Bergen - Arduwatch Design

I am a fan of tiny portable handhelds, and one if the coolest and smallest, is the Arduboy, a 1-bit miniature game system. It’s the size of a credit card and features this impossibly crisp display. I bought a Arduboy a long time ago and still enjoy playing around with it today. I have also been making mock Arduboy game graphics for a years and I guess I saw this project as a chance to combine a number of new skills and interests with some legacy designs and assets to see what would come of it.

The Arduwatch is an imagined “fantasy” product design that combines the screen and internals of an Arduboy with the form factor of a wristwatch. The Arduboy’s form factor and further reduced by eliminating all but the systems directional buttons. I imagined different games and applications that could work with this reduced control set.

As an aspiring watch designer, my hope is this design would resonate both with vintage tech and a watch enthusiasts alike.

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Arduwatch - Brights Line - Slime and Pink

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Arduwatch - Black (Brights), White (Naturals)

When the design was complete, I started to play around with different colourways. The Naturals Line features muted Autumn and Winter tones inspired by nature. The Brights Line is about 90’s toys and youthful energy. Each palette combo pairs beautifully with the super sharp high contrast Arduboy display.

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Arduwatch - Green Detail - BC’s Quest for Tires.

This design was modelled using a combination of Fusion 360 and Cinema4D. These images were rendered using Adobe Substance Stager. I prefer Fusion’s geometry for building solid surfaces but I am more familiar with Cinema’s interface and toolkit for any finessing that may need to be done. Cinema also seemed to be the logical choice when it came to creating a flexible strap (one can only avoid the beginner’s modelling traps for so long). My computer is not really powerful enough to handle Substance’s requirements and “too much” model geometry causes some very glitchy behaviour. This is not the end of the world, I can still concentrate on building better, more viable models, though the output quality may need to be adjusted.

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Arduwatch - Naturals Line

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Orange Detail - Casio Homage LCD

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Pink Detail - Tamawatchi

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Arduwatch - Brights Line

I hope you enjoyed having a look at this Arduwatch design. I had a great time with this concept and I might even revisit it again another time. Do you have an Arduboy? Would you wear an Arduwatch? Do you recognize any of the games on the watches? What games would you add? Any colour combos? Let me know in the comments below!

Book Box - Mini Outdoor Community Libraries

I was first inspired to create an outdoor library kiosk one afternoon back last summer while going for a walk around my neighbourhood. I stumbled upon a house that had a “tiny library” box in their front yard. I always like to take a peek into these libraries whenever I run across one. It then dawned on me that I had never seen a standardized/manufactured example of one of these boxes so after some confirmation on Google that these were not commonly available, I set out to create my own design.

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Book Box features an LED light box to welcome users and to provide any desired information.

Book Box are enclosed steel shelving structures design to hold books safely in a variety of weather conditions. These kiosks are most ideal for public spaces such as parks, community centres, plazas, schools, walking neighbourhoods. Rolling shutters can be used to securely close the unit in after hours or extreme weather conditions.

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Book Box has shutters that can be used in after hours and bad weather scenarios.

This design was created using Autodesk’s Fusion 360 software under their Hobbyist license. This license gives a user near unfettered access to the software and is highly recommended to anyone who might want to dip their toes into the manufacturing space with a minimum amount of spend or effort.

Personally, I really dig the surreal aspects of bringing something novel and foreign into the world. With my current toolkit, moving from inspiration to representation is easier and faster than ever.

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Would you like a Book Box in your area? Where would you put them? What opportunities for design improvement can you see? Any concerns? Please leave a comment below and let’s have a discussion about this.

Cat Pod - Cat Shelter Design

I love cats, so every few months I try to think of a project for them. I have designed a couple of different play structures and a cat bed so far. Today, I introduce Cat Pods, made from 4mm thick paperboard in a variety of different colourways.

Learning 3D is helping me to design objects that would have been practically impossible to illustrate or fully conceive using only 2D tools. Building out the cross-sections that make up the shape of this pod enclosure involved several back and forths between my 2D and 3D tools.

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Optional cat ears can be added for charm.

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The shelter keeps your kitty safe from attackers.

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Plenty of room at the front of the pod for an easy escape.

One of the benefits to building the pod out of heavy paperboard is how much stronger the pod is compared to a regular cardboard box. The pod maintains much of the smell and feel of a cardboard box while being more secure. If your cat is a loafer than this pod might be exactly what they need. While keeping you cat secure, the entrance to the pod is still large enough so an escape path is available if another kitty decides it is their turn to get in.

Another benefit to paperboard is the number of colours that can used to give the pods some exceptional flair. Below please consider the Allsorts and Goochee variants.

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Get psychedelic with the Allsorts colourway.

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Extra comfy kitty in the Goochee colourway.

The top of the pods can be removed if the pod needs cleaning or you kitty doesn’t like to be so snug. Other top shapes and complimentary colours could be developed to further increase the look and flexibility of these units.

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Top of the pod can be removed for easy cleaning and variety.

If you have a cat, do you think they would use and enjoy a Cat Pod? What colours would you like to see next? Any other ideas as to how I might enhance this design? I am always exploring designs and will eventually return to older ones when I have new skills or information to consider.

Thanks for joining me and feel free to leave a comment below!

Commodore 65 - Laptop Design - 65-LT

I was approached by a company back in 2010 to help develop a portable computer in the spirit of the Commodore 65. While I wish the experience had been more positive, I ultimately left the team and took my design with me. Now, over 10 years later, I finally have the 3D modelling skills to more fully flush out some of my old designs. The 65-LT is a love letter to the Commodore 64C design era.

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As this is a design from over 10 years ago some of the modern port standards are a little out of date.

I always loved my Commodore 64C. I grew up with the breadbin like most kids, but I liked the refresh even if it wasn’t much of a value proposition. Ultimately for me, it was a last hurrah for the mighty machine. The design sensibilities also lent themselves to a cool laptop aesthetic.

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Keyboard is the hybrid of all the Commodore keyboards of the era and beyond.

I looked at all the keyboards Commodore developed from the C64-C era onward, including the PC laptops Commodore released. I feel the layout represents the best balance between legacy and function.

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Right side ports.

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Left side ports.

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65-LT - Case closed.

I would love to continue to develop this one. Nowadays it would be pretty easy to create an authentic yet modern C64/65 experience with a Raspberry Pi or a MiSTer board. Plastic injection molds are not exactly cheap but it sure would be cool to have a modern and fully portable machine dedicated to the experience.

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Gaming in the home office.

Would you be interested in one of these machines? If there is anyone out there in a position to discuss further development on this machine I am interested in hearing from you. In any case, I am very excited that I was finally able to show of the design in full. Please let me know what you think in the comments below!

Commodore PET Keyboard Design

I mentioned in a previous post, that my high school Computer Science teacher lugged his old PET machine to out school back in 1992 and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It’s easy to forget that without the ubiquity of the internet, the world was full of secret wonders. Even though I have grown up with a Commodore 64, I had never laid eyes on the psychedelic wonder that was the PET.

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Emulating the worst of all worlds.

I always loved the colours of the PETs original chicklet keyboard and thought it would be interesting to recreate the typing experience for a modern audience. I made a 2D design back in 2012 but have only recently gained the 3D chops to be able to render out the idea more fully. I posted these to a PET Facebook group a while back and two factions quickly rose up. One faction telling me this must be made, the other telling me this must NOT be made. In any case, I get the impression that a nice 3D render is good at eliciting an emotional response.

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Probably best as a render.

Now that I have a basic grasp of 3D, I am looking forward to transforming some of my old 2D designs into the 3D space. While I mostly view this keyboard as a joke, part of me wishes it could be real. Imagine firing up VICE and reliving that finger strain or putting a Pi Zero in the case and using it as a stand-alone computer. Let me know what you think. Would you rock one of these?

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Original 2012 2D design

Bergen Watches - New Vintage Chronograph Design WIP

I am pleased to present my latest New Vintage Chronograph watch design. I am very happy how this design turned out. This is also the first example of a design that I have brought into the third dimension with Cinema4D. I am new to C4D and basically 3D in general, but the individual elements of watches are made up of basic enough shapes which allowed me to learn the software and produce these renders in 5 days of spare time. These 3D renders allow the viewer a better representation of the overall shape and feel of the design.

The Bergen NV Chrono features the following:
- 316L Stainless Steel case construction
- 40mm diameter case (42mm with crown)
- Seagull ST19 movement
- Double-domed Sapphire
- 20mm strap size
- 46mm lug-to-lug
- 11.5mm thickness (hopefully)

Great proportions and overall legibility.

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Side view - “B” mark on crown.

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Display case showing off the ST19 movement.

Everything on this watch including all fonts and styling is completely scratch built. I find it a bit annoying when I see very expensive watches using off-the -shelf type-styles. The hope is that with each successive design I will begin to further hone in on my brand’s DNA.

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Lume shot.

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Close up of the dial.

Below you can see the design roadmap. Before I started learning C4D, this would have had to be considered a complete design. Now that I am beginning to gain my own 3D skills, I will be in a better position to show concepts more fully, both to the general audience and to myself. I look forward to have more time to play around with different materials and finishes and ultimate really “sell the design”. This first attempt has been an amazing growth experience for me personally.

If you like what you see, please consider leaving a like and a comment below. I am open to hearing any thoughts you may have.

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