Project 2 - "King of the Red Lions" Project Statement

 

https://youtube.com/shorts/dWEUWHlLvGk?feature=share

For the motorized automata project, I decided to create a scene from the Zelda game "Wind Waker". I grew up playing Nintendo games and as an only child, they brought me a lot of fun. I met my boyfriend Ryan through playing games and wanted to create an automata for his favorite game Zelda for his upcoming birthday. 

I was inspired by several wooden and lego automata projects for Zelda [1][2]. One key takeaway from this project was KISS, "Keep it Stupid Simple". From the get go I choose an overly ambitious project for the timeline, so I decided to scale back and focus on the wave motion. I have never done a project like this before and I was excited about the possibilities. I originally 3D printed my cam shaft out of Nylon; however, cam circles were too small and the spacing was off. For the final project, I laser cut my cam circles and offset them from another to create a wave motion. For my hand made pieces, I cut the ocean slats on the bandsaw, created a motor mount podium, and the Red Lion boat ⛵️ . For the boat, I learned how to sculpt modeling clay. I found that it is important to wash your hands between colors to keep the previous clay on your hand from transferring. I was also inspired by other students in the first piece who added texture fabric, so I decided to make the sail out of felt. Additionally, I had a non-cardboard base for the project, but it got damaged as I was boarding the bus this morning. The damage also caused me to add a zip tie between the motor and cam shaft to keep them further aligned.

I learned a lot about different manufacturing techniques and gained experience on multiple machines and hand tools. At multiple points I had difficulty conceptualizing different parts of the project and how they fit together. The most difficult part of the project was the gears 😡. I originally modeled and printed standard gears but they were to thin and kept slipping. As a result, I decided to find lego gears that they used in the inspo project. I quickly learned that gears in the lego world at 90 degree angles do not work in standard mechanical engineering practice. I quickly printed more gears and these worked when aligned; however, after several failed glue and attachment attempts,  I learned the importance of the set screw. I added another 3D printed piece with a set screw and a gear. I attempted to make a gear train to allow for more cam space, but due to the holes that held the gears being slightly misaligned or angled, I was unable to include it in the final project and opted for the gear on the cam shaft and the gear on the motor. Then, I created a pivot point for the ocean slats using copper around the metal rod.

Finally, I would like to thank Abhishek, Alyssa, and Will for their help on both the brainstorming and creation of the project, as well as Sammi and Evan for coming up with troubleshooting ideas. I am so happy that it works autonomously and continuously!🥳 I am also proud of myself, despite being anxious, I was able to complete critique.

[1] https://www.dualshockers.com/the-legend-of-zelda-the-wind-waker-super-fan-automaton/

[2] https://jkbrickworks.com/wind-waker-kinetic-sculpture/

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