Planning and Designing

When I first started making my project, I made a vague plan for myself. I planned to finish a sketch of the product with specifications and to finish designing and cutting each of the 30 layers by the second week of working (Nov 25), and to finish the coding and testing out the LEDs by the third week (Dec 2). Finally, I planned to finish the capacitive touch prototyping and testing by the next week (Dec 9), leaving the last week to add on vinyl stickers to cover the capacitive sensors and any other small design changes.

I did not meet my deadlines. I underestimated how much time it would take to design and cut each layer, as well as the amount of time it would take to make a proof of concept before implementing it into the actual project. Designing and cutting each layer ended up taking almost three weeks to finish, and afterwards cutting the acrylic and getting the LEDS to work took another week. I ended up using the final week to finalize my project and make a proof of concept for my capacitive sensors before implementing them into the base of my project. As a result, I had no time to add vinyl stickers on the capacitive sensors and could not add small design details to my project. The pictures below are pictures of my journal entries, showing that what I actually accomplished did not match the pace that I planned.

I first started off my project by sketching out what my vision for it would be. I decided to do this because sketching out designs has helped me visualize my project before. It gives me a better understanding of what I am making. I spent a class period sketching out a 3D full version of the project, along with other various layers of the design. I tried to make sure I was content with the measurements of the project. The pictures below show some of my sketches.