Month: October 2016

Idea refinement 3

The images below contain the different options I have produced with Rhino. The aim was to reduce the sharp edges as much as possible so that the shape could be kept at its simplest form.

Shape 1rhino3

Shape 2rhino1

Shape 3rhino2

Of the 3 shape, I personally prefer the 2nd best. The 2nd shape is not as rigid compared to the other 2 shapes and it gives a flow on its centre piece, allowing the furniture to give off a softer, smoother outlook as a whole.

Throughout this time, I have been trying to source for inspiration with regards to the material for my furniture. I managed to come across an interesting idea which was obtained from the Magis website that was recommended for reference by Fabrizio. There was an armchair which was made out of air-moulded polycarbonate with either wood or woven cane.

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This intriguing chair subsequently gave me the idea of moulding or 3D printing the frame of the furniture with the basic shape before using rattan to weave the spaces in between, as seen from the picture above.

Keeping this in mind, I went on to conduct more extensive research on 3D printing joints as I had concerns over having a height-adjustable stand. Eventually I was able find examples of other furniture which had similar height-adjusting functionalities. They adjusted their height by allowing the furniture’s legs to be folded inwards and this gave rise to my idea of designing my furniture stand to be similar to this.

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Elsewhere, I went to look at samples of all types of cradles for inspiration and I stumbled on a cradle that was also made of rattan. Looking at the cradle, I decided to use its base structure as a template for my design with modifications to better suit my furniture. In addition, I feel that bamboo would be a more suitable option as material for the stand.

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FYP Presentation 2 feedback

The following are the comments made by the professors after my FYP presentation 2.

Peer commented that the stand for the furniture is best kept with the furniture itself as allowing for it to be detached and kept separately (i.e. in the storeroom) will inevitably lead to cases where the stand gets misplaced. Each piece of the furniture should be use together.

Chalit emphasized the notion of allowing the furniture to be passed on to later generations. He offered the idea of altering the chair slightly to add a sentimental touch to the furniture so that when it gets passed on through the different generations, it’s value will increase exponentially due to the memories that are held within the chair.

Laura liked the idea of using rattan as a base material as it is fairly light weight and looks great when it is made as a chair. As all 3 professors agreed that rattan furniture is the kind of furniture that will look more and more beautiful as time passes. Instead of settling for a simple vintage rattan look, she suggested that I enhanced more of the look and the element of fun within the chair with decorative equipment to make it appeal to children more. Allowing children to play with the furniture would be ideal. After Chalit suggested about sentimental touch to the furniture so to be able to pass on to the next generation, Laura asked me to look into the traditional rattan baby chair that most of the Asians used. It is durable and is being passed on to their later generation over and over.

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This is how it is being use as a baby chair when feeding the baby.

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When turn over, it can be a stool.