Initial Phase
Written Ideas/sketches/drawings/images with descriptions.
Firstly, we sketched out a rough diagram of how the 3D painter draws and flip the cube.
Using that as a basis, we moved on to design and print 3D parts to fit onto the Ender 3 for prototyping. This process is mostly about trial and error as we figure out which parts best suitably achieve our goal. It was very tedious to go through this process as we had to iterate through many generations of prototypes to determine the final one for our project!
We also built up the Ender 3 printer for our project to link up with the software and firmware.
Prototype
Prototype images/videos with descriptions.
We prototyped our pen and cube holders from the first generation to the final generation.
As the basis, we made use of the pen holders from Making and Tinkering Lite to start our process of drawing on paper first! This step helps us to imagine the process of drawing on a Rubik’s Cube and build upon that. From this, we are able to observe how the marker interacts with the surface on the paper, the limitations of the markers, and how to draw effectively. We tested it with online software (Inkscape) to draw an image of a cat and the Mona Lisa.
Here is our drawing of the cat on the Rubik’s Cube, we are having difficulties as there are gaps in the cube.
We also built a secure flipper mechanism to be integrated with the cube holder as the base. The flipper mechanism is connected to an external motor working as the extruder axis with it secured onto an aluminium profile on the print bed.
Final Product
Final Product images/videos with descriptions.
This is our final design for the prototype! We incorporated an aluminium profile to secure the flipping mechanism to the print bed with the cube holder.
On top, we built an electromagnetic holder for our markers for the drawing process!
As for our controller, we used an Arduino Mega with Raspberry Pi to send the commands to draw and flip for our system!