WEEK 3: COMPUTER-CONTROLLED CUTTING

Assignment: cut something on the vinylcutter and design, make, and document a parametric press-fit construction kit.

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//PARAMETRIC DESIGN USING RHINOCEROS

- Based on laser cutting patterns that are published by in the online magazine "Ponoko": "De-mystifying the ins and outs of laser cut curved surfaces."

- I modified and studied one of them,in order to get a nice bent cardboard. I draw my module in Rhino, following "Saverio Silli's tutorial" of using blocks as a "parametric" design. (Thanks Siverio!).

- Original pattern from "Ponoko Blog":

I placed the .jpg picture using the "PictureFrame" command.

- Then I reproduced the drawing using "line", "trim", and "scale" commands.

I saved my file as a normal rhino .3dm file and that will later on would be used as a block.

- Then I made a new file where I inserted the pattern as a block and then made an array with it.

- To test the "parametric" characteristic of using blocks, I opened again the block and , modified it.

- Later on, I opened the array file, and updated the block. The array changed as expected!

- I prepared some files to cut tests with the Multicam Epilog Laser Cutter.

Speed 50, Power 50, Frequency 2500

- I also made some files to cut tests with the Multicam Laser Cutter, which I've learned to use last year with Anastasia Pistofidou.

//BIRDHOUSE DESIGN

After spending some days thinking on how to apply my pattern I finally decided to create a birdhouse. I modeled this first version thinking on applying the pattern to create a double curvature surface. But I didn't like it and understood that my cardboard was not good for this shape.

I created another birdhouse design, and added an array of the previous block pattern block work.

PROBLEMS: This parametric strategy is useful, I dealed with the fact of having to explode the blocks in order to make trims or other operations over the curves. Grasshopper is definitely the best option to do this kind of work.

Rhino model

Unfolded cap applying parametric pattern. The image shows exploding block to trim unwanted curves.s

//CUTTING PROCESS USING MULTICAM LASER CUTTER

Parameters: Speed Speed 60, Power 250.

//FINAL RESULT

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//VYNIL CUTTING

I drawed a mirrored pyramid shape using my WACOM INTUOS in Adobe Illustrator.

I used Roland Vynil Cutter

Placed the black material between markers and select in the machine "ROLL". The machine will automatically measured the width of it.

Imported .ai files into INKSCAPE and then dragged them into "CUT STUDIO" software.

Select ->Cutting Setup, -> Properties -> Cutting Area: From Machine. Roland will send width to the software.

Go to ->File, then ->Cutting

Machine will start to cut

Some little parts weren't completely cutted, because the material was bended and lifted.

I cutted what I needed from the black vynil using scissors.

Removed unwanted material using twezers.

Covered vynil with transfer paper.

Removed white paper

Placed the vynil over a my laptop metallic surface.

Removed transfer paper.

PROBLEM! It was super sticky, it was not the right one to use.

//FILES

CARDBOARD BIRDHOUSE: @_@

VYNIL 2PYRAMID: @_@