Digital Tectonics: Robotic Fabrication

In continuation with our previous exploration, we generated a 3d set of curves based upon a repulsion script.  To achieve this pattern the script was run twice to mark the actions of the tool tip and base.  This 6 axis swarfing exercise explored the limitations of our bit, and router with regards to the swarfing operation.

Matt Huber, Craig Rosman, Giacomo Tinari, Eddie Wong

As our first attempt to use the robot, we planned on only using the drilling tool-paths to start understanding the way the robot worked. Our first design attempt, which you can see above on the left, ended being to complex and would have chipped away too much material. We therefore created a derivate of that design, which also really helped us understand the way the files and robot need to be set up to do more complex jobs. It was a great learning experience.

Formal emergence began through an exploration of repulsion lines generated by Processing through mouse tracking.   The processing command was used as a disruption current through a typical Sine wave surface.  The skewed Sine curves were then lofted both individually and as a whole, revealing two surfaces which pierce through one another.  To emphasize their visibility, the two surfaces were tooled in rough perpendicular finishes.

The opposing side uses the same construction lines but is attached perpendicular to the previous.  Their depth is determined by its interaction with the original pattern and is shown through a flow line finish.  We found the flow line finish, much like swarfing, to be largely determined by curves control points rather than its surface.

-Eddie, Giacomo, Craig, Matt

-Eddie, Giacomo, Craig, Matt

This 12″ x 12″ x 1/2″ piece of corian was milled utilizing line tool paths on the 3 axis cnc mill.  The side of deeper relief was milled with a 1/2″ ballnose bit, and the side of more shallow relief was milled with a 1.5″ ballnose bit.  The lines of the two different sides of the piece were milled perpendicular to each other in order a create unique patterns when light shines through the material.  The design is based on the previously generated height-field of a random image as seen in our Paperstone Points project.

-Chris Gallot, Jaclyn Paceley, Spencer Gregson

This is a 24″ x 24″ x 3″ sign-foam surface milled on the three axis cnc mill using parallel finishing with a 1/2″ ballnose bit.  The design was generated from an earlier practice mill using the sign-foam; the area of greatest interest and height difference was selected from a larger overall image and then tiled in an offset pattern.  The back of the piece is milled with the inverse of the same surface that was scaled down on the z-axis.

-Chris Gallot, Jaclyn Paceley, Spencer Gregson