Tinkercad

The Challenge: Design your own 3D model or create a scaled version of something real. Then 3D print it. You get ONE print per project unless otherwise discussed. So be sure your design is what you want it to be when it comes to size and detail.

Here is the Tinkercad website.

STEAM U Levels:

Challenge Resources:

• Step-by-Step Instruction on TinkerCad website

Why Create Scale Models?

Scale models allow us to demonstrate a behavior or property without examining the original object.

They are used by professionals such as engineers, architects, craftsmen, film makers, the military, and salespeople.

The model's purpose determines its form. A filmmaker may want to show New York skyscrapers being destroyed by asteroids. Real skyscrapers are made of steel frames and thick glass, among other strong materials. However, for this scale model, the filmmaker would probably want to use much weaker materials so that the buildings easily crumble on impact.  

If an engineer is considering a new material for bridge building, she may create a miniature bridge and test it with a structure tester to determine its strength. In such a case, the scale model would need to be made of that material in order for the test to provide any useful data. If she needed a scale model of a bridge to show the location of a new bridge that is set to be built, then the material does not matter. It could be just as effective it it were made of plastic.  

Calculating Scale

For a scale model to be useful, all of its parts have to be proportional to the same parts on the real thing. In other words, the pieces of the model must be the same size relative to each other as they would be in real life.

For example, if we want to make a scale model of a car that is normally 15 feet long (180 inches), we would first decide how big our model is going to be relative to the actual car - say, a ratio of 1:18. This ratio, also called the scale factor, tells us that our model car is going to be 1/18th the size of the original. 

We could start by calculating the total length of our model. To do this, simply multiply the original length (180 inches) by the scale fraction (1/18). 

180 in x 1/18 = 10 in

In this case, the scale model would have to be 10 inches long. If we know the original dimensions (length, width, thickness) for all of the car parts (wheels, windows, headlights, etc.), we would simply multiply by the scale fraction in order to create accurate scale models for each of the parts. This ensures that all parts of the car model would be proportional to the original car. 

Student Examples: