Typography 101 – Expressive Typography Poster

Week 2 – w/c 18/11/19

Postmodern Typography

To start this week off we were taught about Postmodern Typography, and how means of creating publications such as newspapers has changed significantly since the 1970s. With the invention of the computer and development of design software, efficiency have improved significantly, and now it is a much less manual process, like most things than it previously was. We also were informed about the rebellion against Sans serif typefaces, as designers wished to embrace creativity.

Expressive Typography

We were then tasked with creating two sets of expressive type in response after hearing an audio clip being played, the first, one being a clip of Steven Fry talking, the second of a reality TV star, both caused my typeface/font to have very different outcomes.

Expressive Typography Digital Poster

Towards the end of the week we had to create a poster on InDesign which incorporated expressive type. So I chose to create a poster for a Design show, here I was able to link my work to my discipline by including some of my subject work in the design. The poster also had to include at least two paragraphs of text, which was slightly difficult as I did not want to over crowd the poster and make it unable to be read quickly.

Breaking Down Posters

Finally we looked at other peoples posters and saw what worked well visually as communication tool and what didn’t work as well.

Briefing

For the next three (and final) weeks of this field module we had been set our final three week brief, ‘Develop an outcome or a series of outcomes that places typography at the forefront’ these outcomes could be related to our subject.

Typography 101 – Introduction

Week 1 – w/c 11/11/19

For my Field module, where you do project in different discipline, I chose to do ‘Typography 101’, a module based on graphic and editorial design. Doing this module I hope to gain the skills and literacy in various design programs, such as InDesign.

Introduction to Typography

For the first lecture we learnt about the features of text and elements which make up letters. Along with this we talked about several categories of fonts, such as Geometric, Humanist and Old Style, each having its own characteristics.

Font Spacing Exercise

In order for us to become aware of how important spacing between characters is, and for us to get used to drawing out letter forms with the correct spacing, we were given a short task of drawing out our name in one of the fonts provided. We also were given a word to cut into individual letters and remake with equal spacing between them.

Group Font Spacing Exercise

Later on we did a similar activity as before, however this time we were in groups and had larger letters which we had to place on a wall, this was more challenging as we weren’t able to draw a line to ensure the letters were level.

Parts of Letters

Here we were given a sheet of six letters and had to replicate a part of each one on a bigger scale using two pieces of coloured paper, one the backing and one for the form itself. We were able to be a creative as we liked in disguising which letter we were making part of. After we had created a part of each letter we then organised them into a large rectangle on a wall, creating a sort of art piece as well as seeing new shapes, where parts of the letter forms joined up. This was also a useful tool see which combinations complemented each other well and which did not.

Introduction to InDesign

Having a short tutorial on how to use InDesign was helpful as I had not used this adobe program before, also I was able to see the advantages this software has over others, such as the ability to use grid systems.

Editorial Layouts

Later on in the week we started to look at editorial layouts for magazines and book publications, we experimented with layouts and the positioning of text in relation to images with grid systems in a physical form. When doing this we produced a Zine, which we were later tasked with creating in a digital format on InDesign.

InDesign Zine

Once I had made a rough plan of my Zine in a physical form I then went onto InDesign and then replicated my layouts whilst tidying up and making small changes to my design.

Screwdriver – Finial Adjustments

Week 7 – w/c 4/11/19

Soldiworks Model Adjustments

After finalising a Solidworks model exterior casing I went about putting in place the ribs and bosses which would securely hold the internal components in place.

Rendering the Screwdriver Model

I put my Solidworks model into Keyshot and applied the surface textures and finished which were appropriate, replicating what I had found out in my aesthetic research.

Heroboards

I took my Keyshot renders and took them into Illustrator and produce three boards, one heroboard, one features and benefits, and the other an exploded view along with a bill of materials.

Reflection on My Heroboards

When I have to remake my heroboards, I would like to do a new set of Keyshot renders as I feel that the material colour of the casing that I chose was not perfect, and that there should have been a few other accents of colour i.e. red, like there are in Dyson’s vacuums. Currently only the trigger and direction switcher provide my product with accents of another colour.

Screwdriver – Developing the Solidworks Model

Week 6 – w/c 28/10/19

Developing my Solidworks Model

This week a further developed my Solidworks model by making the back of the screwdriver larger than the font end of the design, this allowed me to obtain the sectional and stepped style which can be seen in Dyson’s designs. I also worked on resizing aspects of the design, such as the front end.

Screwdriver – Further Development

Week 5 – w/c 21/10/19

Sketch development

This week consisted of developing my designs on paper and with render markers, experimenting with implementing shapes and adding coloured accents to areas in my design like Dyson do with their products.

Design Selection

Week 4 – w/c 14/10/19

Tutorial Feedback

This week was the first week of having tutorials, where I was able to gain feedback and advice on how to further develop my designs in Dyson’s style.

Out of the three models which I had made the main pieces of feedback I was given was to make the overall deign more free flowing and streamline as my current designs had a large amount of harsh sharp edges, which didn’t necessarily fit with Dyson’s aesthetic. The other feedback I was given was to look into the top of the casing to see if any other forms could be implemented, as there was no feature on the top, so it was just a curved surface.

DFM Injection Moulding Tolerances

Week 3 – w/c 7/10/19

DFM Injection Moulding

This week we had another lecture on various things to consider when making a casing for injection moulding on Solidworks. The thickness of the paint once applied, was a key thing to think about as it would eventually with layers make the model bigger and could result in parts not fitting together.

Solidworks Tutorial

This week we were also given a lecture on how to shell, add ribs and bosses to our designs, making them more accurately replicate an injection moulded part.

This was helpful as I was not full confident with how to actually shell a part without doing an internal cut extrude.

Continuing with Concept Ideation and Development

Along with designing and sketching more concepts for the other casing I also made 3 CAD models of some casings on Solidworks.

PDS and Injection Moulding

Week 2 – w/c 30/9/19

PDS

This week we were made aware of the importance of a PDS, how you can analyse a brand and set out key specification points which your product must fulfil.

Variants of Injection Moulding

Also this week we were give lectures on the different injection moulding processes, it was good to learn the different types of injection moulding, which built on my previous knowledge of the processes from A-level.

Also we were told about about the different types of defects which can be present when injection moulding and how to avoid them, such as making a product wall have a consistent wall thickness, to reduce the risk of sinkage (for both aesthetic and structural purposes).

Brand Research

I started to look in detail at what defines a Dyson product, I did this by looking at their existing products and breaking them up into different areas. Looking at these sections allowed me to gain an understating of what elements make up their designs. One key feature included in each of Dyson’s designs was a clear focus on technology, this was either shown through the product having a visible technological element, such a set of cyclones, or the technology being illustrated via their marketing posters/renders.

Ribs and Bosses within the Donor Product

I also started to think about how the internals would be held within my casing and weather I would replicate the existing ribs and bosses and adjust them slightly to fit my casing or start from scratch. To clearly see the existing ribs and bosses I took photos of each side of the case, the printed them and drew over them.

Concept Ideation

This week I started to produce concepts for my electric screwdriver casing. In order to ensure that my concepts were viable, in terms of proportions and sizing, I printed out a screenshot of my internals and put it underneath each sheet when sketching. This meant I was able to see where each part was in relation to each other.

Briefing – Mechanical Project

Week 1 – w/c 23/9/19

Briefing

The first week back at University we were briefed on what we would be using our internals that we had made on Solidworks for, which was to design a new exterior casing for our chosen product that is ready to be manufactured with injection moulding.

Internal Inspection

The internals which I had replicated was checked over to see if they were accurate, which they proved to be. This was a relief as they took quite a bit of time to make as the wires were difficult to get exact.

Initial Ideation

This week I also started initial ideation by drawing 50 basic 2D Designs, here I was able to get some basic forms and shapes on paper and start playing around with elements of Dyson’s style.

Electric Screwdriver Project

Week 0

Choosing a Product

Over the Christmas holiday we had been tasked to find an electronic or mechanical product and replicate its internals in Solidworks. For my product I chose an electric Tacklife Screwdriver.

Disassembling the Donor Product

Opening up the case proved to be a challenge as one of the screws was hidden beneath a sticker, which I didn’t realise until I forced the case open, so I purchased another screwdriver, and opened it carefully, as to no damage the internals.

Cadding the Internals

In order to accurately replicate the screwdriver’s internals, I used a pair of calipers to measure the various dimensions of each individual component. Some parts proved harder to get accurate measurements of as they were at difficult angles or where hard to get to with calipers.

When creating the internals in Solidworks, it appeared that creating the cylindrical shapes, such as the motor and gearbox, would just be a large amount extruded circles, however alongside this there were a lot of small details which I also included, as I wanted to make the CAD model as accurate a possible. One of these small details being how the metal casing for the motor folds round the plastic end of the motor.