Sandbox Intern Road Map

This roadmap was created to guide the learning experience for interns learning to use the Singh Sandbox Makerspace. No prior maker skills are assumed.

Let's Start With Lasers (Prototyping Studio)

Just to be different, let's start your maker journey with the laser cutter. Others may suggest you start with a different tool, maybe a 3D printer, Vinyl Cutter, or even that you start with Electronics or Woodworking. If you're making the rules you can do that.

We're going to start at the laser since it's the simplest of all the powerful maker tools. It's powerful because it cuts cleanly and quickly, there's almost a magical power to it. It's simple because it hides much of the complexity you have to understand on tools like the CNC router. We don't have to learn about work holding strategies or choosing the best cutting tool.

CAD/CAM Strategy

Computer Aided Design (CAD) is a vital maker skill, it's the method of communicating what you're going to make. Sometimes this communication is only for your own use, but that doesn't make it any less important. If you ever want to make another copy of your project having a CAD drawing is important, especially if your re-do involves modifying your original design. Sure, it's a hassle to learn CAD and sometimes it would be more efficient to just sketch your idea on the back of an envelope, but you're probably going to have lost that envelope when the time comes to re-do or improve your project. You're less likely to misplace your CAD file (especially if you store it in the cloud) and redesign is much simpler when you have that CAD file to start with.

First Look

As a first project on the ULS laser cutter we'll have you design and cut a simple project using Adobe Illustrator (Illustrator).

If you've never used Illustrator before, we have several resources for you to learn the basics.

Project Ideas

Iterated Laser Box

Convert a laser box into a more complex and more useful item. for example a whiteboard accessory tray that hangs over the top of one of our portable whiteboards with slots/holes to store whiteboard markers, eraser, cleaning spray, etc.

Laser-Cut Map

Create a layered map of campus, your home town, or your favorite city. Examples of what would be on each of the layers could be: water, local streets, highways, city/town borders, neighborhood names, etc.

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Edge-Lit Acrylic Sign

When acrylic is engraved on the revers side then edge lit, only the engraved area glows (this effect is often used for illuminated Exit signs) Create an edge-lit sign using this technique. You will probably want to make a wood laser-cut box to use as a stand to support the sign and also to hide the illumination source.

What Should You Learn Next?

One thing for sure, don't jump directly to the 3D Printer next. Sure, it's in the same studio but it's a very different tool. It's best if you take a slight detour and learn a little about CAD and CAM next. Many makers jump into 3D printing first and that but they're not ready to do much beyond finding a design online and printing it. This really isn't creative, instead it's consumption.

One of the most challenging nexts would be to jump right into the CNC Studio. If you're eager to learn more about CAD and CAM this might be fun. If you do, start with the ShopBot. The Tormach might be a bit of a stretch at this point. The Shaper Origin is a possibility but it hides CAM from the operator a bit too much for an accelerated learning path. The Othermill is an option, it's a small CNC milling machine though so the range of interesting projects might be too narrow for a new maker.

A different path might be to try something completely different like woodworking or electronics.

Woodworking can be a wonderfully tactile experience. Sandbox doesn't have the sort of wood shop you would need to make a violin or re-create an antique furniture piece but it's suitable for many small to medium sized projects.

If you have experience with electronics, the Electronics Studio may be a comfortable next stop. Evven if all you have is curiosity there are many things you can learn quickly here that will accelerate your future maker projects. One suggested starting point

Or focus for a bit on our Digital Media Studio. That's the newest and one that would benefit from the creation of instructional materials, either Canvas modules or Wiki pages. The tools in this studio are also the ones that will help you document your path. If you're interested in content creation using photography, video, or audio then this might appeal to you.