Woodwater Instruments Hydraulophone From Shopbot C

instructables
Make an underwater instrument in your favorite shape: Hydraulophone from

Shopbot CNC routed marine plywood
by SteveMann
Steve Mann with Max Lu, at Autodesk Pier 9: (basin) for the hydraulophone (underwater pipe
organ).
A previous Instructable taught how to make an
underwater musical instrument (the innards, Our instrument is in the shape of a sea shell, but you
sounding, etc.), or, if you want really high-end can design any shape, such as a maple leaf (like the
pipework it can be obtained from Splashtones.com one on the Canadian flag), or a boat or ship-themed
shape.
We're inspired by the boat building tradition along the
shores of the San Francisco coast. The housing helps save water, by efficiently capturing
and recirculating the instrument's water.
So let's make a really nice marine-inspired housing
https://vimeo.com/195145026
Make an underwater instrument in your favorite shape: Hydraulophone from Shopbot CNC routed marine plywood: Page 1
Step 1: CAD: Design the overall shape, and create layers for it.
The key to great design is collaboration. revisions and send back. Then we have to merge
them, and quickly we get a mess.
Fusion 360 is a great way to bring collaborative ideas
to reality. Fusion 360 is like a Google document for CAD, in
which we all see and share and edit the same file
In the past we've used Solidworks, and shared online.
designs across several of our locations, MIT,
Stanford, Toronto, etc., and this has been Here we can collaborate and come up with a design
problematic. For example, we send out a Solidworks we like.
file to 2 different collaborators who each make
Step 2: CAM: Toolpath visualization
Fusion 360 also does great CAM (Computer Aided Manufacture) for toolpath design, etc., allowing us to make the
design a reality.
Here we use the Shopbot CNC router to cut out our patterns from marine plywood.
Marine plywood is commonly used in boat building, and what we're building is a lot like a boat.
Step 3: Cut out the layers on a CNC router (e.g. Shopbot)
Once the shape is designed, it is time to cut it out.
Before cutting, make sure the design is checked carefully.
For example, be sure to have a nice deep bilge for the instrument's recirculation pump.
Step 4: Design for hydraulic efficiency and water conservation
Two important design principles pertain to hydraulic efficiency and water conservation:
1. Capture as much of the water as possible for recirculation: design the housing big enough that most
of the stray water returns to the catchment area. Notice how we expand in the direction where most
of the splash goes.
2. Design so that the instrument can run on a very small amount of water. For this to happen well, be
sure to construct a nice deep bilge. I drilled the bilge by hand in order to optimize its location
carefully, in context of manually holding and positioning the recirculating pump (a submersible bilge
pump). Drill halfway through from one side, then turn over the piece, and drill halfway from the other
side. If done right, this gives you nice clean edges without splintering. Just like in a well-designed
boat, the bilge is the lowest point in the vessel, and ensures the water collects efficiently.
In this design, notice how one of the T-nuts for the legs is in the bilge. This requires sealing to prevent leaking, and
represents a good tradeoff between water efficiency and strength of the base.
Step 5: Laminate the layers together to make the 3D shape
The layers are glued together using Titebond III,
with a sufficient number of clamps to keep them solid for 24 hours before disturbing.
Use enough glue that some is seeping from every crack.
Step 6: Make a support base conforming to the 30 inch standard spacing
The instrument sits on a base which should be large to swap instruments and also to install them in
enough that it won't easily tip over. waterparks and playgrounds and match existing
mounting hardware.
The shape of the base should be such that a user has
a convenient place to stand. There are two standard sizes for pipes: 1.5 inch
schedule 40 IP (International Pipe) thread, and 2 inch
Two pipes are used for the support base. schedule 40 IP.
The standard spacing for most hydraulophones is 30 Of these two sizes, the 1.5 inch is the more
inches center-to-center between the two legs. commonly used in hydraulophone installations.
If you conform to this standard, you will find it easier
Step 7: Finish and assemble
Finishing was done using sandpaper by hand, with no Epoxy does not stick to already cured expoxy!
sanding block.
Finally, put legs on.
That produces a nicer result (though takes a bit
longer) than an orbital sander or other electric sander. Here some 1.5 inch NPT (National Pipe Thread)
pipes and flanges were used.
Begin with medium coarse (not too coarse) paper.
Be sure to apply anti galling compound so the pipe
Number 60 is a good place to start. threads don't seize up, otherwise it will be hard to
disassemble for transport later.
Then advance to finer and finer paper.
You'll need 4 flanges: 2 for the instrument and 2 for
Two coats of tough transparent floor paint was the base.
applied to the bottom.
Use stainless steel T-nuts in the base, and stainless
A nice thick coat of West epoxy to the top... inside the steel screws....
bilge, throughout the basin....
Have fun!
Get the expoxy right the first time!
Step 8: Be creative!
Here we decided to expose the innards, but in a dirty hands are using the instrument, or if leaves and
creative and tasteful way using transparent hoses to branches and other debris collect, etc.), and the
show the natural beauty of the water. The transparent pump.
hoses, when filled with water, function like cylindrical
lenses, and catch the light in a very beautiful way. Over the years, it has been our experience that the
most common point-of-failure in hydraulophones is
The open design also makes the instrument easy to the pump. By leaving the pump exposed, we can
clean and service. quickly replace it if it fails. Also we can change the
pump size for different occasions, such as a big
The pump is the heart of the instrument. concert with an 1100 GPH (Gallons Per Hour) pump,
versus a tranquil ambient instrument at around 500 or
The parts of the instrument that require service are even 360 GPH.
the filter (e.g. requires cleaning if a lot of people with
Step 9: The Proof is in the Pool
You'll know if your instrument is a success. If it is constantly surrounded by happy people having fun, you'll know
you've got a great design.

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instructables

Make an underwater instrument in your favorite shape: Hydraulophone from

Step 2: CAM: Toolpath visualization

Step 3: Cut out the layers on a CNC router (e.g. Shopbot)

Once the shape is designed, it is time to cut it out.

Before cutting, make sure the design is checked carefully.

The layers are glued together using Titebond III,

Use enough glue that some is seeping from every crack.

If you conform to this standard, you will find it easier

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