XMod - an Affordable, Modular, and Sustainable Alternative to Traditional Housing

Hello, and welcome! My name is Sebastian, and I'm a Freshman at Suncoast Community Highschool in Florida. I am currently an IB student at Suncoast and as part of my program, I am required to create a "Personal Project" over the summer. As for my choice, I chose to learn about some Fusion360 skills and challenged myself to apply them in a project. I chose the "Make it Modular: Student Design Challenge" because I felt like it would be a nice way to challenge myself and help the community at the same time. While learning some skills in Fusion360, I kept looking over to the sliding backyard door in my house, and thought to myself "Why can't we make more than just a sliding door?". With that idea in mind, I set forth to create a prototype, utilizing a container base that would have its sides cut off and rails for walls that could serve several purposes. After about a month, prototyping, deliberating, thinking, and 3D Printing (A LOT of 3D Printing XD ), I ended up with xMod, my modular, affordable, and sustainable prototype alternative to traditional housing.

xMod's mission is to offer an essentially upgradable house, where you can start with the barebones and work your way up. Unfortunately, there are many people who may not be able to afford a typical home with all the commodities, and that's where xMod is trying to help by providing a basis in which you can upgrade to a full home without having to spend the money of a full home upfront. With xMod, you can start with a base container and 4 walls and work your way up to a larger home, all the while keeping your initial investment of your base container and walls. This can be great when you are able to upgrade your home because you do not have to invest the same amount of money upfront as you would with a similarly-sized house.

Throughout this Instructable, I will show you the steps I undertook to go from drawing to physical prototype, all the while teaching you some of the skills I learned while researching Fusion360. You can expect to learn about Sketch Constraints, Assemblies, Components, and Joints. Additionally, I will provide step-by-step instructions on how to create my prototype if you wish. Lastly, I will share an animation that sums up xMod. I hope you enjoy, and let's get started!

Supplies for Full-Scaled Prototype

-Used 20' Shipping Container - Ranges from $1,750 - $2,500

-Reclaimed Pallet Wood - Ranges from $4.50 - $7 for standard pallets

-Reclaimed 4x4 - $8.10 per 12'

-Reclaimed 2x4 - $8.10 per 12'

-Cork Insulation - $1.05 per Sq. Ft

-Recycled Clay Roofing Tiles - Ranges from $0.30 - $2.00 per tile

-Recycled Glass Windows - Ranges from $15 - $30 per pane

-McMaster-Carr Casters - $13.93

-Some resources consulted include:

McMaster-Carr

rePurposed Materials Inc.

Colonial Barn Restoration Inc.

BuildingGreen

Roughly estimating the total cost of a base xMod house, I can say that an xMod base house can cost anywhere from $9,000 - $12,000 depending on your local prices.

Supplies for Scaled Prototype (Roughly 1/25 Scale Model)

-3x 1KG Spools of Filament - $23 - $25 Each

-About 10 Glue Sticks - $5 per 30pk

Tools I used

-Prusa I3 MK3s

-Wescott Glue Gun

-Flush Cutters

-Sanding Paper

To fully create this scale model, it took about 2 1/2 hours, excluding print time. Printing all the parts took about 4 days running the 3D printer.

Link to all sorted STL files, G-Code files, and more files can be found on this Printables Page

What did I do?

As with most things in life, its best practice to plan before hand. Before going into Fusion360, I started by drawing a visualization so I could start to develop a sense of what I wanted to create. So I started to bring up ideas of what I could make to create an alternative to traditional housing that could be modular and affordable. I then started to think of the idea of being able to upgrade your home just like upgrading your computer or 3D printer. With this principle, you could mange to build up your home steadily instead of depositing a large sum of money beforehand and having to recoup from it. It just like if you wanted a great PC but maybe you didn't want to spend too much money, so you start to build a budget pc and later on you begin to add more things when you can afford them. With this in mind, I started to develop a system that could easily be expanded upon. I came up with a system of rails that could be installed on the sides of containers and used to swap walls easily. In this way, a customer could buy a basic house as little as $7,000 and save up until they can expand again and so forth. After drawing the rough draft, I started to create the rough draft in Fusion360. In creating this rough draft model, I found things that I needed to improve about my design, for example, originally I planned for the walls to just glide on the rails, but I came to realize that I would need wheels. Realizations like this are extremely helpful when planning so you don't waste time trying to correct them down the line.

What I learned from the experience?

When using my pencil, a lot more ideas came to mind, for example, the reclaimed pallet wood siding came to me as I was drawing some sketches. Another idea that came to mind was using 4x4 timber on the edges of the walls so the walls would not move too far.

The first thing I started designing for my prototype were the rails used on the container. These rails are intended to be made out of many 2x9 planks that would be joined by metal L brackets. These rails would then be bolted onto the container frame itself and sealed with a weather-proof caulking. With this rail, it is possible to create any type of wall you can imagine, a double door, a 4 way connection between containers, a ladder, a staircase, the sky is the limit!

Sketch Constraints

Like my previous Instructable, I am going to include a learning element in my design. In this case, I decided to create a lesson out of creating the rails for the container. Sketch constraints are essentially tools that allow you to constrain elements of a sketch in a way that allows you to modify the sketch without "breaking" it. The following are all the sketch constraints that can be applied...

Horizontal/Vertical

Constrains a single line, or two points, to lie on either the horizontal or vertical axis, whichever is closer to the current alignment.

Coincident

Constrains the position of two points or a point and a line or curve together.

Tangent

Constrains a curve and another object so that they touch at a single point but never cross each other.

Equal

Constrains similar objects so that their sizes are identical. When the size of one object changes, the others adjust, too.

Parallel

Constrains two lines so that they extend in the same direction and never intersect.

Perpendicular

Constrains two objects so that they lie perpendicular (at a 90-degree angle) to each other.

Fix/Unfix

Locks the size and location of a point or object. (The only constraint that is not applied automatically)

Midpoint

Constrains a point or object to the midpoint of another object.

Concentric

Constrains two or more arcs, circles, or ellipses to the same center point.

Collinear

Constrains two or more objects so that they share a common line.

Symmetry

Constrains two or more objects so that they are symmetrical (identical to each other in relation to a common axis).

Curvature

Constrains two or more objects to create a smooth, continuous curvature between them (G2 continuity).

For detailed demonstrations of each constraint, I recommend taking a look at the video posted above. These definitions are the same ones from Fusion360, to ensure the best possible explanation.

After creating the rails for the walls, I started to create the base wall that would be the basis of any custom wall. This wall would be a wall framed in wood, covered with reclaimed pallet wood siding, and include 6 casters for easy movement of the walls on the rails. As part of my learning a couple weeks ago, I learned that you can import manufacturer models easily from within Fusion360. This is a great feature that I wish I would've learned earlier. In my base wall model, I used this tool to import the casters from McMaster-Carr. To import manufacture models, simply go to the "Insert" drop down in the Solid Design Workspace. After clicking on the drop down you have an option of importing from McMaster-Carr, TraceParts Supplier, and any other manufacturer website. Although somewhat simple, this wall is the foundation for all the walls that I've created and is crucial to the overall function of xMod.

After creating the base wall, I started to create some example walls that show the customizability available when using xMod. In this example, I created a double door intended to be used as an entry to the house. I started by creating a new component in the already existing Base Wall component to later be used as a subassembly. This subassembly houses the left door with the lock and handle, the right door, and the door frame. These components would then have joints so I can visualize how the model works later on in the animation. Before continuing, let me explain how all these components, assemblies, and joints work. Essentially, an assembly houses subassemblies which houses components, ect. To make things simpler, I like to compare this relationship between assemblies, subassemblies, and components as a bulleted list. For example...

• Assembly
• Subassembly
• Component
• Bodies
• Subassembly
• Component
• Body
• Component
• Body
• Component
• Body

As you can see the Assembly is the feature at the top, lets imagine it as the CEO of a company. This CEO represents the company, its workers, and other executives. Just like the CEO, the assembly represents the whole model. If we go down the line we get subassemblies which are like the people who report to the next level, assemblies. This pattern continues throughout whether that be the relationship between bodies and components or assemblies and bodies. To create joints, you MUST have a component which is made up of body(s). Joints are created to limit where a component can be in the workspace. For example, in my design, I used joints to limit the travel of the doors to the axis of the door hinges, and later on in my example house I limited the travel of the doors further by only allowing them to turn to a specific degree. Like this we can organize our designs so that we can have a more accurate and efficient prototype model.

Like before, I have used subassemblies in the staircase module to separate the function of each individual body into 4 subassemblies. Particularly, I thing this staircase module shows the true capabilities of xMod as this module not only serves as a wall, but as a functional staircase and extension to the house. To create this model, I started by creating a unique rail in the middle portion that holds onto both containers at the same time. I then used the rectangular pattern tool to create the staircase. The rectangular pattern tool is a great tool that can be used to duplicate sketch curves in rows and columns. This can be useful when you need to create the same shape many times, like in the staircase and for the siding. After the staircase I moved on to create the closet under the staircase and the cabinetry. Finally, I go on to create the roof which would be made out of clay tiles that can reduce the temperature inside your home my reflecting some heat from the sun.

Unlike the previous walls, this walls serves it's purpose outside the house. This ladder wall is intended to be used to access the roof of the container, which can also be customized. Firstly, I created the mounting plates for the steel-pipe ladder. This is where my subassembly is created for the ladder components. After creating the mounting plates, I then create the main sides of the ladders by extruding outwards and then using the revolve tool to create a 90 degree bend in the pipes. Finally, I create the rungs of the ladder by using a tangent plane and creating individual rungs with the rectangular pattern tool. This ladder is great if you want to access a small patio on the roof of your container or maybe use it to access some storage or solar panels on the roof.

Lastly, the window wall. A window wall may seem pretty boring or relatively normal, but with xMod there is the ability to move a window anywhere in your house, this lets you move your window to a place in your house with the most sunlight. To make the window though, it is pretty simple, all I did was create the 2x4 frame for the window, which is actually made out of recycled/reclaimed glass panes. One thing I'd like to bring up about the window, though, is the rigid group. A rigid group is similar to a joint because it constrains components in space, but a rigid group simply locks the position of components relative to each other. This is good when you are creating subassemblies that may not have any moving parts but you still want to constrain them in space. In this situation, I created a rigid group between the window pane and the window frame. This is great if you start to move components, for example, if I were to move just the window pane component, the window frame would move with it.

As you can see, there are many ways you can utilize the xMod system to create unique walls for your container house. The walls can be as simple as a window or door, but they can get as complex as a staircase module or ladders. Those are just a few I modeled, other idea's of mine include a small balcony for a 2 story home, a green house roof for a house with 3 containers (last house in animation), water collection systems, garage doors, the sky is the limit! Another great feature of xMod is the ability to create small communities with customized walls, for example, you could have a large installment of containers that use modular systems in conjunction for the good of the community. To elaborate, image a U shaped building with 3 containers (similar to the last house in the animation) where one container house had rain collections systems, another had solar panels, and the last one had roof-mounted water heaters powered by the sun. All these systems could run together and benefit the community as a whole.

So, after designing the example walls I have reached an estimated cost for a base xMod House ( 2 Blank Walls, 1 Double Door Wall, 1 Window Wall). Unfortunately, this does not include the basics of the house like electricity and plumbing (not yet ;), but it does include the minimum needed to create an xMod house. Coming in at about $12,000 the small home is great for people who may need a little help in life. Having a home boosts your overall well-being which we sometimes take for granted. I think that at $12,000 it is pretty affordable for local governments to invest in xMod so that they can raise their property values, create jobs, and help alleviate homelessness. What do you think, would you consider living in an xMod home, let me know!

Ok, its time to build! Although the following instructions are detailed, I recommend you watch the video above for clear instructions and addition tips and examples.

The following are instructions to create a simple house like the 3rd picture above. For print files visit my Printables page.

P.S - I also included the STEP file for my first house model, it includes joints, components, and more, so feel free to check that out as well!

Before we get started...

MAKE SURE TO BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR HOT GLUE GUN, YOU CAN GET BADLY BURNED.

Step 1

Now that you have your 3D prints ready and post processed, you can start by gluing the side rails of the container to the container. For this step you will want to cut off any drooping pieces that your 3D printer may have created so you can pull the rail as far out as possible. With that said, simply lay a small dollop of hot glue on every other indent on the container, then get your rails and push down and outward so that you have optimum clearance for your walls. Do this step four times on each side and then you can add a bit more glue if you feel like you need it.

Step 2

Get the 4x4's, 2x4's, and walls. If you are creating a staircase module, make note that the 4x4 are different than those of the regular walls, so make sure not to mix them up. Another note before you start, the LONGEST side of the walls should be facing UP, you can compare the base walls to window or door walls. Ok, now I recommend that you get some sort of non-flammable, flat surface that you can use to protect your workbench from glue. Mentioned in the video, I used a failed print which helped to keep my working surface clean and my 4x4's and 2x4's in contact with the wall piece. I also recommend that you keep your container handy so you can occasionally check on the gluing and how the walls fit on the container.

Step 3

Finally, finish off your door and window walls by adding the frames, and potentially inserts for them. Like before, I recommend using the flat surface to ensure a flat finish on the back.

***EDIT I MADE NOT INCLUDED IN VIDEO***

I realized that the door frame in the video was a tad bit too long and shortened it. Don't worry, I haven't posted this file in the original version so you shouldn't encounter the same problem as me. Although, make sure that when you insert the door frame, push as far up as you can, don't worry if there is some part of the wall that is not framed.

Staircase Module Steps

Step 1

First, pickup one of the side walls (there should be 6) and the staircase piece. Glue the staircase piece to the board making sure that the right side of the staircase is facing towards you. Additionally, make sure to leave some room for the floor.

Step 2

After gluing the staircase piece, you can get two sidewalls. Again make sure that the longest part is facing upwards. Add a some glue and glue them in, making sure that they are at 90 degrees from the back portion. Now you can grab the floor, this should be the thickest plate, and glue it into place. Lastly, you can get the rail that looks like a U, unlike the other two rails that look like an L and another that is missing a portion. Glue the tallest side of the U onto the floor.

Step 3

After letting the bottom segment's glue to solidify, grab the second story floor, the one with a rail built in, and the long L rail. Notice that on the flooring there is a ridge, glue the longest part of the L to that ridge. After gluing both rails, add some glue to each side of the flooring, and use two containers as references to insert the flooring at the right height.

Step 4

Ok, now you can grab the thinnest plate, the roof plate. This plate should go on the very top as a way to support the walls at the very top. After gluing in place, grab the blue rectangle, two containers, and the remaining rail. Glue the rectangle to the inner part of the indoor roof. After gluing, use the top container to mark the rail's height and then glue the rail at the mark.

Step 5

Lastly, glue the remaining two blue right-angled triangles to the indoor roof with the right angles facing towards the containers. Lastly, glue the roof to the blue framing, and you're done!

As the most important (and hardest) part of this demonstration of xMod, I created an animation presenting the most important and key features of xMod. This animation is would be intended as a way to introduce people to xMod. This is my first animation ever, and although difficult, I feel like it was a really nice learning experience. Unfortunately, I didn't make any videos on the animating because I feel that I'm too new to animation and didn't want to teach something that I'm not to keen on myself. So, for now, enjoy this animation of xMod!

P.s. - Don't worry though, I've got a hang on animation and Instructables including it are coming! :)

In conclusion, I'm really happy with what I produced and the prototype sitting on my shelf. If I learned anything from this project its that you can really do what you put your mind to. About a month ago I started with literally nothing, not even a full skillset in fusion, and now have a prototype for a modular home. I hope you enjoyed the process I went through, and if you 3D printed my prototype, good luck! Feel free to ask me any questions if they come to mind, or correct me if anything I taught in this Instructable can be improved upon. Thanks for taking a look at xMod!

Happy Tinkering!

-Seb

P.s. - I've just realized the contest has been extended, so expect to see some more of xMod in the near future! :)

Hello and welcome! Did you miss xMod? Hopefully the answer was yes! Anyways, I'd like to introduce two new xMod variants, xMod Urban and xMod Adventurer. These two variants are intended to boost the overall xMod experience and bring a more detail-oriented product for consumers. So lets take a quick look into what each variant does.

xMod Urban

xMod urban is intended to be used in city scenarios where real-estate can be pricey and every square foot of land counts. xMod urban untilizes a unique modular system to stack several units to create a fun an appealing apartment-like complex. xMod Urban is designed with space saving and sustainability in mind. It features a unique hydroponic filtering water harvesting system and innovative floor planning.

xMod Adventurer

xMod Adventurer was designed with the adventurer in mind, featuring full off-the-grid capabilities for those who love nature. With xMod adventurer, you can comfortably live off-the-grid with a solar panel roof that doubles as a rain collection system and your very own green house that features automatic watering.

In the Animation you will see some basic funiture models from Ikea and other manufactures. The models are listed below from Polantis, a great resource for interior design files and more.

Google Sheet for all OBJ Files Used

Like I mentioned before, xMod Urban is a refined variant of xMod that suites the needs of common city goers. xMod urban has a wider range of features compared to xMod, for example hydroponic filtered rain collection. xMod also hosts a wide range of features to enhance the comfort of city goer in a tiny home. For example, something that sets xMod Urban apart from traditional container homes is the fact that there are a separate rooms, the living/kitchen area and the bedroom. Both of these rooms are separated by a center wall that contains a full bathroom and shower. Another feature that is unique to xMod are the balconies that can be accessed from the bedroom. These features offer a great alternative to traditional housing, while still supporting the founding beliefs of xMod. Fun, Affordable, Modular, Sustainable, and Upgradable, thats xMod Urban

Unlike the base xMod, both the xMod Urban and Adventurer have specialized wiring. First, lets focus on xMod Urban. Before actually connecting wires, let's think of what you need in a city scenario. In cities, electricity is easily accessible and solar panels won't be a necessity, especially since xMod Urban is an apartment-like building. So, we've established that electricity will come from the city mains, and we won't need solar panels. With this in mind lets come up with an energy plan and see how much electricity we will actually use.

Fridge - 90 kWh/Month

Stove - 80 kWh/ Month (Depending how often used)

Lights (Total Amount) - 72 kWh/Month

Outlets - 15 kWh/Month (Depending what and how often used)

AC - 90 kWh/Month

Total - About 350 kWh/Month 

Calculations were made using…

https://www.rapidtables.com/calc/electric/energy-consumption-calculator.html

https://www.inchcalculator.com/watts-to-kwh-calculator/

This means that, on average, a xMod Urban home uses about 350 kWh of energy monthly, which is relatively low. The average cost of a kWh hour is about 11 cents. This means that xMod Urban homes use about $40 worth of electricity a month, compared to the average which is $115 in the US. 

Just like the electricity, xMod Urban and Adventurer Variants have specialized plumbing, tailored to the individual variants’ environment. In a city senario, you will usually have water provided by the city, but some cities may have unreliable or unclean water sources. Good thing we have water collection and filtration! So, in this scenario, I’ve used a mix between rain-collected water and city provided water. Just like electricity, let’s come up with a water-expenditure plan. 

Shower -  750 Gallons/Month ( @ 2.5 GPM)

Toilet - 270 Gallons/Month ( @ 3 GPM)

Sinks - 1,350 Gallons/Month ( @ 2 GPM each sink)

Total - About 2,400 Gallons/Month

(I actually used my own data on this one, but the averages online are somewhat similar.)

This means that, on average, a xMod Urban home uses about 2,400 gallons of water monthly, which is similar to the average water usage of a single person. The average cost of water in the US is $1.50 per 1000 gallons of water. This means that xMod Urban homes use about $4 worth of water a month, compared to the average which is $5 in the US.

Just like the original xMod, xMod Urban utilizes mainly sustainable and recycled materials to lower the cost and improve its overall environmental footprint. As you can see below, the estimated cost is about $18,000 for an xMod Urban Home. This price will get lower the more units that are stacked together. Some of the sources used to get these numbers are above in the supplies step. You may think to yourself “$18,000 dollars sounds like a lot for a home of this size” because I know I did. It turns out the average cost of a tiny home is about $30,000 - $60,000! To really step it up, a base Honda Civic costs $25,500 MSRP. When you think about it, governments give cities millions to spend and what better way to spend it than create affordable housing that looks nice and increases property value.

xMod Adventurer was designed with adventurers in mind, offering full off-the-grid capabilities. Just like xMod urban, xMod adventurer hosts a wide range of features that set it apart from xMod. As I was researching, I found that there are 4 common needs that an off-the-grid home needs to provide: Energy, Garbage Management, Clean Water, and Food. xMod Adventurer was designed around these 4 key needs and it delivers them all. To cover energy and clean water, xMod Adventurer features a solar panel roof that actually doubles as a rain collection system. The rain water would actually be stored underground and the energy can be managed in the greenhouse section. To cover food and Garbage Management, xMod Adventurer features a green house that has an automatic watering system. This green house is meant to be used with compost from food waste like eggshells and orange-peels. All these features combined allow xMod Adventurer to offer comfort and peace of mind while being off-the-grid.

So, just like xMod Urban, xMod Adventurer has a specialized electrical system, adapted to off-the-grid life. Unlike xMod Urban though, xMod Adventurer does not have the ability to connect to a city power grid. With this in mind, we need to take into account the usage of solar panels and batteries. Additionally, with xMod Adventurer the house will be responsible for pressurizing and pumping water from the main water tanks. So, let’s come up with an energy plan and see how much electricity we will actually use.

AC - 90 kWh/Month

Fridge - 90  kWh/Month

Lights (Total Amount)  - 72 kWh/Month

Water Heater - 100 kWh/Month

Water Pump - 120 kWh/Month

Stove - 80 kWh/ Month (Depending how often used)

Outlets - 15 kWh/Month (Depending what and how often used)

Total -  About 570 kWh/Month 

Unlike regular homes, all this electricity will be free after the solar panels are paid for. Roughly dividing, the average daily kWh used will be about 18.5 kWh. At this wattage, we would need about 50, 400 W solar panels. Additionally, we would need 50kWh worth of battery storage for night time and emergency use.

Just like xMod Urban’s plumbing, xMod Adventurer has a specialized plumbing system and a rain collection system. Although similar systems, xMod Adventurer does not share the same circumstances. For xMod Adventurer, we need to take into account gray water storage/usage and pumping/ pressurizing water tanks. With this in mind let's see what the water expenditure is like for xMod Adventurer.

Shower -  750 Gallons/Month ( @ 2.5 GPM)

Toilet - 270 Gallons/Month ( @ 3 GPM)

Sinks - 1,350 Gallons/Month ( @ 2 GPM each sink)

Total - About 2,400 Gallons/Month

So far, the water needs are the same, but we need to take into account water saving and recycling through the greenhouse. 

Average of 2,400 Gallons of Gray water comes in per month into the tanks.

There is about 45 sq ft of garden available, and plants need .0623 Gallons per sq ft. 

https://ucanr.edu/sites/MarinMG/files/186290.pdf

This means that a 45 sq ft garden needs about 30 Gallons of water daily, equating to about 900 gallons of gray water used monthly. 

What this means is that more than ⅓ of gray water will be recycled through the greenhouse watering system. The rest of the gray water can either be filtered and reused where gray water can be used (Toilet) or dumped out into other additional gardens.

Yes, I can see that price tag at the bottom... but hear me out. The average cost of a solar panel system for a typical off-the-grid home is $55,000 (Source), yes just the solar panels! With that in mind, that $43,000 price tag is looking much better. Yes, the adventurer home is still not cheap, but if you're in the market for an off-the-grid home the prices don't get much better. I really see xMod Adventurer as an alternative to a summer home or a complement to your existing house because you can place it in the nature as a get-away. Still though, it is a cheap alternative to a regular home and you get the benefit of living anywhere on the planet.

Just like all things in life, the fun never lasts. Part of the xMod system is its after-life plan. Unlike most homes, xMod can still be used, even if it's a little battered. The most common and useful after-life use for xMod is a bus-stop like shape. This bus-stop would be made using the container base and some of the wood siding for chairs.  These bus-stops would be created by local municipalities and managed by them as well. Not only that, the container base of xMod can be used as a shaded area in parks or recreation areas. Lastly, the wood from the siding and indoors area can be used to create new bee-hives that could reside near farms to pollinate the crop. Just like xMod itself, the after-life possibilities for xMod are infinite, after all, xMod is a mix of several other deconstructed materials.

My photos have been failing to upload recently, so I've added google drive links to them below.

Photo 1 (Brochure Pt2)

Photo 2 (Flyer)

xMod, as I’ve described it up to this point, is still a very unrealistic and imaginative project. Let’s change that. xMod’s purpose is to introduce a highly affordable, sustainable, and modular way of living… in theory. To really do this, xMod needs to be advertised in a way that attracts people who may be on the edge of actually buying a container home but may not be fully convinced with the idea of living in a shipping container. In this case, we need to look into the 3 main types of advertising: brochures, flyers, and online or TV video advertisements. In these advertisements, not only do we need to talk about xMod’s features, but we need to include other perspectives of xMod. For example, maybe the advertisement has reached a person who already owns a home, but is looking for a way to create an affordable airbnb for tourists. Not only that, xMod is bigger than just a home. xMod can not only be advertised as a modular home, but as a modular structure as a whole. To elaborate, maybe a local municipality is looking for bathrooms that can be temporarily installed for a festival. So, let's take a detailed look at the advertisement aspect of xMod.

(The

My photos have been failing to upload recently, so I've added google drive links to them below.

Photo 1 (Brochure Pt2)

Photo 2 (Flyer)

The most detailed and popular way to advertise something such as xMod is through a brochure. This brochure would be placed near high-traffic areas like bus stops, train stations, airports, ect. On the back, the brochure would have contact info and additional inquiry information. Additionally, the brochure would be part of a funding plan where local municipalities would invest in xMod and set them up in typically unused areas, for example, near highways. This plan would help alleviate homeless and also help boost property value in the area. Following the deconstruction plan, these government-funded homes can later be deconstructed and turned into park shade areas, bus stops, restrooms, ect. This brochure is crucial for the funding to go forward and to gain the public’s attention. All in all, brochures are a great way to spread the word in a detailed manner, but sometimes a more concise form of advertising is needed…

My photos have been failing to upload recently, so I've added google drive links to them below.

Photo 1 (Brochure Pt2)

Photo 2 (Flyer)

Maybe you’ve noticed that most of the advertisements you receive don’t actually go into too much detail. The advertisements you probably see are concise and try to get just enough of your attention so that you become curious. This is what my flyer is doing right now. The flyer is a great way to present a concise message that can be seen throughout a town. In xMod’s case, this flyer would be placed throughout a city on telephone poles, parks, grocery stores, or even mailed directly to people. This flyer’s purpose is to interest people to a point where they would be interested in finding out more about xMod. Now, the most common type of advertisement you probably see is the infomercial, video type advertisement…

Just like the flyer, the video type advertisements are concise and get right to the point the only difference is that the video advertisements could theoretically reach everyone in the city. In my opinion, video advertisements are the best types of advertisements because they can pull the viewer into the video, immersing them in the content. The whole reason I made animations for the instructable is the fact that a video demonstrating something is much more fun than reading some boring word, ya know? So, with these animations, I would make short advertisements that would play on youtube, TV, or even electronic billboards. 

So, with all these advertising methods applied, word of xMod will hopefully spread throughout cities, leading to a better life for low-income families and an overall better quality of life for all in the city. 

So, what has xMod accomplished? xMod created a whole new style of structure, it has literally reinvented the small home. xMod can be used in almost any form, from house to public restroom to shed. When I set out to create xMod, my goal was to create an upgradeable house, not only does xMod do that, it created a whole system. As I've grown, I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of Lego, how Ole Kirk Kristiansen created a completely new system of toys that could do almost anything. With xMod you can do just that, create anything. I love that xMod can suit each individual personally, every xMod owner can customize and express creativity when building their xMod. So, I think I reached that goal of mine, learning alongside you! Hopefully you liked xMod and the journey that led to it (Hopefully my IB coordinators like it too!) and thanks for supporting my work!