Tinkercad 3D Modelling

Learning objectives

Grasp the basics of 3D modeling and printing by exploring TinkerCAD to create and print simple designs.
Develop design thinking skills to create practical 3D-printed containers tailored to specific user needs.
Learn to design and print intricate 3D statues, applying advanced TinkerCAD functions for complex shapes.

Lesson plan

3D and TinkerCAD | Introduces dimension and coordinates (XY plane, then X/Y/Z in 3D space), what a 3D model is and where models are used (motion capture, 3D printing, VR, AR), then the whole TinkerCAD basic toolset - joining a class with a class code, grid limits (default 200 x 200 mm), placing, selecting, viewing, hiding, moving, rotating, resizing, duplicating (Ctrl+D), grouping and cutting; hands-on builds are a keyring, a snowman and a step-by-step small house from a triangular prism and cubes.

Rotation | Uses aerobatic flight to introduce pitch, roll and yaw, the three rotational degrees of freedom and Euler angles (extrinsic rotation about fixed X/Y/Z axes), then the TinkerCAD rotate handles with their 22.5-degree inner ring and 1-degree outer ring; builds a simplified Rubik's cube from eight 20 mm cubes scrambled and restored by rotating rows and columns, then a phone stand, which introduces why overhangs need support material when 3D printed (extra cost, extra time, surface marks) and why the stand is laid flat on the bed.

How 3D printing works | Recaps the Z axis, contrasts ordinary 2D printing with layer-by-layer 3D printing (explained with a mille-feuille cake analogy: slicing the model into layers and printing bottom-up), covers FDM, SLA and SLS and printing applications; the challenge builds a parallelepiped by rotating a cube -22.5 degrees about X, stretching along Y and re-rotating, followed by a design-thinking workflow for copying an everyday object - analyse the parts, sketch each part, model, print, assemble - demonstrated on a tank and on floor-plan-to-3D conversion.

Grouping and cutting | Teaches the hole/group workflow - turning a shape into a hole, overlapping it with the solid and grouping to subtract - and compares additive and subtractive ways of making a container; practice pieces are a small box, a cup, a vase and a pen holder, plus a hollow-polyhedron challenge, then raised and recessed relief: a cat paw print pressed into a plate (half-spheres shaped into pads plus a heart, duplicated, converted to holes and grouped with a slab) and a raised flower relief drawn with Scribble.

Articulated models | Covers joints that make a printed model move - chain/hinge joints (vertical, 180 degrees), pivot joints (horizontal, 360 degrees) and ball joints (multi-axis, 360 degrees) - and gear trains for mechanisms; hands-on builds are an articulated turtle (sphere and diamond body, eight rings sized 8 and 6 mm interlocked as limb joints without touching, flippers drawn with Scribble) and a Lego minifigure using a pivot joint for the head, a tenon and a chain joint, made with the Shape Generator.

Sculpture and artistic style | Reviews the whole course (part preparation and assembly, additive and subtractive methods, raised and recessed relief, chain/pivot/ball joints), then builds a 3D word sculpture: two equal-length words become 10 mm-thick text blocks set perpendicular to each other, converted to holes and grouped with an 80 x 80 x 24 mm base to carve the letters, with surplus letters removed by an extra cube hole so only the diagonal characters remain and the piece reads differently from each angle; closes with a free project - character model, sculpture, mechanism or relief.

Prerequisites

None

Software

Tinkercad

Other requirements

Hardware

Tablet/Notebook/Desktop (The better GPU, the better performance) with the updated browser
Graphic card supports webGL
Operating System:
- Microsoft Windows 10 or
- Apple OS X 10.10 or later or
- Google Chrome OS on Chromebooks