The aim of this project was to use a laser-cut acrylic part to hold 40lbs of weight.
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Process Documentation
The initial brainstorming session didn’t use an accurate model for the testing set up. So we collected the ideas and went back to develop it further.
Second Iterations of Design
For each scenario, we did hand calculations to determine the stress on the member.
After doing this, we picked the design with the lowest stress and began to optimize it in Solidworks.
This was our initial design, it proved to be very strong, but could be optimized.In the second iteration, we extended the cutout to areas of low stress.In the third iteration, we removed the crossbar entirely, deeming it unnecessary. While this choice increased the stress, it was still well within the limits of the material.In the fourth iteration, we thinned the bottom bar out, as most of the stress is concentrated on the left portion. We noticed that the displacements on this design would cause it to bend into the forbidden area. Between this and the final iteration, we increased the inner radius on the left side in order to avoid this collision.
