched ideas. After these iterations, I realized PLA is probably not the best material for this design. If I really had to make it work, I would scale the design up more and design a better hinge that can bend and (hopefully) generate the kinetic energy needed to make the frog jump.
Impulsive pivot
Eventually, I decided to pivot to an articulated design. I was interested in designing something with some movement capability. I landed on making a chain-link, print-in-place dratini.
This model turned out to be more of a proof-of-concept. The CADing can definitely be improved and some paint would certainly help! I'd like to look into using t-splines to get more organic shapes for the design. The model does articulate though!
↓ Dratini (.stl)3D Scan
Original figures:
