Final Design

Overview

The mechanical drawing machine is an automatic drawing table, created to mechanically make a physical interpretation of a computer drawing. It is implemented using a custom built Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) system, with the g-code programming language and a g-code interpreter acting as the intermediary between the computer drawing and its physical manifestation. The table has 3 axes of motion was created, with interchangeable paintbrushes and multiple opacities of black ink.  A multi-step process is the basis for the design: a drawing is created as a DXF file, and the lines are converted into g-code through a conversion application; this g-code maps geometric coordinates for the pathways that the brush will eventually follow.  After running the code through a post-processing application to embed subroutines that allow for brush dipping, the modified g-code is uploaded into the g-code interpreter LinuxCNC, and translated onto the table into a physical recreation of the original drawing.

Prototype

The working prototype was designed, fabricated, and assembled in 9 weeks.

The prototype allows for movement in 3-axis movement allowing it to virtually position the drawing head anywhere inside the area of table. These movements are each controlled by the mother board through three stepper motors, as well as the associated limit switches and solenoid.

Figure 2: CAD model of Design

Drawing and Moving System

Recomendations

Figure1: Table in use

Objectives

•Create a painting table

•Ability to use change brushes

•Ability to paint with different ink opacity

•Convert the Artist digital drawing file to a painting

•Ability to dip and remove excess paint on brush

•Ability to re-dip when brush is out of ink

Figure 3: CAD model of Carriage

Material Setup System

Conclusions

With this Mechatronic Drawing Table, we hope to inspire others that engineering can be used to entertain and as well as to open a different spectrum where mechatronics can be implemented in. It's combination of engineering and art is to encourage different level of art and also to show viewers that math, physics and engineering can be creative and innovating. The combination of art and engineering is becoming more of an interest towards society of how engineering can create, learn, and understand different

pieces of art.

Figure 4: Material Surface