Tag: Loom

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Volume Control | Parametric Modeling

One of my favorite aspects of my job is solving a problem we have never before encountered. Luckily, this happens nearly every day as students are building various types of projects of their own design, such as candy shooters and singing toothbrushes. 

A senior was having problems building a box for a bluetooth speaker setup they were working on, as they were trying to understand how to build the box with the proper volume specified for the speakers he was using. He was taking measurements, putting them into CAD, but when things changed within his project, he would have to change all his dimensions again and it was a real tedious task. 

Working together we were able to solve the problem using parameters in Fusion 360. We utilize Fusion 360 for all our CAD needs in the classroom. It’s an easy to learn, robust software with built-in CAM that enables us to send our models to all the different machines we have in the shop – 3D printers, waterjet, plasma cutter, mills, lathes, etc. It’s also free software, and I have the ability to setup an educational account and give access to all my students, rather than having each student setup their own personal account. I really like the way they have the new educational account setup for teachers and students, makes life much easier than before where students needed to verify their accounts which was often problematic.

Back to the parameters discussion. By utilizing parameters in Fusion 360 along with an organized modeling strategy, we found a way to control the volume of the box so it always remains constant, even when we change the length, width, or size of material. Below is a screenshot of the parameter setup for the project. You’ll notice some odd math happening, as there are several instances of multiplying 1 in within an expression. This is because Fusion 360 does not have in² or in³ within its parameters framework, so you need to use the 1 in to cancel out parts of an expression so it has the same units Fusion 360 can work with. 

I went ahead and created a quick modeling video for students, so in the future I can just point them to the video instead of showing them directly, which frees me up to help other students in our classroom. Video below.

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Routine

With the new year only a few days old, it’s the time of year where we tend to establish new routines, or continue habits from the previous year(s). For today’s post, I thought it might be nice to briefly discuss my own daily work routine. While routines can vary and fluctuate over time, I rather enjoy my current schedule of events.

My alarm goes off at 5am each morning. I’m pretty good at getting up immediately, and never hit the snooze. I wake my Frenchie, Ferguson, and carry him to the bathroom and turn on the shower. Right now it’s winter, so I let the shower run a few minutes to heat the bathroom. I grab my clothes for the day, weigh myself, and then jump in the shower. I shave with a double edge razor and badger brush each morning. I take Ferguson down stairs after I’m dressed and change his diaper, clean his sleeping area, and give him some water and a snack. Because it’s winter, I turn the car on and let it warm up a few minutes while I complete getting ready inside the house. I grab my lunch, a water bottle, and a breakfast bar and place it into my bag. I then go upstairs and help Ash wake up the chihuahuas, they are slow to get ready for the day, and then say goodbye.

Generally, I leave the house by around 5:40am and drive to work. It takes between 10-15 minutes to travel to Medford, and there is little traffic at this time of day. After arriving at school I take off my coat, put on my apron, and sit at my computer. Usually I record a CAD or CAM video via Loom, or do other school related work until the bell rings at 7:40am. I take Advisory period attendance, and then have 1st period as a prep to continue to get ready for the day. Second and third periods we usually have our Freshmen, but only 4 out of every 6 days. For periods 4-6 we have the Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors who have decided to take Robotics and Engineering as a vocational class. We see the same students each day for all 3 periods, which allows us to work on long term projects.

School ends at 2:18, however, vocational faculty are required by contract to stay at school until 3pm. This is never a big deal, as I always have work to do after the school day, usually grading, posting attendance, and troubleshooting student projects. The drive home from school can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 1 hour, all based on Boston afternoon traffic. Generally, I am home around 4pm. I take the two chihuahuas out for a quick walk, and then change Ferguson’s diapers and clean up his area. Most days I then spend about an hour in the basement working out on the treadmill, before beginning to think about what to make for dinner. I’ll prep dinner so it’s ready to go when Ash comes home and then read the Boston Globe.

We eat dinner and watch some television, and by 9pm I’m in bed reading a book. I generally read a little bit each night, sometimes its 5-10 minutes other nights its nearly an hour, just depends. By 10pm I turn off the lights and go to sleep, and prepare to do it all again the next day.

Some images of student work from the day to finish off this post