An i m p o s s i b l e dream

An i m p o s s i b l e dream?

Stephen Bottomley, a student at the Royal College of Arts in London, UK, turned to Delcam software to create a “mathematically impossible” design for his entry into a College competition sponsored by the Royal Mint. The design is based on a Mobius ring, a shape having a single surface with a constant depth. This shape is normally created by taking a strip of paper and twisting it before joining the two ends, but Stephen wanted to make his design in metal.

The basic shape had already been created with another software package but had to be re-created in PowerSHAPE because its mathematical definition could not be translated with IGES. The text was wrapped around the ring’s surface with CopyCAD. This took an approximate size for the lettering and automatically scaled it to match exactly around the ring.

A physical model was generated from the CAD model with a 3D Systems SLA-35000 stereo lithography machine. A rubber mould was made from the prototype and wax moldings produced for the MCP Equipment Group to make the finished castings by the lost wax method. This combination of high-technology equipment was very appropriate as the inspiration for the design had come from the futuristic film “2001 – a space odyssey”.