Mouse Modelling - Progress report 2 - Internal Piece & Mouse Wheel

Leaving the surfacing of the mouse for now, I moved onto some of the internal parts inside the mouse. In the image below I have started to create the internal clear piece which is used for guiding the laser inside the mouse. So far I have created a loft with two plane to create the base, then a simple boss extrude which will allow me to work on the central bit.

Using a series of extruded cuts and boss extrudings I have managed to get the main structure of the piece completed. In the image below you can see I'm currently using the cut extrude tool to bring the two sides of the rear wing together.

 

Making further progress and finalising the extrudes on the side, in the image I have created the path for where the laser goes using a set of extrudes and doming tools.

I'm now at the last stage of development for the inner see through piece. Currently applying a dome at the rear of the piece to guide the path of the laser when the mouse is operated.

Now that the laser piece is complete I then started with the mouse wheel. Before I made to much progress with the overall mouse surfacing and design I decided to Model together all the other compononents of the mouse first.

In the image above you can see that to build the mouse wheel I'm using the revolve feature. This enabled me to go back into the sketch to change dimensions accurately if I needed to later on down the track.

Internally you can see that the wheel has 3 internal beams to help with its structural integrity. Using the rib feature I have managed to create these.

The basic structure of the mouse wheel is now complete as you can see from the image above. However I'm not at the stage of modelling the grip pieces which are present in the piece. Using the circular pattern in a sketch, I managed to use the axis from the revolve itself to place it completely around wheel.

The image above is my final model for the mouse wheel.

Mouse Modelling - Progress Report 1!

Before I began or made any progress in assessment 2 I studied some of the tutorials on solidworks to become familiar with surfacing and any other methods which were required to complete it. I decided to begin on the main outer surface structure of the mouse as you can see in the image below.

When it came to using pictures to set the mouse up to be modelled I ask Dan if it was possible to use the cropped pictures available which he uploaded. I chose to use these photos as they clearly defined the lines and structure of the model, and made the process of starting the modelling a lot easier. As you can see in the image I have used the spline tool to draw the side and rear of the model with the guidance of the photos. Using the 'Project Curve' tool I was able to create a line which used the split lines from either sketch to create the top of the main base structure of the mouse. This is evident in the picture where the yellow lines have created another sketch.

Once I had successfully produced the projected curve it was then time to create guide curves for the surface loft. In the image above you can see I have created 3 indepentant guide curves which will be used to model the surface loft.

In the image above I have successfully connected the guide curves between the sketch of the base of the mouse and the middle curved part of the mouse. I have been able to create a surface loft between both of the lines which I can then progress upwards to the top of the mouse and continue the upper housing of the mouse.