by Carolina Aguirre/Carolina Miro
The second assignment required decomposing the 3D design of a piece of furniture, into 2D elements to laser cut them as its pieces. It was also important to consider that the model would be part of a fluid whole later on, so it had to respect the limits given for it and the shape of its initial and final faces.
Resuming the design process, it was developed inside the boundaries given and taking advantage of some free space to give it some movement through the invisible cage. Then, the its top was modified by using control points to give it some flatness that would allow it to be useful as a confortable bench.
The result was a dynamic element which provided excellent prospects for successful fabrication as also its integration with the other designs.
With the design already completed, the 3D model was modified to be produced using the laser-cutting machine. The surface of the design was offset and contours were created. Intersecting surfaces were made from these contours and cilinders where placed on them, which were later trimmed to create voids in the elements in order to be able to join the pieces. The intersection slots were made to be 2.8mm wide, creating a snug fit for the mounted panels. Finally, the various pieces needed to be separated and projected, side by side, onto a cplane which had the same dimensions as the wooden panel to be placed in the laser cutter.
Once the 3D design had been translated into the 2D layout, its file was exported to the laser cutter. A 3mm thick wooden plank was cut into the various waffle pieces. The cutting process was closely monitored in order to comply with the necessary safety precautions, such as ensuring that the cut pieces didn’t obstruct the machine while it was still in progress and of course to control a possible fire.
After the pieces were cut successfully and without any incidences, they were assembled to be part of the final product.
