Enter the RedBlueCNC

I really liked the new path I was going with but felt that something was still missing.  I knew Rietveld has done many important pieces of furniture, one of his most famous being the Red Blue Chair.  This is a very important piece is the history of design.  I decided why not combine both of his pieces together (the L40 light and the Red Blue Chair) as a nod to the history, and incorporate them into my CNC...


The RedBlueCNC
As tools are usually kept in the garage, they all usually have the same cold aesthetics.  Not everyone has room to keep larger tools like CNCs in a permanent location.  One of my main original problems I wanted to address with this project is to upgrade the aesthetics of a CNC machines so users would feel comfortable in leaving it exposed in their living room instead of keeping it in storage when not in use.  What if the tool can look as good in the center of your living room like a piece of art? 

Prototype #4 (RedBlueCNC): The beginning of the RedBlueCNC

As I entered the second semester of my year long grad project, I looked back where I left off from Prototype #3.  There were some issues I know I had to deal with:

1) I was not totally satisfied with the aesthetics.  Because I decided to encase each mechanical axis into its individual box, the boxes ended up being large in which the outside frames had to be bulky as well.  I couldn't minimize the frame size into a sleek compact form. 

2) There were too many boxes.  I had to simplify the box designs to simplify (in a "what if" scenario) and reduce the costs of production.  Which means I should use only a single box design for all axis.  Also mounting holes had to be universal, so any box would be able to fit any other box in any direction.

Here is my 1st concept rendering of the universal box for all 3 axis.  Mounting holes every 3.5"  Size was made based on my bearing sizes in which I wanted 3 mounting holes across for each sliding tray.  I eliminated the bottom lip of the box too allow it to be mounted on its side if wanted.  Instead the end-users can easily make their own angle brackets.

Prototype #3: The Beginnings of Concept B

From the end result of the full scale materials testing, I decide to go back and rethink some parameters.  Concept A's main idea is to have the X axis to be relocated from top of the machine to the front of the sliding tray.  This will enable the user to use it as either a standard CNC or as a floor mounted engraver to do CNC work below the surface, much like Prototype 2.  After contemplating this, I believed I was still limiting the users by setting specific arrangements. What if the user wants to rearrange it in some odd way, they would have to do permanent modifications for that to happen.  Though Concept A is still a big step from production CNC machines, it is still limiting on what arrangements it can perform.

This is when I had a breakthrough.  Why not put all the axis into its own separate boxes instead of relying on a permanent frame/body to enclose all the axis!  Essentially each axis will be 1 box.  3 boxes will give you a 3 axis CNC.  If the user wants to have some odd setup, they would just need to make a new frame.  More people are capable of making a frame than making new CNC machines, right?  Essentially a shop can have 3 CNC machines for the price of 1; all they need to do is transfer the boxes into the desired frame.

The pictures represent the X axis.  The idea is a simple frame can be built around it to complete your desired version of a CNC machine.  People will no longer need to know how CNC works; eliminate the complex robotic mechanics that scares people away with simplified boxes with trays that move back and forth.  This in essence will promote development of new machines by allowing people to concentrate on new technology (3d print head, etc).

Red Blue CNC Background Info

What got me here... For my grad project for my industrial design degree I wanted to do something big.  As I already made a CNC machine before (more info later), there were some issues I've had with it and been meaning to do an upgraded version of it.  Since I was about to spend some money and time on it, why not spend more money and time on it by making it my year-long grad project!  Ideas and directions has changed from my early conception of what I envisioned v2 would be.

The original vision for v2 CNC was:
-to make a portable, potentially backpack sized machine made specifically for designers and artists who wants to experiment
-roughly 12"-16" cubic working area, which will do most model making people would do
-will push CNC technology forward, as I believe there has not been any vast improvements in this field in the past decade (always the same configurations, etc)
-be capable of machining materials on the surface AND below the surface as well

Before I continue with my CNC v2, let's go back 2.5 years ago to my CNC v1...

Welcome / Intro

Hello world. My name's Nicanor Santillan and this blog will be about my CNC project and other CNC-related projects. Currently I am a 4th year industrial design student at Emily Carr University of Art & Design in Vancouver, BC Canada and raised in Baltimore, Maryland USA.

For my other projects, my personal portfolio can be found here:
http://www.NickSantillan.com
http://www.ecuad.ca/people/profile/26206

My grad thesis project is what I call the Red Blue CNC. More info to come...