Embedded Files
My main project for the spring of 2022 was fully laser-cut cabinet with a code wheel locking mechanism I designed using my minimal knowledge of how locks work. The project is two parts: the box, which gave me a way to practice making 3D objects with a dovetail-style joint, and the lock, which is a specially-shaped rod surrounded by painted code wheels. This project uses layered building, with its structure created by gluing layers of laser-cut wood together.
My CAD model, which I edited throughout the design and problem-solving process and used to export surfaces from for lasercutting
The lock's 11 code wheels are each made up of an upper ring, a middle ring with a protrusion that locks the wheel, and a lower ring. These three parts are glued together.
The rod is a wooden dowel with 11 grooves cut into its diameter, one for each code wheel. I used a lathe to cut these grooves to the width of a piece of laser-cut wood. Then, I used a table saw to cut one groove lengthways along the rod.
The grooves along the diameter allow each code wheel to spin freely around the rod, so the the code can be scrambled and inputted. The long lengthways groove allows all the code wheels to move up along the rod once unlocked.
The last part of the locking rod is a structure used to keep all the code wheels together when the rod is being locked or unlocked. This structure also includes a kind of hook (made of overlapping layers of wood) that locks the mechanism to the box.
Each face of the code wheels was painted with a letter. Each letter of the code was painted on the face with the protrusion on the middle part of the code wheel. The code I chose is "SSAVITSKAYA," the first initial and last name of the second woman in space and first woman to go on a spacewalk, Svetlana Savitskaya. The code goes from top to bottom, with each letter on one code wheel.
Below, the scrambled code wheels
The code is correctly inputted into the mechanism in the image below.
I made quick, simple hinges from laser-cut rectangles and colored pencils, which will eventually be replaced with regular hinges
When the mechanism is locked, the structure is stuck behind a small piece that sticks out from one side of the box, preventing the rod from being pulled.
When the mechanism is unlocked, the code wheels all slide up around half an inch, freeing the structure and allowing the rod to be pulled, opening the box.
The rod acts as a handle, fitting into the door. When the mechanism is unlocked, the protrusions in all 11 code wheels are lined up with the groove cut lengthways along the rod, allowing the code wheels and surrounding structure to be raised. The hook slides free of the piece on the box and the door can be opened.
The engraving on the bottom is a reference to one of my favorite fiction podcasts, Wolf 359.
Spring 2022
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse