Kinetic Sculpture

This was a project for Introduction to Mechanical Prototyping. Our team of 6 worked to design and fabricate an original kinetic sculpture. Our sculpture is titled “Rough Seas”. The primary motion of the rocking boat is driven by a pulley system that rotates a shaft with two cams attached, which dictate the rocking of the front and back of the boat. There is also a bevel gear on the same shaft, which rotates a gear driving the waves, which are attached to a four-bar linkage system in the front. These waves have a smoother motion than the irregular rocking of the boat.

The cams were 3D-printed, as was the base structure of the boat. We made use of a laser cutter to cut the moving waves and silhouettes of the boat riders. A shopbot was used to cut the wooden pieces for the box and stand of the sculpture. Other parts were either COTS or machined in the shop using the mill.

All CAD for this sculpture was done in Solidworks.

Our sculpture in motion can be seen in the video below.

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