Making a Game Box [Tim's Racer]

This is a "Game Box" to contain the components for a little race game.

The electronics are made with Arduino.

The case designed with AUTODESK TINKRCAD.

The game uses an OLED Display Module, which is not supported by Circuits, so I will do a test circuit for the button pad that needs to be fabricated.

Basically you can just copy the finished Project in Tinkercad, export the Items and print them on you 3D Printer.

What This Instruction is about, is how I used Tinkercad to make this Box for my Game.

Hopefully by showing you how it was done will give any newcomer to Tinkercad the skills to make there own project.

There is a video of me trying to play the game at the end of the Instruction.

• 3D Printer to print your results.
• Arduino NANO v3.3
• OLED Display, 1.3 inch, I2C interface, 128 x 64 pixels.
• KY-006 passive buzzer module
• Four Button Keypad. This is not an off-the-shelf item. It will need to be fabricated. Here are the GERBER files.
• 2.54mm Dupont Kit. Male and Female connectors and cables. Or you can get made up cables.
• Cable. I use Four and Three Way 26 awg JR Servo Cable with my projects. I find this type is good for colour coding, especially wen using I2C.
• M2.7 x 6mm long self tapping screws.
• UV Resin/Glue. (clear)
• General hobbyist tool kit with soldering iron.

This is the first time I have made a project with Tinkercad.

You can see from the main page, for this project I have designed some parts for this project.

Tinkercad has many pre-defined parts that can be used, when creating your own 3d Design.

Also there is a big library of projects other people have shared on Tinkercad that you can use and modify to make your project.

On the Left of the Main Page you can chose to do "3D Designs", "Circuits", "Codeblocks" or "Lessons".

The main part of this instruction will be 3D Design, I will do a small example of Circuits.

The others on the left are not really relevant to this project. (well may be I should make this into a lesson at some time)

With all project some planning is needed.

The 3D Design is a box to house the components used to make the game. So the first things that we should have is, 3D Models of the components we are going to use.

Having actual 3D models of the items that are being used in your project, gives you a visual representation in the projects model ensuring that the items will fit in the project.

There are two places to look. In the Shapes library of the 3D Design Editor or the Gallery accessed from the Home Page.

When you start a New Design, you start in the Editor Window.

If we click the Group Box, usually when entering the editor for the first time it will be set to "Basic Shapes"

We can chose from a list of "Categories", each category has groups of similar types of shape.

I will com back to "Your Creations" and "Favourites" later.

Lets choose "Electronics" as that is the type of thing we are looking for.

After choosing "Electronics" we have a list of electrical components we can choose, another Group Box will also appear, you can use this to find similar types in this group.

The window may not be able to show all items in this group, there is also a button at the bottom to show more.

Note! At this point if we can find an item in the "Electronics" Shapes Library, we will be able to use it in "Circuits"

If the Item we are looking for is not here the the next place to look is the Gallery on the Home Page

Click the link to the "Gallery" at the top of the Home Page.

When in the "Gallery" page, we have a choice of what type of "Tinkercad" we are looking for, "Designs", "Circuits" and "Codeblocks".

We are looking for a Design so make sure the "Designs" button is selected.

We want to narrow down what is listed in the "Gallery", we can do a search, the Search Button is the "magnifying glass icon" shown in the top right of the page.

Click this to start our search.

When on the search page we still have a button to switch what type of "Tinkercad" we are looking for.

If you are doing your own project and looking for an item you have, then leave the choice as "Designs", then type words to describe what you are looking for in the "Text Box" and click "Search Icon". This will list projects and items people have made. Keep changing the words to find what you want, or similar. You may find something similar that you can edit.

For this project it is simpler, we can use the button to switch what type of "Tinkercad" we are looking for.

We change it to "People"

Switch what type of "Tinkercad" we are looking for to "People"

Then type my name "Tim Jackson" in the "Search Box" and click the "Search Icon"

This will take you to my projects.

Here you can copy any of my items to use.

For the next few Steps, I will pick someone elses projects/items. Selecting my own items dose not give me the same options you get from choosing items form another account.

This how to copy an/a Item/Project from the gallery to use in your own project.

I am going to use the Arduino NANO as an example.

Once you have found an item you wish to use and selected it, you will be given details about it.

You can tell if it is an original by looking at the details at the bottom. If it is not an original, it will show what that design was made from. Clicking on the icon of the item at the bottom of the page will take you to the previous version of the Item.

It could be a copy of a copy of a copy............. keep going to find the original or chose the one that suits your purpose.

Once you have the version you want click the "Copy and Tinker" button.

This will copy the project/item to your account and take you to the editing page.

This Item/Project is now in your "3D Designs" collection. If you want to use it as an Item in one of your project, the next step is to add it to "Your Creations"

I suppose what I call an "Item" is a "Creation"

Left Mouse button:

• Single Click on an Item - Selects the Item. Holding the Sift-Key at the same time enables you to Select/De-Select more items.
• Click and Drag on an Item - Selects and Moves the item.
• Click and Drag on Nothing - Creates a Selection Box. Anything touching the inside of the box is Selected. Dragging left or Right convention does not apply.

Right Mouse Button:

• Click and Drag - 3D orbit.

Middle Mouse Button:

• Click and Drag - Moves View window Up, Down, Left and Right.

Mouse Wheel:

• Roll - Zoom In and Out. It Zooms In and Out the centre of the screen. So if you want to Zoom to a particular area, move that area to the centre of the screen first.

There is a Navigation Cube. This can be rotated with the Left Mouse Button, also clicking the Faces, Edges and Direction Arrows will move to the corresponding view.

Down the left are buttons, pretty much self explanatory. I would say the the bottom button is best set to "Flat View (Orthographic)"

All "Perspective View" is good for, is taking pretty pictures of your project.

While in the "Editor Page" if we click the Group Box, usually when entering the editor it will be set to "Basic Shapes"

We can chose from the list "Your Creations"

Important! Any Item you want to use to create a "Basic Shape" must NOT be "locked".

Any Item that is "Locked" cannot be Moved, Copied or Deleted.

Locking/Unlocking can be done on any Item(s) that are selected in the small properties window when an Item(s) is/are selected.

To add/make a/an Creation/Item to/for "Your Creations", is as simple as selecting which Item(s) you want as a "Creation" and click the "Create Shape" button.

Basically, what ever you have selected in the editor that is not locked when you click the "Create Shape" button, will be made into a "Creation" and placed in "Your Creations".

After clicking the "Create Shape" button you will get a window with a preview of what you have selected.

If you are happy with the preview, give the Created Shape a Name, you can also give a Description of what you have created. There is also a place for adding Tags, separate each Tag with a comma, adding tags is what helps searching find the right item.

Something like the Arduino NANO has only one size, so checking the box for "Lock part size (prevent scale)" should be done.

Click the "Save Shap" button to add this shape to "Your Creations".

If doing my Project, add "Tim's Racer" from my Library to your Library.

Also the following from my Library and add them to "Your Creations".

• Arduino NANO 3.3 No Pins.
• Cheep Buzzer Module.
• OLED 1.3 inch 128x64 I2C.
• Four Button Pad.
• Header Pin 2.54mm (Support Only).
• Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin Only).
• DuPont 2.54mm Connector.
• Self_Tap_M1.7x06.
• M2 Washer 6mm Dia. 1mm Thk.

At this stage we should have all the 3D Models of the components being used in this Project.

They should all be accessible from "Your Creations"

You may wonder why I have Header Pin in two separate components, I have the Pin and the Support as separated in "Your Creations".

This is because sometimes I want to change the colour of the support, once you have created a Shape/Item in "Your Creations", if you use it and change the colour, you will change the colour of the whole Shape/Item. I just want to change the colour of the Header Support, so I can colour-code my Header Pins.

Using an Arduino NANO with no pins lets me create custom Boards with only the pins we need.

As all the other components are finished 3D Models of the components we will be using, we can start our project by making our custom Arduino NANO.

This is to show how to use shapes from "Your Creations" to make more complicated Items.

From the "Home Page"

• Click "Create new design" button.
• Once in the Editing Window I prefer to star in the Top View, Use the Navigation Cube in top left of the window.
• Also as I have mentioned, make sure the View is set to "Flat View (Orthographic)", the lower button on the left.
• On the right of the edit window. Switch to "Your Creations"
• Select "Arduino NANO v3.3 No Pins". You just need to left-click it, no need to hold the mouse button.
• Move you mouse over the work area, you will see a transparent version of it. Move to where you want to place it and click you left mouse button again. This places a copy in your work area.
• Do the same for the one "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and one "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)".

First we want to put the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)" together.

With most parts that you make, you will probably use the snap function of the "Grid". The "Grid" has several settings, you can "Edit" the "Grid" to have it in Metric or Imperial Units.

Once changed to your preferred units, you can set the "Snap Grid" distance of the grid or turn snap off.

I have one issue here. There is no 1/10th" (Tenth of an inch) 2.54mm. This is a common header size, it is also the Breadboard grid size in Circuits.

So lets look at the "Align" Tool.

Select both the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)"

With two Items selected the "Align" Tool becomes active.

Click the "Align" Tool, the square "Nodes (black square boxes)" disappear and new circle "Nodes (black filled circles)" appear.

If you hover your mouse over these pointers, you will see a preview of how the two Items will be aligned.

Click the middle pointer vertically then the middle pointer horizontally.

Another Tool is the "Ruler Tool"

When ever you select an Item it will have certain properties you can change (or not).

If you select an Item, it will show "Nodes (square boxes)" , clicking or hovering over these "Nodes" will show the dimensions of the Item, clicking the text for the size will allow you to change the size (or not).

Currently our Items are not sizeable, if you try to do this a Purple outline will be shown, to state that these Items are a fixed size and are not scale able. (this should have been set in the properties of the Item in "Your Creations")

Our "Header" is currently aligned viewed from the Top. To align the "Header Pin" Vertically I am going to use the "Ruler Tool". This looks like a ruler square 'L' shape icon near the top right of the window.

Zoom out so that you can see your work area. Click the "Ruler Tool" then move your mouse to where you want to set the "Origin" of the Ruler. Your mouse pointer will look like an 'L' with a red circle, the centre of the red circle is the "Origin". Click on the point where you want it, a Large 'L' shaped ruler will appear.

The "Ruler" has two modes. "Use Midpoint" and "Use End point"

If when you move your mouse over the "Properties" icon of the Ruler. It will show one of the above modes.

If it says "Use Midpoint" it is in "Use End point" mode, and vice versa. If it says "Use Midpoint", it is asking: Do you want to put it into "Use Midpoint" mode.

As this is a small Project, I will keep this Ruler and use it for the "Origin" for the whole of this project.

If you change your mind about where you want the Ruler, you can grab the Ruler at its origin and drag it to where you want. Or you can just select the "Ruler Tool" and start all over.

It would be nice if you could have more than one and turn them on and off.

I will com back to the Ruler, but first I also want to set some boundaries.

I will be working in Millimetres (mm) from now on.

We need to have some idea of the size of this Box we are making.

• On the right of the window, change from "Your Creations" to "Basic Shapes"
• Select the striped looking box.
• Move your mouse close to the origin of the ruler.
• Click to place the "Box" on your "Work Plain". When placing new Items on your Work Plane, always do it while in the Top View or the 3D looking type of View. If you do it in a Side View, you have no control where on the Work Plane it lands.

You will se that this Item has no restraints, it has a Blue Outline when selected, this means that it's dimensions can be edited.

Also you will see two types of dimensions. Some with a Green Shade. Some with A Blue Shade.

• Blue Shade belong to the Item.
• Green Shade are distances from the Ruler Origin.

Currently the Ruler should be in "Use End point" mode, if you move you mouse over the Ruler Properties Icon, it should say the opposite.

We want to move the Box to the Origin of the Ruler, we can do this in two ways.

• Drag the bottom left "Node" of the box to the "Origin" of the Ruler.
• Change the Green Shaded Dimensions to a value of '0' (zero).

Next we want to change the overall size of the Box. This is done by changing the values of the Blue Shade Dimensions.

• Change the Width (as viewed) to 76mm.
• Change the Depth (as viewed) to 52mm.

Now I want to change the Hight of this box, we could do it from here, the two values show to the right of the Box are:

• The Height of the Box
• Distance the base of the box is from the Work Plane.

But to save on confusion, I preferer to set these values in a 3D type of view.

• Right click on nothing in the Edit Window and drag the work area to get a 3D type of view.
• Or use the Navigation Cube. Click Bottom-Right corner of the Navigation Cube.

When in a 3D type view it is much easier to distinguish which value belongs to which dimension. The '0.00' (zero) value are the Ruler Values, you don't see the Green Shade due to them being zero.

• Change the Height of the Box to 1.5mm, this is how thick I am going to make the floor of the "Game Box".

I currently have the Properties of this Shape as a "Hole". It will be changed. I will be editing this later and making it a "Solid". The reason I have it set like this, is because it shows it transparent (opaque), I just want it for reference at the moment.

Now that I have this Reference and Ruler, I can place the Arduino NANO in it's correct position and continue modifying the Arduino NANO.

Next step is to place the Arduino NANO in it's correct position inside the "Game Box".

When positioning an Item to it's correct position, it may be necessary to "Rotate" the Item.

• It is usually best to rotate an Item when viewing the Item in a Top View or a Side View. It is possible to "Rotate" an Item in a 3D type view, but it can get confusing.
• When you select an Item you will see an arced set of arrows at one end. (you will see al 3 axis in a 3D type view)
• Drag these arrows to rotate the Item, a protractor and value will appear to show you how far you have rotated the Item.
• If you want to edit the angle value you may have to rotate by dragging first if the angle value is hidden by one of the Items other Dimensions.

Move the Arduino to the position shown.

Tip

• If an Item is at the Ruler's '0' zero height, it can be difficult to see which dimension is the Ruler's Height value, there will be no Green Shaded Dimension.
• When an Item is selected there will be Cone above it, grab this Cone to move the Item in the Vertical Directions.
• May be best to to find it on a Side View. On a Side View it will look like a Triangle.

This is the actual position we want the Arduino NANO, so it can be Locked in place.

• Click the Lock Icon in the small Properties window for the Item.

When Locked, the Lock Icon will be Purple.

Also there will be Purple Outline around the Item when selected, not just when we try to resize it. This indicates nothing can be changed.

Back to the Header Pin.

Now that the "Ruler" has been added, we can set the height of the components of the "Header Pin".

• Switch to a 3D Type View and pan to the Header Pin and Pin Support.
• Set the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" to the height shown.
• Set the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)" to the height shown.

The "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)" are now relative to each other.

We can now group (Join) these two Items together.

• Select both the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)"
• Click the "Group" button, top left of the window. The icon looks like two Items merged together.

With the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Pin only)" and the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)" grouped together, they can be moved as one Item.

• Move the "Pin Header" to the location shown.

Note!

• As a project gets larger or has a lot of detail. some times when you "Group" lots of Items together, you may see the outline change to red. This is an indication the the server is working on the action requested and that state has not been saved yet.

Items can be Copied and Pasted in the conventional way. Ctrl+C and Ctrll+V.

Or use the Buttons Top Left of the Window.

Lets Copy and Paste the "Header Pin"

• Copy and Pate the "Header Pin" to the locations shown. Remember the "Align" Tool, also these Header pins Width and Depth are 2.54mm.

Tips

• When copying an Item, have the Item you have Copied Selected when you Past the New Item, This will place the new Item local to the Item you coped.
• If you use the "Align" Tool, make sure the "Arduino NANO" is Locked, this way only the Copied "Header Pin" will move.
• If Aligning with the Original "Header Pin", make sure that is locked also.
• When using the "Align" Tool, you can Align more than one Item at a time.
• Also you can actually Copy from one Project to another. Copy Item(s) using Ctrl+C, go to the "Home Page", Open a different Project and use Ctrl+P to Paste the Item(s) into the opened Project.

There are a few "Header Pins" to Copy. This is a good time to experiment with the "Align" Tool.

I like to Colour-Code the Header Pins of my Projects, this help me get it right when connecting things together.

To Edit/Change an Item it must be unlocked.

Currently if you select a "Header Pin" you are selecting a Group of Items.

If you where to to change the Colour of this "Group", using the "Change color, make solid" button in the Properties Window for the Shape.

• It would change the Colour of all Items in that "Group".

We only want to change the Colour of the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)" in that "Group".

To do this, we need to "Ungroup" the "Group".

• Select a "Header Pin" and click the "Ungroup" Button. This will "Ungroup" the "Group", but all the Items that where in the "Group" will still be selected.
• Select only the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)". I find it easiest to just click on nothing in the window then click the Header Support.
• Change the Colour of the "Header Pin 2.54mm (Support only)", using the "Change color, make solid" button in the Properties Window for the Shape.
• After changing the Colour, you can "Group" the two Item back together. Or you can leave it until you have changed the Colour of all the Supports.

Do this for all the "Pin Headers".

Tips

• You can select more than one Item to "Ungroup" at the same time.
• If you "Lock" what you don't want to alter, you can use the Drag a Box method to select Items.

For something like the "Custom Arduino NANO" I preferer to:

• Group each Pin and Pin Support individually first. This way if I wanted to Copy one later, I just come back to this stage later.
• I would then "Group" all the "Header Pins" together.
• Next I would "Group" the "Header Pins" Group with "Arduino NANO 3.3 No Pins".

If you do as I preferer above, or just "Group" all Pins, Pin Supports and the Arduino NANO together.

That finishes the "Custom Arduino NANO".

Hopefully this has covered a lot of the functions of Tinkercad, that will help you with your own Project.

The next Main Function to cover is the "Hole" a negative Item.

Before covering the "Hole" Item, I want to finish placing the components of this project.

On the right of the edit window. Switch to "Your Creations"

Select "Cheep Buzzer Module".

Place it in the position shown.

Once in place, "Lock" it.

On the right of the edit window. Switch to "Your Creations"

Select "DuPont 2.54mm Connector".

Place it in the position shown.

Once in place, "Lock" it.

Why have I added "DuPont 2.54mm Connector"?

Well as I mentioned, the reason for placing actual 3D Models of the Components into your Project, is to check things will fit.

Fitting the Connector, you can visually see there will be clearance for it and the cable.

On the right of the edit window. Switch to "Your Creations"

Select "OLED 1.3 inch 128x64 I2C".

Place it in the position shown.

Once in place, "Lock" it.

On the right of the edit window. Switch to "Your Creations"

Select "Four Button Pad".

Place it in the position shown.

Once in place, "Lock" it.

Adding Screws does make it look nice and is another visual check, but I would say; It's an option.

I have been caught out by not adding Screws, when it came to put things together.

The only downside is time and complexity.

• Time - Well this shows how much effort you have put into a Project.
• Complexity - I have made my Screws look realistic, this takes up processing time, The more Screws more processing. (you will know if a lot of processing is require if you see you Item get a red outline at times)

You could make screws that are basic, with no tread. This will give no issues.

Well now that all components are added and in position we can start making the actual "Game Box"

I could just change the Reference Item I made (floor) we have to a "Solid", then add four walls. but I want to show the use of the the "Hole" Item.

This "Game Box" is going to be an open top Box with a Lid, we will start with the Box.

So lets change the Reference Item into the box.

• Change the Reference Item Height. The Height of the box should be flush with the Face of the "OLED 1.3 inch 128x64 I2C"
• Change Reference Item from a "Hole" to a "Solid" by clicking on the "Change color, make solid" button in the Properties Window for the Shape.
• When you click the "Change color, make solid" button, you also have the option to chose a Colour. I have chosen Yellow as this is the colour of the Plastic Filament I am going to use to print it.

We now have a "Solid Box".

Before I continue with hollowing out the box, I should mention something about the "Hide" Property.

The is another Property in the Properties Window when an Item(s) are selected.

• It is the "Hide Selected" Property

This allows you "Hide" Items, so that you can see and work on others.

To see All the Items you have hidden, there is the "Show All" Button at the top of the Window.

We have a "Solid" Box at the moment, we want to hollow it out, so that we can put all the components in it.

Have your Items on the right of the window set to "Basic shapes"

The choice you can see on the right is a "Box" and a "Cylinder". The two you see shaded to represent "Hole".

This is not actually your only choice. Any "Shape" can be a "Hole".

So what we do first is make a "Shape" then turn it into a "Hole".

Lets explain what a "Hole" is:

• All "Shapes" have the Property of being a "Solid" or a "Hole" by selecting what you want in the Properties Window that appears when you select an Item.
• So any "Shape" can be a "Hole".
• If an Item with it's Property set to "Hole" is "Grouped" with an Item with it's Property set to "Solid", then whatever area was taken up by the Item with it's Property set to "Hole" will be removed from the Item with it's Property set to "Solid"

As I say it's an open box with a lid. The lid will be attached to the box with four screws. so some material of the current solid box will need to be left for the screws to fix into.

• Change your View to Top.
• From the "Basic shapes" select a "Red Box", the "Solid" "red" one. Not that it maters if you choose the "Hole" "Box", it's properties can be changed at any time.
• Place it over/inside the "Game Box" we have.
• Position and re-size the "Red Box" as shown.
• If you loose the "Red Box" inside the "Game Box", you can "Hide" the "Game Box", also "Hide" any other Items that obscures your view.
• Change the View to Front.
• The "Red Box" needs moving up so that it will leave a floor in the "Game Box". It is hard to see which dimension is the "Ruler" Dimension, you can use the "Move Node", in this View it looks like a triangle, you can drag the "Move Node" up to reveal the Green Shaded "Ruler" Dimension. You can then edit that Dimension to the correct value shown. (sometimes the "Move Node" can be at the other end)
• The "Red Box" needs to be higher than the "Game Box". You can drag the "Height Node" to increase the Height, or edit the value of the Blue Shaded Dimension.
• To check that that things look right, you can click the "Show All" Button and rotate the project around with the Right Mouse Button to view it in a 3D type View.

If we was to use the current "Red Box" to hollow out the "Game Box" there would be nothing for the Screws to screw into.

This can be remedied in two ways:

• Remove the inside of the "Game Box" with the "Red Box" and add some material back to take the Screws.
• Remove some of the "Red Box" so that when we use it to cut out the inside of the "Game Box", it leaves some material for the Screw to fix into.

I am going for the second option, I wan to show that any "Shape" can make a "Hole".

• Change to top view. You may want to Hide the "Game Box" (Yellow) and "Red Box".
• Switch the Properties of the Ruler, so that it is set to "Use Midpoint" Mode. When you move your mouse over the Properties Icon it should say the opposite.
• Add four solid "Cylinders" (Orange). One at each corner.
• Re-Size the four Cylinders as shown.
• Move them to the positions shown.
• They are 6mm diameter and flush with the edge of the "Game Box".
• Switch to 3D type View.
• Change the Height of the four "Orange Cylinders" to 60mm as show. These want to be longer than the height of the "Red Box".
• Turn the four "Orange Cylinders" Properties to "Hole".
• Click the "Show All" Button.
• Select the "Red Box" and all four cylinders that are now "Holes".
• Click the "Group" Button.
• Select Nothing, then select the "Game Box" (Yellow) and "Hide" it.

We now have a shape that if we change it's Properties to "Hole", we can use it to remove the inside of the "Game Box", leaving solid areas for the Screw to screw into.

We actually need holes for the M1.7 Screws to screw into. The size of the Hole the M1.7 Screw needs is 1.2mm diameter.

We need to create four more "Cylinders" like we have just done, but this time make the diameters 1.2mm.

Tip:

• There was a fast way to do this. If we had copied the four "Cylinders" that we made previously just before we changed the Properties to "Hole", we could Paste them now to create four more in the same place.
• We would just need to change the Diameter of the cylinders.

Put the new "Cylinders" 10mm lower than the previous ones, I like to put holes all the way through, it strengthens the plastic.

When you have created four new "Cylinders", with the new Diameter.

• Select the four "Cylinders" and the Red "Shape" and set there Properties to "Hole".

Now we can see what is going to be removed.

There is another "Hole" that is required, the Hole for the USB Plug. We may as well add this now.

This is just a matter of selecting a "Box" with "Hole" Properties from the "Basic Shapes" Collection on the right of the Window and position and re-size so that the USB Plug will fit onto the Arduino NANO. You should have enough experience now to do this without more Instruction.

Note!

• If you want to "Group" several "Holes" into one "Hole Shape". You have to change the Properties to "Solid" before "Grouping" them together, then change the Properties back to "Hole" after "Grouping".

Lets make a Hole.

• Click the "View All" Button.
• Select all the "Shapes" with the "Hole" Property and the "Game Box" (Yellow).
• Click the "Group" Button.

We should now have a "Game Box" that all the Components will fit into.

The next step is to add Supports for the Components to sit on, with Holes to secure them in place.

You should now have the skills to do the rest yourself.

This is just a matter of adding more "Cylinders", some with Properties "Solid", some with the Properties "Hole".

Tip

• It is sometimes helpful to change the properties of an Item to "Hole" for a time (making it opaque), so that you can see how things are fitting together. Remember to turn them back to "Solid" before "Grouping" with other Items.
• Also you can "Hide" Items you are not working on.

Add Supports for the Arduino NANO and the Buzzer, with Holes to secure them in place.

While I was adding the supports for the Arduino NANO, I noticed the two of the supports needed little notches cutting into them.

This is a good example why you should add the 3D models of your Components to your Project.

I think I have covered how to do most of the things need to make this "Game Box".

The "Text" on the front of the "Game Box" is just another type of "Shape" you can select from the "Basic Shapes" collection.

If you are doing this Project, you should have made a copy of the whole "Tim's Racer" Project. from my Library.

To see how I did the rest of it, you can break your copy apart.

• "Unlock" parts.
• "Ungroup" parts.

All we need to do now is print the finished parts.

To "Print" the parts, we need to "Export" them.

Note!

• If nothing is selected, when you "Export", the whole project will be exported.

Each "Part" needs to be "Exported" separately by selecting it. You will find in my Project the the Buttons are "Grouped" with the "Module", this will need "Unlocking" and "Ungrouping" to select just the Printed Part.

• Select the Item to be "Printed".
• Click the "Export" Button top right of the Window.
• A "Dialog Window" will appear, click the ".STL" Button.
• The "Server" will prepare an "STL Model" for Downloading.
• Depending on your browser, another "Dialog Window" or "Dialog Box" will appear for you to save the "STL File".
• Give the "File" a "Name" and Save the File to your preferred location.

Repeat this for the "Lid" and "Buttons"

The "Button Module" I have used for this project, is one I have made. It is not a standard Of-The-Shelf Item.

The reason for this:

• The Game Code uses Interrupts, to detect when a button is pressed.
• I wanted a "Button Module" that had De-Bounce Circuitry.
• Cheep Of-The-Shelf "Button Modules" don't have De-Bounce circuitry.
• The "Game" uses a "Display", this usually requires a lot of the memory space, so no room to use "Soft" De-Bounce Code.
• Using De-Bounce Code would slow the "Game".

I have done GERBER files so you can get one made.

BEEP BOOP has made a list of what file are supported by Instructables.

.gbr or .drl Files are not supported, so I ZIP'd up any files needed and put them on my Google Drive: Four_Button_Pad_Plot_Files.zip Better as a ZIP file any ways, you can use Zip files on most PCB manufacturers web sites.

There are many Instructables on how to get a PCB made.

Tinkercad is not just "3D Design", there is is also "Circuits".

With "Circuits" you can actually Emulate a Circuit.

Is I have mentioned, currently there is no support for Dot Matrix Displays, I'm sure they will eventually come, it would be nice to see the common pixel sizes like 84x48 and 128x64.

So for this example I have done a "Circuit" to check the "Four Button Pad" should you make one.

As like we did with the "3D Design" Project:

• From the "Home Page"
• Go to the "Gallery" and do a search for me.
• Instead of "3D Designs" switch to "Circuits".
• Copy "Tim's Four Button Pad Check" from my Library to your Library.

"Circuits" has three "Views" these "Views" can be accessed by clicking one of the three Buttons in the top right corner of the Window.

• "Circuit View" - Personally I would have called it the Assembly View, This is where you assemble all the Components and connect them together.
• "Schematic View" - Personally I would have called this the Circuit View. Any ways: Tam-A-toe / Tom-ate-a.
• "Component List" - Personally I would call this B.O.Q. (Bill Of Quantities), we I had a different name for the other two haha.

"Circuit View" is the place to add all the components you will be using.

These can be found on the right of the Window.

Just like "3D Design" it can be split into Collections of Components.

This is and Arduino "Circuit", so change the Collection to Arduino in "Starters".

In the Arduino Collection there are a few Starters to chose from, none are what we want, it is going to be a custom "Circuit".

• Choose the "Breadboard".

Using a "Breadboard" is what we would use if we where going to make a prototype of the "Circuit" in Real-Life.

By connecting all the Components to a "Breadboard" we will be able to make this Circuit in Real-Life just as we have made it here. If you have a "Breadboard Kit" of course.

All Components we add to the "Circuit View" have a "Properties Window" when selected.

• Components may have more than one "Properties", they can be changed while the Component is selected.

Change the Collection to "Basic". Then add the following components:

• 4 Resistors, set as 10k ohm.
• 4 ......................................and so on

Oh lets Make it easy, I asked you to Copy "Tim's Four Button Pad Check" from my Library to your Library. Lets do that. We are on a marathon as it is with this instruction.

Making connections is simple:

• Click on a "Terminal" of a component.
• Click on a "Terminal" of what you want to connect that Component to connect to.

To make a "Bend" in the connection:

• Double-Click mid-way along the connection. This creates a "Node".
• Drag the "Node" to where you want to place the bend.
• There are guide lines that appear to get vertical and horizontal connections.
• You can also create a bend while you are making a connection, just click where you want the bend before you finalise the connection.

Moving a Component will stay connected.

Placing a component onto a "Bread board" will make a connection automatically.

Move your mouse over a "Terminal" on a "Breadboard" will highlight which other "Terminals" that have the same connection.

To move a connection:

• Select the connection.
• Drag the "Node" to move.

Using my "Circuit", "Tim's Four Button Pad Check".

"Circuits" will Emulate the Circuit made in the "Circuit View".

• Click the "Start Simulation" Button, top right of the Window.
• This will Start the Simulation.
• Click a Button (Component) and an LED should light up.

Magic.

Wait its not Magic, I forgot about "Code".

• Click the "Code" to the left of the "Start Simulation" Button.
• This shows the "Code" for the Arduino that it is running.

If you have done something wrong the "Code" section has a Debugger.

• To use the Debugger, click on a Line Number to place a "Stop Point".

Click the "Schematic View" Button to see a Schematic of the Circuit.

The only option here is to Save it as a PDF.

I have to believe that this will change, it would be nice to have some Human Input here, to be able to move/arrange the Components here would make it better.

Click the "Component List" Button to see a list of the Components.

The only option here is to Save it as a CSV. (Comma Separated Values)

I thought it would make things look more professional if we where to add some Decals.

• Show which button is is which, for use with the Game's Menu.

I have done an Instruction: Add Decals to Plastic Prints Also DSO138 Oscilloscope Case.

The instruction shows how to make the Decals, but I thought it would be nice to have a starting point, something I could open with my Vector Graphics Program, (CorelDRAW / Inkscape) to show the size of the Box Lid.

This way when I design the Decals I can see how they will look and the size needed.

There is an SVG Export you can use.

• This is a special Export.
• It is Designed for Lasers.
• Lasers cut on a single Plane.
• So when you export an Item in "3D Design" as an SVG (Scalable Vector Graphic) It creates a flat drawing of an Item at a particular Plane.
• This Plane is the "Workplane" the "Grid" you see in the "3D Design" Window.
• What ever you want drawn in the SVG Export needs to pass through this Plane.

With a project like this, you don't want move things to pass through the "Workplane" just to get an SVG Export.

What I do is:

• Make a copy (Ctrl+C) of the Item I want to make an SVG of.
• Go to the "Home Page" of Tinkercad.
• Create a New Design.
• Past (Ctrl+V) the part into the New Design.
• Set my "View" to Front.
• Move the Item so that the "Workplane" is inside the Item.
• Any edge that passes through the "Work Plane" will be drawn in the SVG Export.

Note!

• In this example, the hole for the "OLED Display" has slopping sides.
• The "Hole" will be drawn where the edge of the slope passes the "Work Plane".

Once Exported you can edit the SVG in your preferred Vector Graphics Program.

I have attached my SVG.

To connect all the Components together we need to add some Cables and Connectors to them.

Arduino NANO:

• I have just put Header Pins on this.
• Only enough that is needed.
• Also colour coded them to help me when connecting thins together.

Cheep Buzzer:

• This came with Header Pins fitted.
• Only the outer two Pins are used.
• One Pin is Signal.
• One Pin Ground (GND).
• They need to be connected correctly.

Buzzer Cable:

• Because the Buzzer came with Header Pins already attached, a Cable with Connectors both ends is needed.

Four Button Pad:

• I have soldered Cables direct to this.
• I have fitted DuPont Connecters to the ends of the Cables.
• I have kept the Power Cables separate from the Signal Cables.

OLED Display:

• I have soldered Cables direct to this.
• I have fitted DuPont Connecters to the ends of the Cables.
• I have kept the Power Cables separate from the Signal Cables.

Power Cable:

• All Power is taken from the Arduino NANO.
• A Power Cable is needed to split the Power from the Arduino NANO to the other Components.
• The Power Cable has DuPont Connecters one end and Header Pins the other end.
• To insulate the soldered cables on the Header Pins, I use UV Resin. (Ultra Violate clear Nail Gloss)

Make all Cables overall length about 90mm.

I use Four and Three Way 26 awg JR Servo Wire with my projects. I find this type is good for colour coding, especially wen using I2C.

I have a DuPont Connector Kit that has a selection of different connectors.

Well you should know where every thing goes, we have placed it all in the "3D Design" in Tinkercad.

Here's a few photo's of my assembly.

I have done another ZIP file, It contains:

• Tims_Racer_2_NANO_new_BL.hex - This is a Hex File with the new Bootloader.
• Tims_Racer_2_NANO_no_BL.hex - This is a Hex File with the no Bootloader.
• Tims_Racer_2_NANO_old_BL.hex - This is a Hex File with the old Bootloader.
• There is a folder which contains XLoader. use this program to upload the HEX file to the Arduino.

HEX.zip

Run XLoader, it is a stand-alone program, no install is required.

• Browse to the HEX File.
• Choose ATmega328.
• Select the COM Port you are using.
• Baud Rate should be 115200.
• Click the Upload Button.

The HEX Files are also attached here.

Plug in a USB Cable to supply Power.

The Game starts with my splash screen, then changes to the Menu Screen.

1. This starts the game. You have to navigate the White Car between the other Cars on a Four Lane Motorway.
2. This takes to another screen where you can chose the Level of the Game.
3. This takes to another screen that tells you the rules. You can hit 10 Cars, then the game ends.
4. This takes to another screen that tells you the highest Score. The longer you don't hit Cars, the higher the Score you will get.

When you have hit 10 Cars the Game ends, a Game End screen will appear showing how you did.

Good Luck, Ha Ha.

A video of the game.

The flicking is due to Camera Frame Rate. It does not flicker in real-life.