OHIO University Mechanical Engineering Project Proposal Report

Photo Press Mechanism

One Stop Photo Shop

Matthew Becker

Alex Carrier

Brandon Foggie

Andrew Knipp

Sebastian Osorio

Tim Smoot

10/27/2011

Abstract

The One Stop Photo Shop team is oriented towards designing a safe mechanism that is capable of cutting and rounding the corners of multiple wallet sized pictures which come in a single sheet of eight pictures. Our customer is Kara Moore who is a first year teacher who also runs a professional photography business. Included in this report is the introduction which summarizes the inventions of photography and cameras as they evolved throughout the years as well as the customers’ needs and customers’ needs by the influence of weighting.

1.0 Introduction

Camera photography has dated back to the early 1800’s, but was made much more popular by the use of a digital camera. The true arrival of digital cameras came in 1990 developed by Kodak, called the Dycam Model 1. As a result of this technology along with smaller and more efficient cameras, distribution of photos became more prevalent around the United States. This also helped the way photos were developed. (Mary Bellis)

The photography industry has many phases but mostly focus on the sizing, production and distribution methods. Sizing is a big category and can range anywhere from a 2.5”x3.5” wallet sized photo to a 12”x18” photo. Every size in between are very common sizes for pictures. There are sizes smaller and larger but these size pictures are rarely seen. This project will focus on the smallest of these sizes which is the wallet size photo. The processing of the photography industry deals mostly with large scale machinery. Most of the processing is done by Die Cutting with automated precision cutting edges. Due to the increase of technology that is coupled with photography the process of developing photos has become as easy as creating a digital image and printing that image. With the capability of being able to print photos easily and efficiently, multiple photos can be printed on a single sheet.

Professional photography and independent photography have increased a great deal since the invention of the digital camera. Both types of this photography in modern day can be used for many situations including family events, engagements, weddings, graduations and prom or homecomings. Only a few decades ago the photography business was dominated by film camera photographers where each photo that was taken cost time and money to develop. There was a big difference in people who had 10,000 hours of photography shooting and those who did not. Once in today’s time, we have a nation that can take thousands of pictures without having an additional cost. Furthermore stating on why independent photography is generating more and more people every year, is the fact that there is a decline of newspapers and magazines, which means less photographers are being sent out on assignment. This is where independent photographers come in and can supply the magazines or newspapers with the same quality of photos as professionals, but at a cheaper price. According to Getty CEO Jonathan Klein, “In 2005, Getty Images licensed 1.4 million preshot commercial photos. Last year, it licensed 22 million – and “all of the growth was through our user-generated business”. This statement tells why the photography industry is growing day by day. (Dennis Yang)

The purpose of this project is to design a safe and effective cutting mechanism that is able to cut and round eight wallet sized photos on the same sheet. Although this mechanism could be used by many other amateur photographers, this specific concept was made especially for the client, Kara Moore. Kara Moore is a 22-year old first year teacher who is a graduate of Ohio University. She is also in the professional photography business. Kara in her hometown of Ironton, Ohio spends most of her prom, graduation, and wedding season cutting wallet sized photos. These photos are the most popular type of photo size, but the company that Kara receives her pictures

from prints the images onto one sheet. There are eight pictures printed per sheet, leaving very little space in between images. Kara supplies over 42,000 wallet photos per year to various customers. Kara spends over a minute per photo cutting and rounding the edges. By creating this mechanism it will save Kara much needed time and money for her professional photography company, as well as time to focus on her teaching career which is her first priority.

One Stop Photo Shop is a team consisting of six senior team members that is working in the context of a year-long capstone design project that will result in a working prototype for our customer Kara Moore.

1.1 Initial Needs Statement

Design and fabricate a system that cuts all eight photos from a photo sheet and rounds edges quickly and efficiently.

2.0 Customer Needs Assessment and Revised Needs Statement

2.1 Evaluation / Weighting of Customer Needs

This section deals with the customer needs lists and the customer needs list based on weighting. We determined the customers’ needs by a series of interviews that were conducted by Andrew Knipp. Once the customers’ needs were stated, the team conducted a meeting to construct a table that includes what our thoughts were in the weighting of the importance of each customer need. Once the weighting was completed Andrew Knipp contacted the customer again to go over the weighting process and Kara agreed upon what the team had constructed. The customers’ needs are one of the more important aspects of this project, but weighting the customers’ needs could be an even more important aspect.

Table 2.1 shows the initial customer needs list where it was attained from interviews and observations.

Table 2.1: Initial Customer Needs List Obtained from Interviews and Observations.

Simplicity

Safety

Durability

Cutting Photos without Damaging

Performs Quickly

Portability

Easy Maintenance

Small Footprint

Table 2.2 shows the hierarchal customer needs list with weighting factors included. Note the weighting factors included in Table 2.2 are described in Section 2.1. Weighting the customers’ needs can be important to the completion of the project as well as the how successful the project will be.

Table 2.2 Hierarchal Customer Needs List (With Weighting Factors)

1. Usability (0.38)

1.1 Cut Photos without Damaging

1.2 Perform Quickly

1.3 Intuitive

1.4 Ergonomic

2. Safety (0.38)

2.1 Exposed Blades

2.2 Pinching

2.3 Smashing

3. Durability (0.15)

3.1 Maintenance

4. Portability (0.08)

4.1 Light

Figure 2.1 shows the One Stop Photo Shop Comparison chart to determine the weighting for the main objective categories. The weighting was calculated by comparing each main category of the customers’ needs. An example of how the weighting was calculated was comparing usability to durability. When looking at how important the usability of the system is, it outweighed the importance of how durable the system could be. It was seen that the usability of the system was a one to one-third ratio with durability, making it three times as important for the system to be usable compared to durable. This process was then completed for all four categories, and then totaled to make a final score. This final total was then made into a percentage which is labeled as weighting. This can be seen in Table 2.2 and Figure 2.1.

Usability Durability Portability Safety Total Weighting Usability 1.00 3.00 4.00 1.00 9.00 0.38

Durability 0.33 1.00 2.00 0.33 3.66 0.15 Portability 0.25 0.50 1.00 0.25 2.00 0.08

Safety 1.00 3.00 4.00 1.00 9.00 0.38 Figure 2.1: One Stop Photo Shop Comparison Chart to Determine Weighting for Main

Objective Categories.

2.2 Revised Needs Statement

Design and fabricate a safe, portable, and low maintenance system that is capable of cutting and rounding the corners of multiple wallet sized pictures which come in a single sheet of eight pictures. The overall process of cutting and rounding needs to be quick and easy to perform by the client, Kara Moore. The system needs to be highly efficient and not damage the pictures as well.

3.0 Benchmarking, Standards and Target Specifications

3.1 Benchmarking

There are several patents already in place that pertain to cutting paper materials commercially and industrially. The Photograph Cutter (D391,822) and Paper Trimmer (D536,367) patents are simple manual devices that make only a single straight cut. The Die Cutter for Stamping Rectangular Objects with Rounded Corners (4,317,399) patent is an industrial system that can cut materials into a rectangular shape with rounded corners. This process requires a large machine and is likely very expensive because it is intended for mass production.

A manual, multi-blade cutter patent was found in the Device for Cutting Fruits & Vegetables (7,444,909) patent. While intended for cutting food, this blade design in this patent can be relevant to our project. Like the commercial paper cutting patents, this patent only cuts in straight lines.

The most relevant patent found was the Offset Crank Activated Paper Die Cutters patent, often referred to as an “Ellison Machine”. This patent is for manually and electrically powered die cutting machines for making paper cut-outs with replaceable dies. The dies consist of wood blocks with a continuous blade in designated shape surrounded by foam on one of the open faces. The machine compresses the block, which causes the blade to slice through the material underneath it. The problem with this machine it cannot make the same cut on the same location on a different piece of material consistently and you are limited to using only the available dies. The current commercially available manual version of this machine is the Sizzix System – Die Cutting Machine (seen in Figure 3.1-A), available on Amazon.com for $69.99. This price does not include any die sets, which can range from $10-$15 each. Because of the inconsistency of where the cuts are made and because a specialized die must be made, this product is not appropriate for our customer’s needs.

Aside from the Sizzix System, there are several products available that are relevant to cutting rectangles from a sheet of paper and rounding corners. The Making Memories Slice Cordless Design Cutter Machine Starter Set (seen in Figure 3.1-B) is an electric cutter system that cuts according to prefabricated dies. The machine costs $42.99 on Amazon.com. Like the Sizzix Machine, every cut needs to be lined up manually, thus making it an inadequate solution to our customer’s problem.

Along the same lines, Specimen Dies manufactures a manual cutting press (seen in Figure 3.1-C) capable of cutting a variety of materials. It generates 5 tons of force and can be fitted with custom dies. The machine and die price can range from $460 to $770 depending on the complexity of the die. While a special die can be made for this product, it is overdesigned for what the customer is trying to accomplish. The product is also likely too large and too heavy for the customer’s liking.

Figure 3.1: Manual and Electric Die Cutters

There are a few products that are made specifically for cutting straight wallet sized rectangles. The Wallet Size Id 2”x2.75” Photo ID Die Cutter Punch C57 (seen in Figure 3.2-A) is a hand device that cuts a 2”x2.75” rectangle with straight lines. It can only cut one rectangle at a time and costs $44.99 on Amazon.com. The Die Cutter Steel Manual ID Card Scrapbooking Paper Trimmer (seen in Figure 3.2-B) is similar to the previous product, but it is a tabletop manual machine press and is capable of making rounded corners. It costs $69.95 on Amazon.com.

Figure 3.2: Wallet Sized Pictures Rectangle Cutters

While Cutter Punch C57 would be a quick solution to cutting individual photos from a sheet, its lack of cutting round corners makes it inadequate. The Die Cutter Paper Trimmer is suitable for making quick cuts with rounded corners; it is still limited to cutting only one picture at a time and requires some time to line up each cut. The customer wants a system that cuts multiple photos in a sheet, making both products unsuitable.

A few products are available specifically for making rounded cuts. The Round Cornering Tool-Peach Table Top Model 3R 3mm (approximately 1/8”) Radius machine (seen in Figure 3.3-A) is a manual press that is capable of rounding one corner of a single sheet of paper material at a time. The machine costs $99.00 on Amazon.com. The Akiles Company produces two corner rounding products, the Diamond-1 and Diamond-5. Both presses can cut multiple sheets but like the previous product they can only cut one corner at a time. The Diamond-1 (seen in figure 3.3-B) is a manual table top press, that weighs 5.5 lbs. and cost $219. The Diamond-5 (seen in figure 3.3-C) is an electric die press capable of cutting 2” of paper at a time. It costs $2,400 from the manufacturer and weighs 55lbs. Because each of these three products are limited to cutting only one corner at a time, an additional device would be required to cut the individual photos from a sheet of pictures. This makes these products undesirable for our customer.

The Foamwerks Circle Cutter (Figure 3.3-D) is a device that is capable of making circular cuts between 0.5”- 3” radius. This device costs $21 on Amazon.com. While the price is reasonable, this device would require a tedious amount of time to line up correctly and the minimum cutting radius is likely too large for wallet pictures.

Figure 3.3: Corner Rounding Tools

There are some computerized die cutters available on the market capable of cutting any desired shape. The Pazzles Creative Cutter Inspiration Cc04 12-Inch Computerized Die-Cut Machine (seen in Figure 3.4) allows the user to create a die electronically on the computer and the machine will cut it. The machine costs $426.94 on Amazon.com. Using this device would require the customer to learn the associated software, and its compatibility with already printed sheets of pictures is unknown. The cost of this device also raises issues whether or not the investment in a potentially very versatile system for one specific use is worthwhile. While the customer did not specifically request for a mechanical system, for simplicities sake it would be more appropriate for the customer to have a mechanical system.

Figure 3.4: Computerized Die Cutter

Tippmann Die Cutting Solutions has two industrial die presses available, the Clicker 700 (seen in Figure 3.5-A) and Clicker 1500 (seen in Figure 3.5-B). Both models are powered by compressed air and can cut a wide range of materials. Tippmann offers a service to create any custom die. The Clicker 700 cost $1,650 and generates 7 tons of force. The Clicker 1500 cost $3,200 and generates 15 tons of force. Both of these models have the capability to cut multiple sheets of photos but the initial price far exceeds our price limit. Like the Specimen manual die cutters, these industrial die presses are likely too large and too heavy for the customer. In addition, these were not designed for home use. The cost of these presses also raises issues, for the manual commercial options were much cheaper than these. For these reasons an industrial press like the ones discussed here are not appropriate for our customer’s needs.

Figure 3.5: Industrialized Die Presses

Table 3.1: Benchmarking of Products

Features Size Weight (lbs.) Cost Flexibility Operation

Clicker 1500 24" x 20" x 13" 560 $3,200 Custom Dies Compressed air

Clicker 700 12" x 19" x 13" 260 $1,600 Custom Dies Compressed air

Diamond-1 9" x 5.5" x 5.8" 5.5 $219 One Corner, Round Manual

Diamond-5 12" x 12.75" x 6.5" 55 $2,400 One Corner, Round Electric

Die Cutter Paper Trimmer 9.25" x 6.25" x 10.5" 13 $69.95 Four Corners, Round Manual

Die Cutter Punch C57 2" x 2.75" 3 $45 Four Corners, Straight Manual

Foamwerks Circle Cutter 1"-6" Diameter 1.5 $21 Full Circle Manual

Making Memories Slice 9.5" x 7.5" x 7.4" 4.2 $42.99 Custom Dies Electric

Pazzles Cc04 12" x 14" 17 $426.94 Custom Dies Electric

Sizzix System 15" x 5" x 9" 12 $69.99 Custom Dies Manual

Specimen Dies 12" x 9" 100 $770 Custom Dies Manual

Tool Peach 3R 6" x 4" 5 $99 One Corner, Round Manual

3.2 Standards

These specifications cover the requirements for manual presses and cutting mechanisms. Our mechanism is for a professional photographer. Since our client does not have any employees the OSHA standards for factories do not apply for our situation. The standards that most apply to our situation are discussed below.

1910.212 OSHA

Scope: This covers the standards and regulations for machine guarding. This requires that the point of operation of the machine must be guarded to protect the operator.

1910.138(b) OSHA

Scope: Employers shall base the selection of the appropriate hand protection on an evaluation of the performance characteristics of the hand protection relative to the task(s) to be performed, conditions present, duration of use, and the hazards and potential hazards identified.

National Emphasis Program on Amputations. CPL 03-00-003, (2006, October 27).

Scope: This describes policies and procedures to identify and reduce or eliminate the workplace incidence of hazards which are causing or are likely to cause amputations.

The OSHA standards 1910.212 and 1910.128(b) require our design to include a safe guard to prevent the operator from injuring or amputating their appendages from the exposed blades. The NEP on Amputations states that our concept will not allow there to be any hazard to the operator that is likely to cause any amputations of the hand or the fingers. Our concept is to be equipped with safety regulations that prevent any of these tragedies from happening.

3.3 Target Specifications, Constraints and Design Criteria

Table 3.2 shows the target design specifications that all team members agreed upon. The maximum weight was specified to be an ideal value of 30 pounds. This is an ideal value but if the design had to weigh more it would be fine to see the design be anywhere in between 15 to 25 pounds. This is a reasonable weight for an adult person to lift without strain. The design group also agreed upon the cycles before maintenance to be over 5,000 cycles. Our client, Kara Moore, estimates around 8,500 wallet size pictures are generated per year. Each cycle can handle eight pictures which would put the cycles around 5,000 or equivalent to 5 years before any maintenance is needed. The size of the footprint was agreed upon to be less than four square feet which should be enough room for the concept to fit on a small table. Having the operators force be less than 10 pounds of force would be enough pressure to cut the photos without putting strain on the operator. The production cost would be in the area of $250-$350. The reasoning for a low

cost is to have an edge on the competitors which ask a much steeper price. The cycle time for our client, Kara Moore, to insert the sheet of pictures, cut and round the edges would be around 30 to 45 seconds. As of now it takes Kara around one minute just to cut and round one wallet size picture.

Table 3.2: Target Design Specifications

Metric Units Marginal Value Ideal Value Maximum Weight lbs > 25 > 15

Cycles Before Maintenance K - Cycles < 5 < 10 Size of Foot Print ft2 < 4 < 1 Operator Force lbf < 10 < 5 Production Cost dollars < 350 < 250

Cycle Time seconds < 45 < 30

The way the design team translated the customer requirements and engineering standards to target specification, constraints, and design criteria was to use the Quality Functional Deployment (QFD) method. By using the QFD it transforms the clients demands into the design quality and deploys the functions forming quality, deploys the methods for achieving the design quality into subsystems and component parts. Ultimately it specifies the elements of the manufacturing process as well. The QFD transforms the client’s needs into engineering characteristics. In Figure 3.6 it shows the QFD Design Specifications.

Figure 3.6: QFD Design Specifications

4.0 Conclusion

Our customer Kara Moore desires a machine that will decrease the amount of time spent cutting a sheet of wallet sized photos into individual photographs with rounded corners. She wants it to be easy and safe to use, not damage the pictures, to be low maintenance, and to be portable. We have researched the current market status for independent professional photographers and found current patents and products pertaining to her wishes but have found none that fully meet her qualifications. We have established target specifications for this device and researched applicable standards relative to the use of this device. We request for the approval to receive the funding necessary to proceed into conceptual design of this photograph cutting device.