Marble Fountain
13 days ago
- #AlgorithmicDesign
- #ProceduralGeneration
- #3DPrinting
- The author enjoys procedural generation and started working on large algorithmic structure projects after gaining access to better 3D printers at Formlabs.
- Marble Fountain is a complex art piece designed to be the most complicated 3D-printed structure possible.
- Initial system involved randomly placing points, drawing splines, and setting a constant slope, but evolved into a path solver to maximize motion within the printer's volume.
- The path solver uses various algorithms to generate initial guesses, which are then refined to meet constraints like bounding box limits, even spacing, and constant slope.
- Velocity management was challenging, requiring aggressive banking and snaking to control speed and prevent marbles from flying off or stopping.
- The lift mechanism acts like a ball screw, constrained by marbles, but can fail if marbles are only on one side.
- Support generation was straightforward, using a particle system approach, with more time spent on aesthetics than structural issues.
- Final models take 5-20 minutes to export, and the author considers optimizing with tools like an SDF library for organic geometry.
- Future improvements could include realistic velocity estimation and better acceleration models, possibly using camera measurements.
- The project was the most intensive hobby effort by the author, spanning from February to September 2024, with a gallery showcase leading to a crunch period.
- The author acknowledges burnout and shelved the project for a year before sharing, thanking a friend for support and input.