NuVu ToolBox is a comprehensive system of objects designed to help inexperienced creators realize their ideas with the tools available.

With the two sets of objects, students can either use the toolbox to help with creating three-dimensional objects or designing simple mechanisms. The first set of objects are the “Forms”, these help students conceptualize the available manufacturing methods and pick the most appropriate one for their design. The forms include fabrication techniques such as laser cut tabs, laser cut stacked slices, 3d printing, concrete molding, and laser cut and scored paper. With each method three objects are made, a rectangular prism, a cylinder and a sphere. These three objects represent most shapes in the most basic form; rectilinear shapes, singly curved shapes, and doubly curved shapes. The second set of objects are the mechanisms, these objects have the job to show students how to use the NuVu tools to transfer motion and torque. Mechanisms such as gears, ratchets, bevel gears, linkages, belts and cams are shown. Both the mechanisms and forms inhabit a uniform bounding box of 52x52x90mm and all the mechanisms are created within a rectangular prism. Both the forms and the mechanisms have holders to store, organize and display the objects on the wall. 

The NuVu ToolBox is designed to minimize the gap between longer term students and new ones. When new students come, one of the major hurtles is the fact that they do not know what is possible to make at NuVu. With the NuVu Toolbox all the most common fabrication techniques are covered as well as different ways to use the tools and material properties to make motion systems.

When a new student is ready to move on from hand prototyping, chances are they do not know the best way to make what they have designed out of more final materials. This is where the NuVu ToolBox comes in. Either the student can approach the wall of objects to assess the options and then pick the best suited method or mechanism for their design. Or a coach can use the objects to explain to a student how to use the method or adapt the design to be easier to fabricate.