Maker Space Exploration
What is the problem we are trying to solve?
The problem that Narissa and I wanted to solve was technology organization, this being the messy wires, whether it be in our own household or at school. With school being online and having to use technology every day, it is very easy to get unorganized. Personally, on my desk in my room, I have my computer charging, my phone charging, my lamps, and my diffuser, and it can get quite frustrating when my wires get tangled in each other. 
Who are we trying to help and why?
I am trying to help myself, as well as anyone else who has a lot of wires and needs to keep organized. I enjoy a clean workspace when I am working from home as it increases productivity. It often stresses me out when I have to work in a messy workspace, and it is distracting as I would want to tidy up instead of focusing on my work. Another group of people this could be helpful to, are teachers. Those especially who have projectors with lots of different dongles and wires, it can get confusing when kids go up to plug their computer in. If we had something that could organize all the wires and have them in one place, they could easily identify which ones they needed to use.
What are the specific limitations and barriers that exist to solving this problem?
One limitation when solving this problem is the size of the wires. Not all wires are the same size which means that to ensure everyone would be able to use the same organizer, they would have to customize it to their wires. Even then, if they want to use it somewhere else, it wouldn’t always work.
This diagram was an idea Narissa and I had. It was a prototype of what someone’s wire organizer could look like. This one is fitted to only one wire size, mainly because all the wires Narissa and I have on our desks, are typically small. Then again, if we were to make it for someone else, we would make sure to check the size of the wires beforehand, in order to personalize it. To make this product, you must know how to use Tinkercad and understand how to make the wholes. We watched some tutorial videos on how to do that, and with some practice on bowls and boxes, and with some play time, we were able to make the design. The resources we used were the internet and the website. We also needed to use the computer in the Maker Space that had the software for slicing. This design was basically one shape, so it in fact did not need support. Lastly of course we needed the 3D printer, and thankfully we have many offered at our school!
What did you build and why?
We decided to build a wire organizer! We decided on this because this way we could put all our wires in one spot while having them separated neatly from each other. This prevents disorganization and improves the work space, especially at home. Homework is something every student gets, and now with COVID, sometimes students may even have to stay at home more than usual since it is recommended to isolate themselves even when they have the flu. This means that a workspace at home that is clean and organized is so important because it will definetly be used.
- What did you learn during the process? What were some of the challenges? What were some of the learning moments?
I learned how to use Tinkercard in more detail. In order to make the loops, you had to create wholes in the design which was a process I had to first learn, and then practice. Playing on the software is so important as it allowed me to learn new skills and build on the ones I had already learned from last year. There were challenges in order to make the loops even. This was difficult because it wasn’t that easy to copy and paste the design as they all had to be individually carved. Although this was more difficult, doing that repetitively definitely improved my skill! This entire project was a learning moment, however, I think once again, learning a new technique was the biggest thing I learned as it is a technique I can use on almost any 3D project.
If you could do it all again, what would change? What could be improved? Dream…
If I could do it all over again I would definitely learn how to make this specific to someone who has many wires of different sizes. I think that would be a great challenge to make all the measurements and have it work for perhaps a teacher that needs it for their projector. This would be a great improvement because especially at school, everyone has different wire sizes.