Description
My prototype was designed to swap a painting/portrait from one to another. For this project I researched how counterweight systems worked, which I found over the web. The materials I used was 1×6 pine, 1/4″ MDF, 1/4″ lauan, and tie-line. The hardware consisted of two pulleys, one screw eye, and one screw hook. The beginning of the process started with me figuring out the dimensions of the flat itself, and creating the draft for it. Once that was done, I started building the prototype. After the first test, I realized that there was a lot of needed alterations.
Analysis
The prototype itself worked. I had a piece of lauan at 2′-1 1/2″ x 10 1/2″ with both paintings on it that would move up and down. I was able to change it from one portrait to the other, however I realized that there was nothing preventing the piece of lauan to stop moving. So I had to add a stop block on the top and bottom of the lauan at equal distance of the size of the portraits. Then I added a piece of plywood to the sides and behind of the lauan to prevent it from moving side by side and backwards. When I initially did my research and planning, I didn’t account for that problem until it actually occurred. I personally feel that I made an accurate model because it did what it had to do, but there are always room for improvements.
Application
While working on this prototype I’ve learned that nothing will be one hundred percent perfect. I spent a lot of time on trying to get it as perfectly and accurately to the drawing as possible. Instead of answering the question itself, of how the portraits will change. Now that I’ve answered everything, for the next version all I have to do is add in all the corrections. This project taught me that sometimes you just have to start building in order to know what needs to be fixed. Though it’s great to do a lot of research, I spent a lot of time over thinking my design rather than actually trying it out. Once I started building it, the process started to flow more easily.
