Pixelated Chess Set Finals

The pixelated chess set that was shown a few weeks ago on this blog is now complete. This blog will discuss my process and modifications that I made to the original design.

After discussing my idea with my peers, I decided to add more detail to the pieces by using smaller blocks to make up the pieces. I also need to come up with a way to print all of the protruding edges without using too much support material. Supports are a pain to take off, especially on small objects.

First I needed to build the chess pieces. The Knight piece concerned me the most, as my initial sketch made it look too bulky. I decided to go with a smaller block size in order to add more detail. I built each piece in Rhino 7 out of 3x3 mm cubes.

I was still not satisfied with my idea as much as I hoped I would, as this felt unoriginal. I could definitely make something a lot more challenging for myself. Sticking to the idea of video games, I decided to add a pixel outline to each piece. This outline is present in many pixel based games such as Pokemon and older versions of Minecraft.

Before I could do that, I needed to make the pieces into less unconventional surfaces. I couldn't boolean union the blocks for some reason so instead I outlined the blocks with a polyline and created new surfaces. I then outlined the new chess piece and offset it by 3mm to create the pixel outline.

I also added a flat base to each piece, making sure all pieces have the same size base.

Using the laser cutter to make the black outlines would make the process go by faster. I decided to go with wood, as it was easy to find a lot of it laying around in the lab.

How would something like this 3d print without support material? An easy solution is to break it into pieces, and then assemble them later by hand. I made holes and pegs for pieces that had overhangs. Small overhangs like the inside hole of the Bishop piece is small enough to be ok to print just using a bridge fill.

The black outline needed some modification. How would it stay on the piece? The instructor suggested to make a slot in the chess piece that the wood could slide into and stay on.

This King piece has slightly wider parts than the original

However, I decided to scrap this idea. With the pegs inserted like that, it would be impossible to actually fit the wood onto the piece without breaking it. Wood is not malleable. Keeping the wood outline idea, I decided to not include any slots and to just use glue.

I then went on to start printing everything. I printed the outlines first on the laser cutter. I split the Queen and Rook pieces in half, because they won't be able to slide on the piece otherwise.

Printing on 3.27mm thick wood

I then went on to print the pieces. The lab was completely empty on the day I came in. I was able to use two printers all at once, which sped up my process significantly.

Printing on 2 printers at once

The Knight piece is the only piece that I used support material for. The piece has a heavy overhang that can't be split into pieces like the others.

Removing support material with a scalpel

The rest of the process was just assembly of all the parts. They fit together really tightly, so I had to hammer them down to fit. The King piece's cross was too small and delicate to be hammered, so instead I sanded the edges to make them smaller in order to fit. The Queen piece had cracked a little bit at the crown because I had a bad intersection with one of the pegs. This is barely noticeable so I decided to not re-print.