The Research Pod

In the previous lesson we created a housing module that had docking ports.

Now we are ready to create research modules that could be docked or attached to those docking ports. Let's get started!

Instructions

1. Continue to the next step.

Step 1: Make the Research Compartment

We will start again with the largest section of the research pod with is the main cylinder that makes up the majority of the pod.

Everything else will be attached to this shape as we continue.

Instructions

1. Place a Cylinder on the Workplane and size it to 30mm in diameter and 30mm tall.
2. Continue to the next step.

Step 2: Make an Angled End Cap

Next we will add an angled shape to the top (or end) of the research pod.

Instructions

1. Place a Cone shape on the Workplane and size it to 30mm in diameter and 10mm tall.
2. Use the black arrow on top of the Cone to lift it upward off the Workplane 30mm to match the top of the Cylinder.
3. Select both shapes and Align them vertically. When you have completed this alignment properly it will look like the Cylinder is wearing a pointy hat again.
4. Continue to the next step.

Step 3: Trim the End Cap

With the end cap in position we can trim it down a little using a large box.

Instructions

1. Place a Box on the Workplane and size it to 30mm square.
2. Change the Box to a Hole.
3. Select all three shapes and Align them vertically.
4. Select the Box and use the black arrow on top to lift the Box upward off the Workplane by 33mm.
5. Select all the shapes and Group them into a single object. This will trim the top of the Cone down to a flat surface.
6. Continue to the next step.

Step 4: Make the Docking Port Connection

Next we will build the section of the research pod that will connect to the housing module docking ports.

Instructions

1. Place a Cone shape on the Workplane and size it to 30mm in diameter and 15mm tall.
2. Rotate the Cone 180° so the flat surface is facing upward.
3. Select the Cone shape and use the black arrow on the top to lower the Cone down 15mm to match the bottom of the Cylinder.
4. Select all the shapes and Align them vertically.
5. Press D on the keyboard while all the shapes are selected to lift them onto the Workplane.
6. Continue to the next step.

Step 5: Make the Connection Tube

Now we need to add a small tube or cylinder that would allow scientists to travel through the docking port into and out of the housing module.

Instructions

1. Place a Cylinder on the Workplane and size it to 15mm in diameter and 20mm tall.
2. Select all the shapes and Align them vertically.
3. Continue to the next step.

Step 6: Make the Docking Port Adapter

We now need an adapter on the research pod that will allow it to connect to the docking port.

Instructions

1. Place a Cylinder on the Workplane and size it to 18mm in diameter and 10mm tall.
2. Place a Cone on the Workplane and size it to 18mm in diameter and 10mm tall.
3. Select the Cone and use the black arrow on the top to lift the Cone upward 10mm to match the top of the last Cylinder.
4. Select the new Cylinder and Cone and Align them vertically.
5. Continue to the next step.

Step 7: Position the Adapter

We need to align the adapter with the rest of the research pod to complete the module.

Instructions

1. Select all the shapes and Align them vertically.
2. Select the largest Cylinder shape and the upside down Cone and use the black arrow on top to lift the shapes upward 12mm until you see the orange between the two Cones.
3. Select all the shapes and Group them into a single object.
4. Continue to the next step.

Step 8: Create a Hole to Attach to Docking Port

To finish the adapter we need to have a hole in the adapter that will match the docking port.

The important part to remember for this step is the docking port diameter is 15mm, so the hole in the research pod must be slightly larger.

This gap between the two is called a tolerance and will allow the pieces to fit together properly.

Instructions

1. Place a Cylinder on the Workplane and size it to 10.5mm in diameter and 10mm tall. Tip: Remember you can change the Snap Grid to 0.5mm to make it possible to set the size of the Cylinder to 10.5mm.
2. Set the Cylinder to a Hole.
3. Select the Cylinder and research pod and Align them vertically.
4. Select all the shapes and Group them into a single object. This will create the hole in the research pod to connect to the Housing module.
5. Continue to the next step.

Step 9: Build a Strengthening Ring

We are now going to create a strengthening ring for the module, but we are going to add some angled shapes on the top and bottom to help with 3D print the module.

Instructions

1. Set the color of the research pod to something you like. For this lesson I am going to make the research pod a light grey color.
2. Place a Tube shape on the Workplane and size it to 31mm in diameter and 2mm tall.
3. Change the color of the Tube shape to a color you like. For this lesson I will use black.
4. Place a Cone shape on the Workplane and size it to 31mm in diameter.
5. Select the Cone and use the black arrow on top to lift the shape upward 2mm to match the top of the ring.
6. Select the ring and the Cone and Align them vertically.
7. Continue to the next step.

Step 10: Add a Cone to the Bottom of the Ring

In this step we will repeat the process from the previous step, but this time we will put the cone on the bottom side of the ring.

Instructions

1. Place a Cone on the Workplane and size it to 31mm in diameter.
2. Rotate the cone 180° so the flat surface is facing upward.
3. Use the black arrow on top of the Cone to move the Cone downward 31mm so it matches the bottom of the ring.
4. Select all 3 shapes and align them vertically.
5. With all 3 shapes selected, Group them into a single item.
6. Continue to the next step.

Step 11: Trim the Cones

Before we can place the ring we need to trim the excess cone material away.

Instructions

1. Place a Box on the Workplane and size it to be 31mm square.
2. Set the Box to be a Hole.
3. Use the black arrow on top of the Box to lift it upward off the Workplane 4mm.
4. Place a second Box on the Workplane and size it to be 31mm square.
5. Use the black arrow on top of the Box to lower it down away from the Workplane 33mm.
6. Select the cubes, cones, and ring shapes and align them vertically.
7. With all the shapes selected, Group them into a single item to trim the Cones.
8. Continue to the next step.

Step 12: Add a Strengthening Rib

The final step in creating the research pod is to add the strengthening rings to the pod.

Instructions

1. Set the color of the research pod to something you like. For this lesson I am going to make the research pod a light grey color.
2. Change the color of the tube shape to a color you like. For this lesson I will use black.
3. Select the research pod and ring and Align the shapes vertically.
4. Select the ring and use the black arrow on top to lift the ring upward 52mm so the ring is near the top of the research pod.
5. Continue to the next step.

Step 13: Add Additional Ribs

Now that the first ring is positioned we can use the smart duplicate tool to create additional rings at set distances from one another.

Instructions

1. Select the ring and duplicate it by selecting Duplicate from the Edit menu.
2. Use the black arrow on the top of the ring to lower the new duplicate 5mm below the original.
3. Select Duplicate from the Edit menu 3 more times to create a total of 5 rings.
4. Select all the shapes and Group them into a single object
5. If the color changes to the single color you can change to a multicolor by checking the Multicolor check box in the color tool.
6. Continue to the next lesson.