Press Fit Kits

project finished

Press Fit Kits

A laser-cut, press-fit kit of 30 interlocking cardboard pieces — my first time on the laser cutter and in Rhino.

3d printinglaser cutting

Photo of a laser cut out of cardboard, that has butterfly like repeated pattern.
The kit, laser-cut from cardboard.

Design

I had never done laser cutting or 3d modelling in rhino before, so I decided that I wanted to design something that was a simple shape, and something circular. I had multiple ideas I wanted to try, but decided to go with a butterfly-like shape.

Photo of butterfly shaped laser cut items resembling a mountain when slotted together.

Model

Screenshot of the press-fit piece modeled in Rhino

The model took a bit of time to make even though it was a very simple shape, because I decided to use Rhino. I figured I’d have to use it eventually, so a large part of this assignment was watching educational videos. I’m happy with what I’ve come up with, but I do want to figure out how to add chamfers to my designs. I looked up some beginner laser cutting tips, and found that the laser is a non-zero measurement, so I did remove 0.15 mm from the size of the cardboard.

Laser cutting

Photo of the laser cutter cutting the butterfly shapes mid-cut through the glass.

I found some old amazon boxes, and did my first laser cut at the mill. I decided to just go for it (which was not smart) and print all 30 of my pieces, and luckily the measurements matched up! I think accoutning for the size of the laser really paid off, and I’m glad that I did it. There were some things I did not expect though:

  1. Don’t cut small shapes on folded parts of the cardboard box. I had some shapes that were lasercut on the fold, and some of them split in half.
  2. Using thinner cardboard is easier, because it cuts through completely on the first try

Measurements:

- Cardboard: 2.5mm
- Shape size: 3x4"
- Slot size: 2.35mm
- Settings: P (50%) F(50%) S(20%)

Pile of lasercut butterfly shapes on a table.

Shake test

Overall, a success!