Final Iteration
3D Printed Model (Version 1)
We picked up our 3D printed model on Monday. Unfortunately, it did not turn out like we’d expected. Maja told us that the lab technician printed the walls thicker than we had specified and we noted three major issues with the model:
- The shape of the knobs made it impossible for the cover to fit into the body of the headset.
- Due to the thickness of the walls, there was not enough space between the cover and the body for a smartphone to fit inside.
- The hole for the nose was too small so it made it impossible to wear the device.
Updated 3D Model
We made several modifications to our 3D model to address the aforementioned issues. We also took this opportunity to make additional tweaks for other things that we saw room for improvement. The following changes were:
- We reduced the hinge from 2 hinges into 1 hinge. Since we are splitting the model in half to print it, the two pieces of the body will allow us to “sandwich” the hinge of the cover, thus avoiding the issue we faced before.
- We increased the spaces between the knobs themselves as a precaution.
- The bottom ledge used to hold the phone was made longer and thinner to make sure a smartphone had enough space to fit inside.
- Increased the size of the hole for the nose. We also reshaped this hole so that it is slanted at an angle, just like the natural shape of the human nose. (Before it was shaped like a rectangle).
- As per Ken’s suggestion, we reduced the thickness of most walls in case they get printed thicker again.
- Increased the height of the slits for the head strap since the elastic band is wider than the slits in our previous model.
- Increased the radius of the arc (the space that is pressed against the forehead) so that it can completely block out light. The previous arc was too shallow.
- Reduced the height of the cover so that it has a softer curve.
We sent the updated model to Maja for review and for a second round of 3D printing on Tuesday.
Final 3D Render
Orthographic View
Exploded View
Assembly
3D Printed Model (Version 2)
On Thursday, we picked up our new 3D printed model and it turned out perfectly this time! All of the adjustments we made were reflected in the model:
- The two halves of the body sandwiched and secured the cover like we planned.
- The hole is large enough to fit different nose sizes; a smartphone can be placed inside the headset.
- The slits are large enough to fit the elastic.
- The arc wraps around the forehead snuggly and prevents light leaks.
As a result of the size constraints of the 3D printing, we had to split the body of the headset in half. This meant that we had to glue it together before spray painting it. After doing some research, we decided to join our headset with superglue since it would be the thinnest adhesive to apply, which was an important factor since we didn’t want an extremely visible gap between the model. Since the superglue is in a very tiny squeeze tube, we wanted to act quick before the adhesive dried by applying it with a paintbrush on large areas. Prior to applying the glue, we sanded down the area to make sure we were attaching the parts with as much surface area as possible. First, we hooked the front cover with one of the hinge knobs to hold it in place, applied the glue onto one half of the headset, then hooked the other hinge into the cover while aligning the two headset pieces together, then we held it for a couple of minutes until the adhesive set.
Spray Painting
As mentioned last week, we bought a can of Krylon ColorMaster™ Paint + Primer Spray Paint in Smoke Grey. The can instructed us to shake it for 1-2 minutes before and during painting. We set the model down and began spraying it in a horizontal motion to make sure the paint was being applied evenly. After spraying all sides, we set it down to dry with the front cover up, since the only parts touching the ground would be the thinnest edge of the headset. It takes 10 minutes to dry, but an hour to actually be dry enough for handling. After an hour, we decided to apply another layer as some parts looked like they didn’t get as much coverage. The second layer seemed to have covered all the parts.
Head strap
The wide knit elastic strap was trimmed to wrap behind the head, leaving some room for securing on the left side and room for Velcro to be sewn on the other side. Then each end slid into their respective slits and sewn.
Corrugated Cardstock
Originally we chose a lighter colour palette, but after spray painting we decided to just use black corrugated cardboard. While the colours are different, it still blends in nicely in an office setting.
To cut out the piece for the cover, we traced the cover over the flat side of the corrugated card stock and then cut against the lines. For the strip around the headset body, we estimated the width of the strip, cut several strips and then traced a circle for the knob on the top and a triangular shape for the nose opening at the bottom for cutting. Luckily, the corrugated card stock made it so that even if our strips weren’t long enough to wrap around the whole body, it still wasn’t noticeable that we attached multiple strips after each other.
To attach them onto the headset, we simply used double sided tape so that it would easily stick on, and wouldn’t stick out too much since the tape is very thin.
Felt
The felt was cut into long pieces to line the areas where it would touch the forehead, cheeks and nose.
Lenses + Elastic
For the elastic, we chose to go with a stretchy, elastic cotton that was already tied together in a loop. After cutting it, we looped it through the holes on the cover and glued them back together using superglue.
Final Product
Headset with smartphone
Interaction: Opening/Closing Cover
Interaction: Adjusting Head Strap
team VEE-AR 