K'nex Sliding Puzzle

Had you ever came across a sliding puzzle before? They’re these set of tiles placed on a board that you have to arrange to get a final picture. Although simple, this kind of puzzle is the kind I like to pick up every once in a while. I found an old one in my room, and I thought of making one out of K’NEX, just to see if it was possible to model one.

When figuring out how to model this kind of puzzle, I studied how the tiles are fitted together by a system of tabs and gaps along each one and on the frame of the board. I broke some of the tiles off to inspect it further, and by then I got a general concept.  I first made experimental tiles that interlock with each other as if they were attached to each other by rods. After making a 2x2 tile area, I progressed to surround them in a frame rather than a board. It was a success prototype; from there I proceeded to make a 3x3 puzzle by making more tiles and expanding the frame.

After placing the final tile in the frame, I realized that there was no picture to accompany it. I didn’t just want to cut out a picture; I wanted to make some kind of image from K’NEX. I ended up creating a grid-like design out of a series of connectors, using the color variation of each part as an advantage. Overall, the final result works really well. You can place it on the table and slide them around, or hold it up in front of you. It’s a little flimsy, but it works! I would place up the instructions, but I can't promise anything with school. I hope that there will be people interested in making this!

Although my original intention for this was for the Toy Challenge, I hope this would be a valid winning entry for the ShopBot Challenge. I already have experience using a CNC mill and the various programs to produce items, such as Autodesk and Mastercam to name a few. I take a class involving such projects, and if I would win such a prize I could continue on using that knowledge for many future projects. Besides that, I hope that I do well in the Toy Challenge as well.

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