Show off your skills and solve real design problems
We are looking for designs for home décor products in ceramics. We will select multiple of winners with different designs instead of just a few.
The challenge: Design home décor ceramic pieces.
Where do you use ceramics? What type of products in ceramics would you like to see in the kitchen, for entertaining at dinner, in the bathroom or other rooms? How about the garden or the office? What would be cool to have completely customized? What would your friends like to see? Think home décor.
We create ceramics in designs that cannot be produced using conventional methods. We will keep this challenge as open as possible and want to see designer’s imagination and creativity.
Here are some product ideas:
1. Green wall tile
Challenge is to design a ceramic tile to cover a vertical wall and create a growing surface for plants. The structure would provide anchoring for the plants and allow nutrients to be delivered to the plant.
2. Kitchen back splash tile feature
A set of tiles to create functional and beautiful kitchen back splash. Could also work for bathroom tiles.
3. Ceramic lighting fixtures and shades
A ceramic lighting fixture or shade that can be made of sections that can be assembled and fired together, to form a larger piece. The design can comprise basic sections that can be 3D printed and mixed and matched to form hundreds of different designs. (More explanation needed?)
Other interesting objects that comes to mind: Mug, cup, bowl, lattice, sugar cup, egg cup, jar set, sushi set, sake cup, coasters, small snack bowl, cheese platter, small shot glasses, soap dish, toothbrush holder, flower vase, ceramic craft – horses, fishes etc., decorations, letter art, napkin rings, candle holder, photo frame, small jewelry box, flower pot for outside or small sculptures. Most items can also include raised or engraved text. The items are endless and we would like to see your creativity at work.
SIZE OF PIECES:
Minimum bounding box sum: X + Y + Z dimensions = 120 mm
Maximum bounding box sum: X + Y + Z dimensions = 400 mm
Minimum fill per cent > 5.0%
WALLS AND FEATURES:
For bounding box size 120 mm < X+Y+Z < 200 mm wall thickness ≥ 3.0 mm
For bounding box size 201mm < X+Y+Z < 300 mm wall thickness ≥ 4.0 mm
For bounding box size 301 mm < X+Y+Z < 400 mm wall thickness ≥ 6.0 mm
Maximum wall thickness 15.0 mm
Minimum feature size: 2.0 mm
Minimum radii for corners: 2.0 mm
Minimum feature opening size: 5.0 mm
Try to avoid thick to thin structures (necking)
Enclosed areas might not have glaze applied
Only one tone (color) will be used
Minimum wall thicknesses are a guide only for large pieces walls should be thicker
Glazing reduces the definition of features in the piece
Joining faces should have a radius of 2.0 mm
Thin struts cannot be attached to large unsupported sections
Large sections should be lower in the part
Cantilevered struts should be less than 20.0 mm long
No moving parts
Part must have an obvious base
For hollow parts the part must have an opening for powder removal that is at least 10.0 mm diameter
TEXT:
Minimum point size for raised text 36 point or 12.7 mm (0.5 inch)
Minimum point size for engraved text 60 point or 21.2 mm (0.83 inch)
Winning product designs chosen based on aesthetics, quality of design, manufacturability, and sales potential.
Multiple winners will be chosen!
The competition is open to everyone
Team entries are welcome
You can submit several designs
Only models uploaded to GrabCAD library will participate in the competition
Tag your model with “Figulo” to make it easier to find
Privately uploaded models will be made public after the competition deadline
Models can be done in any CAD software as long as a STEP or IGES files are also uploaded
Competition winners will be announced on this challenge site.
Only models uploaded through this challenge page will participate in the competition
We are awarding a larger number of designers with cash prizes of $50 and $100 + sales profit share
Winners will have the opportunity to share sales profit made from the sales of their modeled objects for 6 months after the challenge end date.
Winning product designs chosen based on aesthetics, quality of design, manufacturability, and sales potential by a joint jury of Figulo and GrabCAD and announced on the GrabCAD Challenges website.
Figulo is founded to produce ceramic pieces and objects for consumers, architects and artists. The Figulo production process uses patented Three Dimensional Printing technology developed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and advanced ceramic materials research and development to produce ceramic pieces.
The company leverages 16 years of experience in production of ceramics for industrial applications to enter the consumer, architectural and art markets.
More info: http://figulo.com
If you don't receive the email within an hour (and you've checked your Spam folder), email us as confirmation@grabcad.com.
86 comments
Danny Tasmakis about 12 years ago
This looks like a nice artist challenge, good chance for the non engineers to get into the act.
How about throwing in a printed ceramic piece of the winners entry as well?
Tomek F. about 12 years ago
I do not know what is
I do not want to accept the model of the tag in my library
candle from the candlestick -small fixes
Tomek F. about 12 years ago
still a question
or the second time I have to upload the model when it is already in the library
Forrest about 12 years ago
Hi. I work for Figulo and have a few additional comments. First, an unsupported spiral cannot be easily printed. Even if it does print, firing the piece (think of your object turning into near molten rock) would cause its collapse. Also, ceramic materials are generally very brittle. A long thin span is very, very difficult.
Karco about 12 years ago
I think this challenge is really interesting... There are here a lot of members what can´t collaborate with system of engineery and this is open really for many people.
I hope to be able for upload some designs.
Thanks for all ;)
Andreas Gkertsos about 12 years ago
one person can win one time or more???
Forrest about 12 years ago
We're so excited about these entries so far! Keep them coming!
A couple of reminders. Our maximum bounding box sum is 400 mm. If you're designing an object between 301 mm and 400 mm in bounding box sum, the minimum wall thickness is 6 mm. Please keep the design rules in mind when creating your objects.
Thank you and keep up the great work!
Forrest about 12 years ago
RE: Andreas Gkertsos
Yes, it is possible that a person could win more than one prize.
Tobias Mattsson about 12 years ago
How come Figulo's site dosnt work?
Forrest about 12 years ago
RE: Figulo Site
Our site will be up later, today, 28 February.
Gabe Blanchet about 12 years ago
Check it out: http://blog.grabcad.com/2012/02/figulos-ceramic-home-decor-objects-challenge-just-got-a-whole-lot-sweeter/
Sönke Dierks about 12 years ago
@ andy jeffery:
which kind of ceramics do we use? is it possible to use translucent ceramics?
Forrest about 12 years ago
Wow!
The uploads just keep coming and they are amazing! To clarify a couple of things, yes, a person could possibly win more than one prize; another thing to keep in mind: is my design appropriate in ceramics? Often, designs originally conceived for metal, wood, or plastic are appropriate; in other instances, slight adjustments to the model can make them much more executable (and attractive) as ceramic objects.
Please keep up all the great work!
Flaviano Crespi about 12 years ago
03.01.2012 11.17 hours
Something does not work in the indexing of loaded models. The total amount of models increases, but are not listed on the page of the challenge despite their tag "figulo".
All this happened after the last maintenance of the site!
Flaviano Crespi about 12 years ago
12:26
Now there are, but do not respect the temporal order of introduction, the latest models are not loaded on top of the list but about in the bottom
Forrest about 12 years ago
Yes. Something odd is going on. Previously, the newest submissions would appear at the top of the first page of submissions. Hopefully, this functionality will be restored.
Hevi about 12 years ago
Just asking... what is the difference between $50 and $100 winner? ;) Who will get which prize?
Forrest about 12 years ago
The objects will be critiqued and evaluated on artistic merit, printing viability, design, and sales potential. The prize categories are in two tiers - the $100 prizes for top tier objects, as judge by the jury. Each and every object will be discussed individually and in the context of the other submissions.
Doug Davey about 12 years ago
It seems to me that the descriptions play a big roll in some of the design and that the presented design (even though valuable) may not end up as the final product. However it was the design or concept that is the seed of the end product. How will that designer benefit?
Forrest about 12 years ago
RE: Doug Davey
The submitted designs are what are being juried.
Manolis Theofilos about 12 years ago
The the minimum or maximum bounding box sum must be 120 to 400 mm,
this is the sum of X+Y+Z dimensions
So a part can't be 300mm in X and 190 in Y axis at the same time?
Forrest about 12 years ago
That's right, the maximum building box sum, X + Y + Z, cannot be greater than 400 mm. This is a practical limit dictated by our printer's build area and our material handling processes.
Forrest about 12 years ago
Figulo is so, so excited to have over 200 (!) entries into this competition. The GrabCAD community has already exceeded our expectations. Wow. With 10 days to go, we can't believe all the amazing designs and can't wait to see what else comes in.
Today, I've got a couple of general comments based on some of the entries over the past few days. First, ceramic materials are quite brittle. They don't bend or flex. They either support a given weight or fail without warning. When in doubt, it is always much better to over-build a structural feature. Second, very small surface details or features, say those less than 2 mm, are often lost in the glazing process. Holes fill in, bumps and ridges are smoothed out. So, in order for a decorative feature to exhibit itself, one must often over emphasize it in the unglazed original.
Brad Pitcher about 12 years ago
Thanks for the comments, Forrest. Can you say specifically how thick the layer of glaze will be?
Aaron about 12 years ago
Does the glazing provide as much strength as the ceramic itself? For example, does a 1.5mm wall with .5mm of glazing have the same strength as a 2mm unglazed wall?
Forrest about 12 years ago
We don't measure the thickness of our glaze. It varies from piece to piece; even on the same piece, it can vary. Glaze does improve overall strength, but not as much as the overall ceramic thickness. Think of glaze as glass.
Flaviano Crespi about 12 years ago
Hello Forrest, can you tell us about the colors?
I guess the white is the standard, you can use other colors?
If yes, for the same object, only one color or multiple colors applied before glazing?
Thanks for the answer.
Forrest about 12 years ago
RE: Colors
We're currently conducting colored glaze trials. We're exploring the full spectrum. Generally, we like to apply one color per object, but with a compelling design, multiple colors of glaze on a single object would be considered, certainly.
Doug Davey about 12 years ago
I do not know, but I think this is the very best of good design Nautilus Flower pot and jug. We (I) would love to have this insight when designing.
Forrest about 12 years ago
Hey, all.
4+ days to go and it looks like we'll hit 300+ entries! This is SO exciting. Now, the hard part will be for the judges to pick all the winners!
Tobias Mattsson about 12 years ago
That will be the fun part. :)
Maria about 12 years ago
whats the deadline date and time?
Tobias Mattsson about 12 years ago
Read at the top right of this site. it says Deadline: 3 days.
That meens that its 3 days left until the challenge is over.
engineer about 12 years ago
288, come on 12 entries and we will get a record!
Forrest about 12 years ago
Yeah!
I just KNOW you all can break 300! Let's go for 350 entries!!! We want those judges to make some difficult decisions!
Forrest about 12 years ago
300 and counting!!!!!
Forrest about 12 years ago
Whoa! 330! We're gonna do it. We're gonna break 350, I just know it!
Andreas Gkertsos about 12 years ago
I think that you'll have a lot of work to do with the entries here:) 350 :)
Kaspar Kiis about 12 years ago
The challenge has ended with the record number of entries. Thank you to all the participants. Before we start picking the winners, can everybody please make sure they have their entry listed on the challenge page.
Doug Davey about 12 years ago
The most important aspect of this challenge is the benefit the company has for so little effort. I would love to know how long it would have taken then to get the quality and quantity of designs that they have here. Also how much would it have cost to get 341 designs?
This is what other companies need to see and understand
Forrest about 12 years ago
This is great! We're really psyched to have all of the entrants as part of our growing community. That's why Figulo and GrabCAD are interested in working together. Sure, we may get some great designs and all make money, but, as cliche as it sounds, most important to Figulo is reaching out to users and designers to make exciting work together.
Doug Davey about 12 years ago
Forrest ..... I was not in any way making comment about what you are getting, I think it is great. What I wanted to point out was the great benefit companies can have by coming to GrabCad. I hope you will come back it was great fun and that not to even speak about the great work that we all got to witness. As a designer (mechanical designer) I was uplifted by the creativity of GrabCad er’s
Ryan Burgess about 12 years ago
when do you think the winners will be announced?
Kaspar Kiis about 12 years ago
As you might have seen, this is the challenge with the most entries in GrabCAD. The jury is currently working on the results and will be able to give you an update shortly.
Andy Jeffery about 12 years ago
Thank you all for participating in our Ceramics Home Decor objects challenge. The number and quality of entries greatly exceeded our expectation and we are looking forward to making the winning entries.
Aaron about 12 years ago
I can't imagine what kind of task it is to judge 349 white objects. Yes, some are in color, but still... I guess it's a ton of fun for Figulo.
Tobias Mattsson about 12 years ago
How are the Jury's work proceding?
Nuno Felix about 12 years ago
Any idea on the day to announce the results?
Kaspar Kiis about 12 years ago
We will announce the results in few days, latest by the end of this week.Thank you all for being patient.
Blair Dixon about 12 years ago
Can't wait to see what the winning designs are.
Andreas Gkertsos almost 12 years ago
We're waiting for the results:)
Firas Alabidi almost 12 years ago
The suspense is killing me :)
Kaspar Kiis almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to all the participants!
Sudhir Gill almost 12 years ago
Thanx Kaspar Kiis
Andreas Gkertsos almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to all of you!!
Tomek F. almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to the winners
Branko Stokuca almost 12 years ago
Thank you people.
Oliver Palmer almost 12 years ago
Thank you all!
engineer almost 12 years ago
Thanks to all!
Dizingof almost 12 years ago
Thank you Figulo !
Sudhir Gill almost 12 years ago
Thanks to all.. :D
Doug Davey almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to the winners
Tomas almost 12 years ago
Thank You All! :)
Nuno Felix almost 12 years ago
were the $50 prizes awarded also?
johnathan almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to everyone
CHRISTIAAN almost 12 years ago
Nice one guys !!
Kaspar Kiis almost 12 years ago
@Nuno as Figulo was so satisfied with the results they decided to change 50 USD prizes to 100 USD.
Nuno Felix almost 12 years ago
Damm I lost again!! ;)
Greg Hynd almost 12 years ago
Congrats to all the winners! Figulo, I trust none of the other designs will be used by you as they didnt win?
Flaviano Crespi almost 12 years ago
Good question Greg!, I congratulate the winners and I would be curious also to know the reply.
Hugo almost 12 years ago
Congratulations to all! And thanks to everyone!
Hardi Meybaum almost 12 years ago
Yes Figulo does not have rights to use the content that they did not select as a winner.
Tomek F. almost 12 years ago
a satisfactory Hardi@
but how to control?
Hardi Meybaum almost 12 years ago
I think Figulo is a Company that cares about their reputation. GrabCAD has a very big and vibrant community and a reasonable Company will not want to make that kind of mistake.
I personally know the people at Figulo and they are very ethical business people, so you should not be worried.
Tomek F. almost 12 years ago
especially being from different parts of the world
Tomek F. almost 12 years ago
It is true that by publishing the GRABCAD take some risks.
Marius Strydom almost 12 years ago
Great challenge can not believe that two of my designs won 100USD.
It would be nice if GrabCAD can do more of this type of challenges.
@ Figulo Please can you guys upload some pics of the winning Ceramic Pots etc. when in production.
Thanks again for the great Competition hope you guys do something like this again in the future.
;)
PHILLIP COLE almost 12 years ago
why was my model not considered for the figulo challenge?
Kaspar Kiis almost 12 years ago
We have announced the $50 winners round. Congratulations and thank you to everybody!
Leonardo Alves almost 12 years ago
Obrigado, gostei da experiência, espero participar de outras competições que virão, e que a dia eu possa aperfeiçoar minhas técnicas e postar grandes modelos.
Ramses Chavez almost 12 years ago
thank you for the honor of having chosen 3 of my designs, was a great challenge
Dizingof almost 12 years ago
Thank you GrabCAD & Figulo - i got the $100 winning price by PayPal.
Looking forward to seeing how my model does in the real world with consumers.
Cheers
Nick Hampton over 11 years ago
Did anyone recieve word on the profit share yet?
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