10. Textile Scaffold¶
Research¶
Overview CNC Machine¶
Process and workflow¶
Inspiration¶
I was interested in applying a map design to the mold. Since I am very interested in facade design and wall design, I wanted to experiment with the potential of CNC milling to create parametric shapes.
my vision was to explore how these shapes could be applied to the fabric/Kampucha that will be compressed using the mold, and also to think about how the same shapes could be used in the future and integrated into walls or facade designs.
Mold Design¶
Grasshopper visual code¶
The design started with 2D rectangle 25cm*30cm and then i imported to curve component on grasshopper to start the design process and adjust the number of veronoi , the depth of it and smooth it to take this nice curvature . i encourage you when you have long visual code on grasshopper to group them each time and label each group as you see here (this will help you to adjust and keep your work well organized )
Then Bake to design from grasshopper to manage and review on rhino and to create a surface height up to 5cm as the wood in the lab = 5cm and will be milling in CNC.
however here are a video to review the depth of surface .
Video 1-depth of surface¶
Video 2-depth of surface¶
Mold Design Output¶
Then after i bake the Grasshopper model into Rhino, I extruded the rectangle edge curves up to 5 cm, since the wood thickness is 5 cm, and then used Boolean Difference command to refine the model.
Well, i need to add that after some discussions with CNC expert in the lab we decided to use 3cm wood as the deepest grove = 17 mm so we can minimize the wood waste and use thickness function well.
Software Setup¶
Using VCarve Pro software for the CNC machine to prepare the mold for cutting . The file here should be STL version and here i export the rhino file to stl version then i uploaded to the software.
Tabs were left around all four edges to keep the mold connected to the wood. These tabs are usually cut manually after the machine finishes the milling process.
VCarve pro simulation¶
simulate your toolpaths in V-Carve before exporting the file. helps to catch any collisions, unexpected moves, or incorrect tool selections before the real job start .
CNC Workflow¶
Milling is a tooling process uses a cutter head to remove material from sheet or block of material. and millies can vary in their sixe ,depth capacity and even the number of axis that cutter head can be manipulated .
XYZ Machine set-up | ZERO the X and Y axis (ONE BY ONE) and Change the bit
5 Hours later ....
As you can see below, the two molds intersect with each other, demonstrating a male–female design. The fabric can later be placed between these two molds.
Mold Varnish¶
Apply a clear wood sealer or varnish, which acts as a waterproofing barrier.and here i used a wood furniture varnish.
Here, I used an electric dryer to speed up the drying time of the mold varnish.
RESULTS¶
The varnish should be applied twice to make sure the mold is well covered. The first layer should be as thin as possible, and after it dries, the second layer is applied.
Fabric Compresion¶
Now after the mold has been dry and ready , it is the time to prepare clamps.
The clamps works on intersect the both mold sides and keep it in one position closed as i showed you on intersection video above .
The idea behind using them is to place the fabric between the two molds and apply compression so the fabric can take the mold’s shape and design.
I will be using kombucha from the biofabricated week, since it takes around a month or more to be ready. Now that it is a yes time to use!
I will place it between the molds and leave it compressed for a few days so it can fully take the mold design.
kombucha Progress
Crystalization¶
Crystallization is the process by which solid crystals form from a solution or melt. This occurs when the concentration of a dissolved substance exceeds its solubility limit, causing the excess to precipitate out of the solution in a crystalline form.
Before starting the crystallization process, preparing the materials to crystalize comes first then Hang the objects from the top of your container jars work well or any other similar object.(the idea is limit the connection between the hanged fabric and the jar edges so you can remove easily when the crystals grown on)
Here we used the acrylic from the lab drilled with holles on the top of it to allow easier hang for the object.
Recipes¶
Water: 1 liter
Alum: 400 g
you can also try salt too if you do not have alum .
Process
1-Boil Water.
2-Slowly add the alum powder in small batches, stirring well each time until it fully dissolves.
3-Continue adding the rest of alum slowly until it no longer dissolves in the water .
4-Filter the solution using a coffee filter to remove any excess alum.
5- put the objects you want to crystalize into filtered alum and leave it couple of days or more until it is fully crystalized.
Feather Crystalization - Alum¶
It took 5 days here to grow as i wanted to leave it more days for crystalize growth. You can also keep the object hanged on stick and here i used a wood stick work as a beam on the jar to hang the threats and the top of feather on.
Mesh Crystalization - Salt¶
Crystalize Nabati Guy - Salt¶
Remember Nabati guy from Week2?
I used 3d Printing PLA to print it and it was quiet light weight so i thought what if i can crystalize it and just watch out the magic happens!! :)
Following the previous process and ingredients and wait the result for !
In a day i observed the salt crystals has started to grow on the body of nabati guy-PLA.the more days you leave it ... more grown crystals you will get!
Tools¶
Rhino Grasshopper VCarve pro
