Meet the 12x12x12.

[~Phoenix Death~]

v-cubes.com

 

[bobso2]

who can tell me where can buy the...6x6x6,7x7x7cube.tell me please...

www.v-cubes.com

 

[d4m4s74]

I don't get it. Is this made using the v-cubes patent or is this an original design?

 

[PEZenfuego]

v cube only goes 2-11. The creator claims that it does not use v cube mechanism. It doesn't matter though because unless he/she patents it, we aren't going to see the mechanism.

 

[xb27]

My school's web cannot go to the Twistypuzzle.com lol

Can anyone help me to see that? Tks

 

[Me Myself & Pi]

That's terrible! Well, anyway, here's what the topics look like. Let me know if you you can't see the pictures, because I linked directly to the topics. At liljthedude's suggestion below, I've put this really LONG post in a spoiler thingy.

Spoiler

Upcoming puzzle - the 12th cube

Hi all,

Below is a preview of the upcoming cube. As you know, there must be something different from usual rather than the number of layers. More information will be supplied within this topic in a couple of weeks.

I am a newbie, so go easy.

Now, it takes the God a few more scratches.

After some questions, here's how he answered:

Thanks for your attention! Here are answers to some questions:

@Kapusta: No, it is highly unlikely that it will be mass produced due to free shaped parts as well as commercial considerations.

To make a clear cut with the design of Mr. Verdes, I defined a quantity for my explanation:
R(redundancy of a cube) = T(total number of parts) - N(number of parts with visible faces).
In my design, quantity R remains constant for any number of layers. Yes, no hidden layers.

@Drewseph: This picture was snapped about a month ago while testing accuracy, the corners were simply not installed at that time.

@RoboticFresca: No shape changing, just a normal cube with a few more layers. Corners were normally handled, too.

It is big because the new mechanism is especially economic for large cubes.

I'll answer some questions here.

@merlintocs: Although Youtube is banned here, it will be posted somewhere.

@Namegoeswhere: The dimension is approximately 10cm, although I don't think it a best choice.

@schuma: Actually 9x9x9 and 13x13x13 has already been built in some factory, people commented 'going an easy way'. But, who cares. We simply have to move forward.

But...
@bruckhorn: I don't think I have any connection with this factory. Best size of a cube depends largely on individuals, that's why putting a cube with 10+ layers into mass production could be very dangerous. Customization is arguably a better choice.

@Sven: By 'hidden layers' I mean in the well known sense of V6.

@Dave: Thank you for moving this thread into the right section, you're absolutely right.

@Kewija: Yeah, too many parts within a tight assembly, but still less than that of Petaminx.

@elijah: I do believe that people concentrating really hard on mech will come up with a handful of solutions, so it's never a problem for the masters here. And, as you know, this mech is directly applicable in 6x6x6, 8x8x8, 10x10x10 etc. What happens if I post the mech? Hmmm.... So, forgive me.

@MeMyselfAndPi: You are right. The definition of 'inner layers' is vague enough to include the supporting shell(like that of Petaminx V2). So I prefer to calculate the 'redundancy'(defined in my previous reply) of a cube. Something will be different if you extend V6 to V12.

Enjoy!

@jmcclure: Surely enough, there must be a core.

@Pantazis:
Hi Pantazis, as far as I know from TP, you've been very active in defending for IPs as well as accusing KO factories, fully appreciated. However, I have solid reasons that my mechanism remains fair even if it goes back to 6x6x6.

We all know that there is always a high risk when releasing new designs to the public. KO activities are just sad facts compared with a somewhat happier fact that new designs will eventually show up.

And as I mentioned earlier in this post, I have nothing to do with those KO factories, nor do I know anyone of those groups. Third party individuals are so negligible to launch a battle against the robberies of IPs. All I can do is to keep off from KO products as conciously as I can.

@Garrett:
Hi Garrett, I don't own any of minx series puzzles. And I don't even own a V-cube too, just a Rubik's 5x5x5 at hand. So I'm really sorry to have no further supporting materials.

@MaxXimum13: Megaminx = 3 layered, Gigaminx = 5 layered, Teraminx = 7 layered, Petaminx = 9 layered, am I right? If yes, gigaminx is available from local markets at a price of about 5xx RMB. Sadly aside, there is a market.

The number 12 was selected at the beginning of my project. One of the reasons was to keep as far away as possible from any kind of debates by the time of release. I did hope so as there were too many discussions about KO products. And I'll stop mentioning the word 'KO' within this post from now on.

Just enjoy!

Parts ready


Due to sharp drop in temperature recent days(southern China), molding/casting costs more time.

Then he posted this topic:

The world's first 12x12x12 cube (not stickered)

I must confess that I've already calmed down to finally see it working, do you? Sorry for a long wait.

There are some black parts, it's just for test of solid dyeing in replacement of stickering which is not quite suitable for small facelets.

Some background info


Someday in April this year when I was wandering in a local bookstore, an impressive puzzle caught my eyes firmly. It's a cube with hundreds of facelets, V7.

How did they make it? Filled up with wonders, I did a lot of searches when I was back in home. Finally, the patent of Mr. Verdes came into my sight. Can you imagine the feeling when I saw the file? Incredible! So much appreciations go to Mr. Verdes!

mf8 & TP are essentially two major forums when I was searching for related key words. With the information therein, I was able to catch a glimpse of the latest technologies behind those big assemblies as well as flushes of inspiring thoughts and comments. They simply became my daily readings, which finally led me to the 12x12x12 project.

The whole project starts from the well-known 'hidden layer' which I thought was unnecessary. Although I'm not explaining the detailed strategy to achieve a new mechanism(as most designers do), it is true that careful investigations of Mr. Verdes' file along with some other patent files were carried out. Huge thanks to Mr. Verdes as well as his excellent designs.

Another goal of this project is to explore the area of extra-high order cubes, esp popping & alignment issues. By 'extra-high order' I mean when layers increase above 10. Every intermediate rotational layer will contain more than 30 parts. If a small gap is allowed for each part, then there's a possibility that there can be a gap of 30 times larger than normal when the layer is squeezed in one direction.

The kick off decision was made by the fact that I saw very few attemps to make normal cubes of higher order in both of the forums. I didn't know why since there were so many odd shapes being tried out.

It has been more than 6 months since this 12th cube was designed. Although I prefer theoretical investigations, I felt it necessary to make it real. Well, "have to be made".

I love it.

Enjoy!

Leslie

& finally, this topic:

The process of making the 12th cube

The process of making the cube

Roughly half a year ago, I know nothing about molding/casting. It was TP that helped me out of difficulties in 12x12x12 project. Although I took a different routine finally, I felt it naturally to share with you my limited experiences.

1. Prepare with masters
STL file -> SLA model -> sanding -> polishing.
Perfect sanding/polishing of masters is required. It took me 3 days to polish 30+ master parts. Each master part goes through a tedious procedure: 600 -> 800 -> 1000 -> 1200 + water -> cotton + polishing oil.

Why SLA model? The most precise RP technology available in factories here.

Before moving forward, following things must be cleared:
a) casting method: gravity casting/low pressure injection mould
Why gravity casting? Because I use PU liquid with low viscosity(comparable with water).
b) materials at hand: TSE3477(Silicone rubber)/MU59(PU liquid)
Why TSE3477/3488? Factories here use this rubber to duplicate cell phone covers, it's extremely precise, very strong. I was unable to order a galon of MoldMax from local dealers -- they just ignored my inquiries.
Why MU59? Extremely strong(you will prefer sanding ABS parts rather than this material), low viscosity, relatively acceptable price. In fact, I've tried some other PU liquids including hei-CAST 8150(Japan), RP600, PX100, etc.
c) available devices: vaccuum pump, vaccuum chamber(DIY), electronic balance, thermostated container(DIY).
They are required for most rubbers and PU liquids.

2. Mould design
With shining masters at hand, a careful design of mould is necessary.
As far as I know, there are basically two factors to be considered,
1) parting line,
2) casting direction(gravity casting)
After a careful examination, each part comes up with two intersecting planes(approximately). This confliction was eliminated by arranging parts along a conic surface. Then parts are fixed to the flow channel system. Air tunnels must be glued on parts, vertically. Make sure the whole system is strong enough to sustain a shower of silicone rubber.
Now, we are ready to move forward.

3.Molding
Although TSE3477 has a long pot life(~4 hours, 25 centigrade), pre-degassing of gel and curing agent are needed. After then, they were mixed thoroughly and poured into mold cavity. The whole mould was then moved into vaccuum chamber for degassing.
A mold with flow tunnels and air outlets can be finished in three days.

4.Demolding
Here comes the most painful step. First, TSE3488 is very strong, to open the mold you usually need a co-worker. Second, in order to keep cuts clear and exact, great patience must be paid. The parts of 12th cube are quite free-shaped so difficulties increase.
This step usually takes several hours.

5.Casting
This is the most tedious step. Weighing->degassing->mixing->degassing->pouring->degassing->put into thermostated container->wait and sand finished parts.
But why bother? Because we are producing many parts, at least 20, at a time.
This step takes many many hours, mostly being waiting desperately.

6.Finishing
If every previous step was finished with high quality, the resulting parts will be shining as well. Only two to three cuts(flow/air tunnel rudimentals) are needed before ready hence a nice dismiss of time during castings.

Hope you enjoy!

Leslie

 

[liljthedude]

MM&P Put it in a spoiler tag

Spoiler

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[iSpinz]

Amazing!

With the amount of parts in this monster, I can't even imagine how much it would cost.

As for me, I know I would want one, but I don't think I would pay for one. Even my V-cube 7 hardly ever sees any action these days. It just takes too long to solve.

Well a 17x17 is 3500 so.... maybe 2500?

 

[sky]

thanks...

 

[~Phoenix Death~]

It would probably feel like hell to
1)Disassemble and Assemble the CUbe
2)Sanding down EACH piece. Sanding an Eastsheen 4x4x4 is already painful.
3)Laying them all out to Lube
4)Put stickers on them...Scratch that, tiles.
5)Your friend thru it on the ground. Punch him.
6)To even buy it.

...Hmmm...shouldn't the cube be just a widdle bit more round?