Wave Laptop Stand (Making 3D Shapes in Illustrator)

Step 8 Admire your Work, Think of Improvements

Below are a bunch of shots of the stand with my laptop on it, and how it looks in my workspace. The angle is perfect for the occasional stand and it's very stable. It also feels airier and provides a lot more ventilation when things heat up. There's plenty of room for my cables and such.

Improvements, for the future:

• Design it in 3D! See step 2 for my thinking on this. If you have suggestions, please leave them in the comments.
• The slots should be looser; glue can be used instead of friction to keep everything together. "Nodes" can also be used for a nicer fit. See step 4 for details on this.
• Though the stand is very strong and stable, there is just a bit of flex on the rear legs. I'd eliminate that with a thicker shape that keeps that last cross section a bit fatter in the middle.

Comments

[pingaling]

Very rad indeed!! How do you find it for stability?

[incorrect]

One possible addition to this would be to cover the whole thing with a fabric such as Polyfiber or MonoKote, which are used for aircraft and model aircraft, respectively. Although covering it like a wing would make the inside unseeable (can't be seen, couldn't think of the right word), I think that it would bring out the shape more. My personal choice would be MonoKote, as it is cheaper, simpler, and comes in many colors. Also, I suppose if you wished to view the inside as well as have a more defined shape, you could use clear colored MonoKote.

[thebacons]

Nice design! I wouldn't mind having a go at making one myself on my CNC. Do you still have any .dxf or g-code that you used?

[nagutron]

Sorry, none of those. I have attached some more useful file formats to step 5, though. The .eps in particular should be easy to convert to the format of your choice.

[ItsTheFark]

We have the exact same keyboard =)

[Jehosephat]

Very professional, good modular design. Have you evr tried to sell this idea to a furniture company? I bet a store like IKEA would go crazy for stuff like this! Those silly Swedish people with their furniture...(laughs) But anyways very nicely done! Regards, Jehosephat

[tannpopo]

wa...a beautiful design. but it is a hard work to make it out. and i thought it also fix for the kitchen. to put some plates on it. o(∩_∩)o...just kidding.

[Tanamoril]

it looks kind of like it accommodates for knees? would I be mistaken in thinking that it would also fit nicely on a lap, because that is some skilled multiple-use design :)

[nagutron]

Nah, it doesn't work on the lap too well. But I can see what you're getting at. Hm another design...

[Get Out and Build]

Very beautiful craftmenship. The only concern I have is the stability of the laptop. The back of the stand is wonderfully artistic but has little supportive value.

[nagutron]

It's actually very strong. I'd like to thicken the back, as I noted, so that the negligible flexing that's there can be eliminated. But the stand itself is never in danger of breaking. The force is all in the plane of the plywood, which at an inch wide is extremely strong.

[naluboy]

Very nice! There's a guy that makes cardboard surfboards using a similar method. http://www.sheldrake.net/cardboards/. I was wondering if something like this can also be done in illustrator. Thanks for the post!

[woolfie]

Yes, very nice looking surfboards. I like how the finished items are transparent and you can see the cardboard core.

[nagutron]

Those surfboards are beautiful. The design of the individual pieces looks quite simple; I'm sure it could all be done in 2d.

[KEUrban]

Very beautiful work, and the craftsmanship to execute this in 3D? Very impressive.

[jbyler]

Wow, yes, it's beautiful. The black edges are from the laser cutter burning through the wood? That's a nice effect. And I like how the wave form leaves lots of cooling air space underneath the laptop. Now you just need to figure out how to hide the cables coming out of the computer! =)

[nagutron]

Thanks! Yeah, the black edges are from the laser cutter.

[SYMMETRY]

instead of using wood why not use cardboard? There seems to be a good amount of that stuff laying around. I've seen chairs made like that. If it can hold a person it can hold a laptop. All-in-All nice design. (:

[nagutron]

That's a good idea, though the design would need some modifications. Some of the parts of the stand would need to be thickened. The wood itself already flexes a bit. I'd coat it with something to stiffen it, as well.

[crazycommanche=US=]

put it in water to let it expand then put loads of heat on to it ie placing under a fire pit it gets hot undder there