Best Practices

Distinctive 3D Graphics: 3D Design elements need to be distinctive for a touch reader. Small details need to be emphasized in a way to convey meaningful information that does not get confused with other model details.

Raised Graphics: There are many wonderful two dimensional graphics that can be transformed into 3d raised graphics. In Tinkercad you can import an .SVG file into a 3d raised object. There are many free online .png / .jpg image conversions tools to .svg file format

1. TheNounProject.com is a fantastic web resource with over 3 million professionally designed icons. Most translate well into Tinkercad.

3d Printing Braille - Braille prints best vertically with a standard FDM printer

1. We use the Braille Font generator provided by Leona Holloway at Monash University. It is an OpenScad model that you can generate Braille STL labels and then combine in Tinkercad. Braille label sizes are adjustable and you can add new Braille characters.

2. Braille Label Generator: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4167866

3. Space Need for Braille: Each character needs approximately 6.25 mm width and 10 mm height. For a word with four letters, you would need 25 mm width, or one inch.

4. Depending on the project, it may make sense to submerge letters below the main print surface. However, be careful not to have letters extrude all the way through a print, as it can cause issues when printing or the final print can appear off due to small letter parts missing or hanging on to the print in strange ways.

Design Smooth Edges: no sharp angles. This can be challenging in Tinkercad!

1. You can combine a cube and hollow cylinder to create a "corner" shape, which you then connect to a rectangular prism

2. Test out the MetaCapsule in the Tinkercad Shape Generator Library. You can adjust it with inputs and stretching each side to produce a unique smooth shape

Object Orientation: Design a feature that assists in figuring out proper orientation to interact with the resource. User feedback is extremely important here, as there is no universal standard

Color Contrast: Most standard FDM printers print with one filament at a time. This makes creating color contrasts challenging.

1. White filament is very easy to color with magic marker or paint.

2. You can pause many printers mid way through a print and then swap filament colors.

3. Design pieces that snap together so that you can print pieces separately with different colors.

Textures: Adding surface texture is an effective way to improve tactile interactivity. This can be challenging to effectively design. Some ideas:

1. Add texture with Cura's Fuzzy setting. This setting does a nice job of adding a rougher texture to a final print. Please note that the Fuzzy setting is applied to each layer's outer wall layer. This means your very top layer will still be smooth. If you would like the fuzzy layer on your top layer, you need to create layers that step up (think of a pyramid), where each new layer is added with the rough surface. [Thank you ANZAGG for telling us about this setting!]

2. Create a simple shape in Tinkercad and save it your Shapes Library. You can then access it for any model and then add.

3. When adding textures to a unique model in Tinkercad with various curves and angles, you can use the "Workplane" tool to easily attach elements to a unique curved or angle shape.

Finally, The Print!: While designing 3d printed resources you need to consider how will it print.

1. Does the print have Braille? Will the entire project print well vertically?

2. Do you need supports? Can the supports be easily removed?

3. Is the project intended to be printed just by you? or does it need to be standardized, so it can be printed by anyone?