February 2016

Hello everyone, As of late, the 3D Lab has been a popular hang-out place for students.  Not to just to take a break from their studies (although many collaborate and complete homework there), but to relax, socialize, and make things together. With mid-semester quickly arriving, students are just beginning to experiment with model rocket designs in lab.   One particular student is researching ways to formulate his own rocket fuel (thankfully not in the 3D Lab!).  We remember Dusty’s fascinating attempts at this a year ago.  When the snow clears and the surrounding fields begin to green, we look forward to another launch of interesting rocketRead More →

Hello everyone, With the heavy snowfall from a couple of days ago, why endure cold weather when you could be inside a warm, cozy 3D lab?  That’s what our students are doing.  Engineering students are designing model rockets for launch later this system.  Another student is inventing a two-wheel skateboard with impressive CAD designs.  We are also printing car parts for the University of Akron’s Electric Vehicle Race Team using the resin and HIPS 3D printers.  There is always something going on in the lab. In our offsite adventures, we recently completed a collaborative activity with Heartland Education Community in Orrville, Ohio.  Wayne College offeredRead More →

Hello everyone, A lot has been happening in the 3D Lab the past couple of weeks.  There wasn’t time for last week’s blog, though I am now settling into routine again.  Recently, the lab was involved with Wadsworth Intermediate Schools, Buckeye Event Center, and Heartland Education Community.  More about these outreaches in later blogs. Even though engineering students are not yet designing and printing model rockets for their classes, that doesn’t stop them from creating and inventing in the 3D Lab.  That is the beauty of this space, an area where students collaborate, create, invent, and fabricate on their own steam, learning with their ownRead More →

The second week of the semester has finished.  Engineering students in the Dynamics class (for model rockets and more) do not yet have assignments that involve the 3D Lab.  But the room is a flurry of activity with students working on their own projects.  There is rarely a dull moment. For instance, last semester one of our students started designing a custom guitar using Solidworks, a computer aided design (CAD) program.  It will be fabricated using the laser cutter and 3D printers.  It’s quite an original design, too.  That project is still underway, but he has a new project; a two-wheeled skateboard!  Using the drillRead More →