This morning an Industrial Designer came up to me with two pieces of rounded plastic that were nearly identical. Each piece was about twelve inches around and completely flat on one side, like the tip of a giant sphere had been cut off. They were both FDM prototypes of the same part that he had been struggling with for weeks. He held one in each hand and proclaimed “I can’t believe it! All this time and it was just that simple!”
The piece he had been working on was the rounded top of a rather complex bulbous shape. He had been working on the shape as a whole, and keeping everything together was a long, complicated procedure, as changing one part would bend the rest out of shape. As a result, the natural topography of each model was a complex weaving of shapes that looked similar to a hillside landscape. He had taken to sanding and polishing the natural grooves from the machine to make each attempt look smoother, stating it would emulate the final product. He had gotten completely frustrated and went to a senior coworker for advice.
The senior person simply made one curve over the entire top. He sent it to the FDM, and the instant it came out, the coworker who had been so flustered stood slackjawed for just a moment, then said “I don’t need to polish this one, I know it’s perfect.”
As he held up the two samples, I saw the new one next to the muddy landscape of the other. The piece was clear and concise, just a series of growing concentric circles.
The simplest answer tends to be the best. Never be afraid to step back and do something the easy way.
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