Stove Part I: Brainstorming and Designing

And here begins the story of Fiona, Kelsey, and Alex's aluminum stove.

We began the design process with some visual brainstorming. Below are some of the sketches we came up with:

 We played with varying levels of heat, different sized grates for pots, and different overall shapes. In our design process we focused on improving air flow and maximizing heat. We decided that we liked the idea of a trapezoid-like top to the stove, so that the heat would be directed well towards and spread out well under the pot. We then decided a chimney would be an important facet for directing smoke away from the user, given how unhealthy and dangerous it is to inhale smoke. We decided to have a door so that we could vary the amount of air entering the stove. Below is a picture of our original design with original dimensions:

And below is a sketch of the front and back of our stove design:

 As you will see from our finished product, the stove design and dimensions changed quite a bit over time. In this part of the stove-making process, I think we did a good job combining the good ideas from all of our sketches.

Stay tuned for part II!