The Puzzling Design of Rings

For the last few weeks we've been working on designing concepts for 3D printed rings!

CONCEPT SKETCHES:

Once I completed my sketches, I decided I really wanted to do something that involved puzzles. I really wanted to explore the "Rubik's Cube" design, however I knew it would take me a really long time to figure out. My classmates suggested I stick to something more realistic. The "Mix and Match" design was popular, as well as the "Bow". My classmates felt the "Linked Ring" and the "Never Ending Maze" would be to difficult and time consuming to execute but they don't know me ;) I of course have to accept the challenge and at least give them a try. They were after all my two favourites.

PROOFSHEET:

My classmates advised me to ensure my wall thickness adhered to Shapeways standards as there are many small pieces, especially with Design 2. I had envisioned printing all designs in metal, however my classmates were unsure if that would be possible. Design 1 would need special consideration because all parts are linked together.

DESIGN 1: 4 Band Puzzle Ring, linked

For this design I began by creating a 2D version of the bands. From there, I used the cross sections to determine where the bands would fit together. With the intention of keeping things symmetrical, it took a bit of trial and error to find the best fit which changed the design a bit.

DESIGN 2: Maze Ring

For this design, I began by drawing the maze in 2D. I started with a template, then made adjustments in order to fit the size of the band and to account for wall thickness when printing.

DESIGN 3: 3 Piece Puzzle Ring

For this design I used a template to draw out the piece for each band. I extruded the lines in hopes that the pieces will be able to fit together but come apart without force.

SHAPEWAYS ANALYSIS:

I attempted to upload Design 2 and 3 to Shapeways. I was still unsure how to proceed with Design 1 so I left it for another time. Design 2 seemed to upload however, it was unable to generate an image and a didn't confident that the design passed. I didn't expect it to but was curious what the heat map would say. Design 3 uploaded really smoothly. There seemed to be an issue with "Loose Shells" however I couldn't tell what the problem was so I sent it through anyway. In hindsight, I felt like I should have uploaded each piece either individually or just separated. I went back and noticed that the part count was only 1 instead of 3 so there was definitely an issue, likely with how close together the pieces are. We'll see how it comes back and maybe next time I'll order each piece in a different material.