Table of Contents
Title of Assignment
This project focused on the use of parametrics to produce multiple designs for a 40 ounce beverage container.
Description of design drivers / goals
- Design Driver 1: The Dubai Parameter
- Demographic: Bargoers in Dubai
- Driver: strictly aesthetic
- Design:
- Maximize height
- Width constraint
- Design Driver 2: The Boating Parameter
- Demographic: anyone on some sort of watercraft
- Celebrity on a yacht
- Shrimpboat owner in southeast Texas
- Driver: function:
- Combat the rockiness of waves
- Prevent spillage
- Design:
- Spill-off “reservoir” designated the bowl lip radius, the radius of the arc connecting the top edge of the side of the bottle and the bottom of the mouthpiece. The smaller the radius, the deeper the spill-off bowl will be.
- Wide base so the container doesn't fall over on the rough seas
- Gripping mechanism to make for easy holding since the container will be very wide
- Design Driver 3: The Gripping Parameter
- Demographic: anyone with small hands
- Driver: function
- Enables a person with small hands to more easily hold a forty
- Enables the average person to easily hold an awkwardly wide container
- Design:
- Thinner midsection of container to produce an hourglass shape with a “handle”
- The width of the grip inset is determined by the horizontal distance between the edge of the container and the edge of the innermost point of the hourglass handle.
Logic diagram
CAD models
Parametric variations: Images
Here are some examples of what happens when I vary the parameters…
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Lessons learned
- Keep an open mind
- Don't be afraid to ask questions
- Limit constraints in Digital Product because otherwise the file is likely to become overconstrained. Instead, stick with geometric connections.
- When first beginning to build the model, it was much more useful more me to think conceptually rather than geometrically. When I thought about the problem geometrically, I completely missed the big picture and it was hard for me to begin.
- Entering in formulas to define certain values was the most frustrating problem that I encountered. The syntax became a little easier as I worked on the project, however.
Discussion
I really like how well you parameters are defined. It is really easy to predict how a change in one of your driving parameters will modify your model. I think this was one of the main goals of this assignment (which I failed to accomplish), so great job!
I totally agree with Fernando! The definitions of the design drivers are really good. I will surely return to your work again when it is time for us Swedish PhD-students to start working with the CAD-related side of Parametric Design. Well done!
// Erik.
I really appreciate your logic diagram and how it brings highlights the multi-faceted way in which your design goals relate to each other. I also thought it was a clever mental exercise to choose a beverage container in which you had to control for volume. That seems to really affect the way you set your parameters and scales because that constant has to be accurate. I glanced through your CAD Model but still am trying to understand exactly how you controlled for volume or if you just tested for accuracy as you were creating the variations and factored this control into your ranges/limits.
The conceptuality thinking is a lesson that I will bring with me to my project. I agree with Clair that the logic diagram is presenting the flow and it is easy to read the diagram from left to right. Good job!