I'm taking a class in Solidworks, which is a type of CAD (Computer-Aided Drawing), and for our final project, we are supposed to design anything we want to, and have it take about as much time as three weeks worth of homework assignments. The clincher: The best project wins a copy of the program with a full student license instead of the limited one we got with the book for class.
Here are some specs on the program: -It's really good at drawing things 3-D -You can make things move, but you have to figure out how to mate (connect) them properly -I have no idea if gravity can be used -I have drawn a guide-rod, a flashlight (bulb, battery and everything), and a computer box (with a power supply and motherboard). -I also don't think I can properly use fabrics, as I thought an umbrella might be fun, but I don't know how to go about it.
Right now I'm thinking a ferris wheel could be really fun, but I have no idea about dimensions, etc, which are a necessity for the project to get a good grade. If you guys have any ideas and resources that I could use to get approximate dimensions, I would greatly appreciate it. I'm hoping to get a job using CAD because I absolutely love it!
__________________
Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.
— Oscar Wilde
I suggest you design the Great and Spacious building... "Complete with Waterslide!" :)
You know, my bro does stuff with Solid Designer (an HP product, seeing as how he designs cool plastic curvy parts for HP printers), and I always wanted to know how to design 3D objects, mostly cuz I was really into Compu-graphics for the sake of getting into videogames... But I don't know much more than buzzwords. :)
A Ferris Wheel sounds pretty cool--very complex, lots of moving parts, hinges and such... right? If it's too big, maybe you could do one of those kiddie ride versions that you see in a Mall... maybe a ferris wheel kiddie ride, with a coinop and electric motor...:)
Whatever you do, do your best. Go examine actual objects. Try your best to learn every feature of the program, or learn things that others won't learn. It will take a lot of effort. There are people who do this sort of thing all day long, but if this is something you enjoy, put your whole self into it, in order to differentiate yourself--and make yourself more valuable... the world wants people who are converted to their work and worship the works of their own hands... Not that you should go that far... :)
--Ray
__________________
I'm not slow; I'm special. (Don't take it personally, everyone finds me offensive. Yet somehow I manage to live with myself.)
Good luck on your project. I don't know what to suggest, but I agree that CAD is a fascinating field to be in. I've been doing it for several years now myself, although Solidworks is not my bag.
Had I had adequate career counselling when I was at your stage I probably would have ended up as an engineer, but I don't really miss the fact that I could have made more money because it would have been a lot less fun. Now I get to automate drafting, and therefore get to have even more fun.
yeah...the classes definitely aren't fun. In fact, it seems like the more I take classes, the less I think like an engineer. I've lost a lot of my practical senses about things like thermodynamics because I'm so worried about the random applications that they have us solve.
Anyway, I finally decided what to do for my project during class last night: I'm going to make a playground! This way I can keep adding equipment until I have spent enough time on it, and not worry so much about picking a project that is too big or too small. I'm super excited! I'll be sure and show you guys when I'm done...if it's worth showing!
__________________
Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.
— Oscar Wilde
Playgrounds and ferris wheels. Almost sounds like you're in it for the fun too. Whoops, I just read the original post, and you used the word more than once.
Are you majoring in engineering, or just taking CAD classes? Sounds like you love CAD, but hate taking classes. Well, good luck with your project.
hey, if anyone has instruction books for playground equipment that perhaps has measurements or just how to put it together, I'd greatly appreciate it. Otherwise I'm going to go playground hunting this weekend if I can't find anything online. I'm excited to make chain link swings, and a helix slide!
And Randy, I'm going into mechanical engineering. The reason I don't like the classes is because they don't give us practical application to the stuff we are learning, which is how I learn, so I have to work way harder than I usually do in classes to get not as good of grades. I'm kind of a "show me" learner, and the teachers here don't like show and tell I guess.
__________________
Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.
— Oscar Wilde
Make sure that your playground equipment is developmentally appropriate for children
A faculty member from my university, who is one of the country's leading researchers in child development, teamed up with an engineer to design playground equipment based on the latest child development research--equipment that supports children's pshychological and social development as well as physical development. After they cleared $20 million, the engineer became a consultant and the professor just teaches for the fun of it.
__________________
The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life. - Julie Beck
Yes, those were the days. As a child, you learned at a very young age to be careful. You knew that if you lost your footing and fell, it was gonna hurt...
Kids these days are just not taught to be tough enough. And with the tupperware-run-amock playground equipment of today, they also are not taught those vital lessons at an early age of: 1. looking at the big picture; 2. for every action there is a reaction; 3. gravity can hurt; 4. you can't really be king of the jungle gym unless you have drawn blood from opponents... 5. never take the king of the jungle gym on alone, make sure you have backup and someone to watch your six... 6. Avoid the slides when wearing shorts and the sun is bright and air temperature is warm...
__________________
It seems to me the only thing you've learned is that Caesar is a "salad dressing dude."
Uncle Rico sells the crummy tupperware playground equipment. He promises the free model ship with every purchase so out goes the old, playground equipment and in goes the tupperware stuff. According to Uncle Rico, "This ain't your run o'the mill crapperware. The is genuine nu-pont fiber. Dog you look like a stong guy why don't you see if you can give it a tear. ..."
You know what else is a travesty? There aren't any teeter-totters (or see-saws...whatever they are called) around for me to look at! have they gone extinct?
I went playground hunting and took some good pictures and made some good measurements, so hopefully I can get this project done by Friday! The deadline is 9 days sooner than I thought!
__________________
Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.
— Oscar Wilde
glumirk wrote:You know what else is a travesty? There aren't any teeter-totters (or see-saws...whatever they are called) around for me to look at! have they gone extinct?
Yep. Lawsuits. Same reason why all of the modern stuff looks like tupperware. No structures over a certain height without large platforms every X amount of inches, no sharp corners, base is X inches thick of wood chips or other shock-absorbing material, etc. I haven't seen one of those 15 ft straight metal slides built on a square of concrete for years.
__________________
The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life. - Julie Beck
