Fun with 3D Printing

[TrueJim]

As you might know, I authored some software that I call Poomsae Designer, in order to create the poomsae diagrams on the taekwondo wiki.

I wrote the software just to create illustrations, but it occurred to me recently that with a little fiddling, I could also export .STL files that I could send off to 3D printing websites such as Shapeways. https://www.shapeways.com

Here's my first prototype, a little 3" tall guy doing a Swallowform Knifehand Strike, made out of clear acrylic.

Right now I'm seeing if I can have an entire poomsae 3D printed on a base. It'll only be 6" on each edge, because that's about as large as Shapeways will print in inexpensive plastic. On their website, you can also print in steel, silver, gold, etc...not just plastic. Kinda cool.

Here's what a poomsae looks like in the software:

It takes a couple hours for OpenScad to output an .STL files, then it takes Shapeways at least a week to 3D print the file and ship it to you. With the tools I'm using, you can't get a multicolor 3D print, so it's all monochrome...but you can choose whatever material and color you want. I'm thinking I might also try my hand at a few taekwondo keychains and Christmas tree ornaments.

All of the software and models are freely downloadable, though on the wiki I do still need to upload my latest version of Poomsae Designer. But really it only takes a teeny bit of software skill to get this all working.

 

[TrueJim]

Puttering around this evening with some ideas...

 

[KangTsai]

Puttering around this evening with some ideas...

I don't think that makes sense at all.

Cool project, by the way!

 

[TrueJim]

Yah, I'm still deciding which technique should be which piece. I'm using the height of the base also, so that the King and Queen are on the highest bases.

Which techniques would you use for each piece?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

This is absolutely amazing!!

One suggestion with the chess concept is to go with stances rather than techniques.

 

[TrueJim]

I've put a very basic "how to" on the wiki:

Poomsae Designer - 3D Printing

Anybody can do this, and all the software is free. The upshot is:

1. First you install OpenScad on your computer. OpenScad is free, open-source software.
2. Then you grab the my Poomsae Designer modules from the wiki and run those via OpenScad. (These are also free, open-source.)
3. With the Poomsae Designer modules installed, it's easy to create your own figurines, chess pieces, ornaments, key chains, pendants...whatever. On the above wiki link I've put a couple examples to show how it's done.
4. Then export the STL file to your desktop, upload the STL file to a 3D-printing website such as Shapeways, select your material (plastic, steel, whatever), type in your credit card, and wait for the figurine to show up in your mailbox at home.

It takes a teeny bit of computer expertise, but not a lot. The cool thing is that you can customize the figurines however you want: put your name on them, whatever.

But for those for whom even that is "too much" computer-stuff, I eventually plan to upload some STL files to Shapeways.com and maybe Thingverse.com too so that people can just order their own items in their preferred materials without bothering with the software.

Here's a 3-inch tall plastic "keychain" that I'm having printed now for my son, as a test:

The Shapeways website is giving me "warnings" about the Hangul written on the back...warnings that the detail may be too fine. We'll see how it turns out when the figurine shows up in my mailbox.

 

[TrueJim]

I've got a first-draft of my chess bishop back from Shapeways, 3D-printed in their lowest-cost plastic (which is what I'll probably use for the final chess set, since I'll need to print 32 pieces - red and blue, I'm thinking). I've already adjusted the software model so that the next version of the figurine will be a bit larger in proportion to the base.

 

[TrueJim]

*** This is not an advertisment ***

I've been using the Shapeways website to do my 3D printing (since I don't have a 3D printer), so some of what I'm about to write could be mistakenly construed as an advertisement; it's not. Here's a couple more of my prototypes:

That's Koryo, printed in 3D. Most of these 3D printers can only do areas about 6" by 6" big. What I was trying to determine with this prototype was whether or not that was big enough for a blind students to feel. Sadly, it's not. The figures are so tiny that you can't even get your fingertips around them. If I want to make a study-aid for blind students, I'll have to print individual figurines and glue them to a board. Or else, find a 3D printer than can do something more like 12" by 12" big.

Also, the figurines that stand on one-leg (such as kicking figurines) tend to have a fragile connection to the board. Their legs are just so skinny.

I have a Taegeuk Il Jang currently being printed that I think should turn out even better.

My previous experiment was with acrylic, so here are some experiments with the "cheap" plastic instead. The red figurine is a rough-draft of a keychain fob, but it turns out I made the little donut on his head too small. You've already seen the chessboard bishop on the left...for my next version I'm keeping the base the same size but making the figurine a big bigger.

As I continue to play with these things on Shapeways, I'm making some of these things publicly visible with $0.00 going to me...any prices you see are Shapeway's prices for the materials and printing. https://www.shapeways.com/shops/taekwondo-wiki

And of course, anybody who wants to can play with these designs for free just by grabbing a copy of Poomsae Designer. Poomsae Designer - 3D Printing

 

[TrueJim]

Just some more fun stuff...

I was perfectly content with the quality of my Poomsae Designer software until I started trying to do 3D printing. Doing the 3D printing inspired me to try to make the figurines look a bit more realistic.

Then in the process of playing with the software today, I started messing-around with the software's parameters, and I came up with some illustrations that I really like. Here are a couple:

On the left side of the above illustration, I've got the parameters set to make each curve "smooth", and then as you move to the right I progressively make it chunkier until it's like a Cubist diamond block.

Here's another, where all three figures are done cubist style: