The balancing project is a wooden base, brass balance and acrylic frame. The acrylic is able to hold a picture within it and display it in an interesting fashion. The brass balance is capable of balancing the acrylic freely on top of the wooden base.

The design I had chosen was made to hold a picture in. The simple design and choice of colours means that it is suitable for any environment. It is able to carry out its major function and purpose which are to hold a picture in an interesting way and allow for the balance to turn freely.

Although it was able to spin freely on two occasions the weights of the balance have caught the edge of the base of my design which forces me to conclude that to improve the turning and spinning capabilities of my balance I must lower the large curves which have caused the problem.

Further more from feedback received about the way in which the fingers have been badly cut, to improve it I would have a look at both the CNC machine used to see if there had been an offset and most likely recopy the second acrylic half there for removing any problem that the first copy had presented of being 2 mm to large.

It is however robust and will not shatter if dropped this is because of a small change in design instead of making the fingers separate they are engraved and therefore can be seen but lose none of their resistance by bringing one solid object still.

Another ergonomic is that the edges have been rounded as to not be sharp making it less of a hazard when either spinning or photo changing. The screw used to hold the two halves together are made of plastic which means that they will not shatter if over tightened.

I have learnt how to weld metal together which opens new possibilities for my future projects. Due to metal work being an important part of design and technology as it creates a strong bond between two metals by fusing them together. Not only this but we have learnt how to rout, which means that I can add small detail to my projects such as in this one where the base has been routed to remove the objects sharp edges and create a good quality finish.

I have also learnt how to tap and die this new form of connecting pieces together but still being able to undo them again afterwards making it a strong bond that is still removable allowing for the piece to be adjusted or changed. This is an important requirement in many designs and skill to know how to create. I have also learnt how to evenly coat metal to make it rust proof. The coat is even and quickly done making it the most efficient technique.

If redoing this project I would improve the quality of my CNCing of my acrylic as a small human error caused the work to be mal cut. Another improvement that could be made to the project would be to reduce the height of the big curves on the base as they caused the balls to have a lower ability to turn and move freely but by lowering it this will increase time of spinning, ease of use and freedom of movement.