Learning 3D MODELLING to make a Rubber Band Gun

Ever since I was a child, I have always had a strong sense of curiosity, especially as to how things are made and how they function. This curiosity often led me to break and disassemble objects to satisfy my curiosity regardless of their price, which sometimes reasonably upset my parents. Another contributing factor towards my interest is my father. He was interested in figurine products or dioramas, specifically dioramas involving trains, cars, and planes, some of which are still displayed in the house.This sense of curiosity fueled my interest in product designing and products in general such as toys, dioramas, tools, etc. With the constant advancement of technology, things such as more affordable and powerful computers, 3D Modelling software, and 3D printing becoming more accessible to the public, I believe there to learn product design than now through the primary objective of my personal project, the goal statement being “To research and learn 3D modeling then create and design a figurine using various CAD programs in order to have a better understanding on creating and designing 3D models.” This project also acts as a practice for my preferred career path of product designer.I deem this a challenging goal for myself because 3D Modelling and designing are new skills that I must acquire and learn due to having no experience in the field prior to this project, which is already a challenge.

Global Context

My project is suited to the global context Scientific and technical innovation due to its nature of using technological innovations such as CAD(Computer Aided Design) software to design a product in an online space and 3D Printers to create that product in A 3D offline space . Basic properties and physics of materials such as rubber and PLA plastic are also utilized in this project, further connecting it to this global context.

Product

As I stated in my goal statement, I designed a rubber band gun in Fusion360 and 3D printed it.. As for the measurements, the total length is 19 cm while the total width of the layers is 2.6 cm. It was printed using PLA polylactic acid) a common low-cost type of print that is commonly used due to its cheap price and it’s more biodegradable than traditional plastic. It was printed hollow with hexagonal supports and 90% of its original size to reduce the price and due to limitations of the 3D printer (. The gun was printed in 3 pieces which consist of the base, the trigger, and the cover. The base and the cover were attached using superglue In terms of its mechanism, a rubber band was placed inside allowing the trigger to return by utilizing the rubber’s elasticity.

Reflection

This personal project allowed me to be more aware of the Scientific and Technological innovation global context and how by learning or using a technical innovation such as CAD software I contribute to its advancement as the more people use it the more widespread it becomes, the more improvements will be made. Through this project I improved skills such as visualization, problem-solving, and thinking. I used to believe my visualization was Widjojo 10 average as I often struggled with tasks in subjects such as MYP Art that involved drawing through a single perspective however by learning 3D modelling it forced me to improve visualization skills through practice.

IB Learner Reflection

As an IB learner my skills have continued to improve by doing this personal project. In all of my IB learner profiles were improved however the most noticeable ones are the profiles Inquirer, Communication, and Thinker. By choosing to learn and research 3D modelling a new skill I showed development of my inquiry skills as one of the profiles definitions include “Have a natural curiosity and learn to acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning”. Furthermore one factor that played in the project's completion was my curiosity towards everything/anything product design and product engineering which I developed growing up. My communication skills were also further enhanced as I messaged my supervisor regarding when I wanted to meet, questions regarding submissions, and recommendations which fall under the definitions of the communicator profile being “ Understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in a variety of modes of communication”. Additionally communicating with other individuals to reach out for interviews although unsuccessful still still improved my communication skills.

Conducting peer evaluation and messaging or voice calling using platforms such as Whatsapp, Discord, Instagram,Gmail,etc also allowed others to communicate their ideas which provided different perspectives.Thinking skills played a major role in this project regarding creative and critical thinking. Often than not 3D modelling requires people to visualize a lot of parts, components,etc and it forces me to look at a 3D object in a 2D environment or vice versa through a single perspective which majorly enhances my visualization skills. Encountering problems and errors in the 3D modelling software forced me to troubleshoot and solve my problems in a step by step manner instead of instantly resorting to restarting the model which further enhance my critical thinking skills.