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David T.

Industrial and computational designer

Palo Alto, United States

Global rank:

12,008 / 135,534

Skill pts: 5

2D Sketching Blender CAD Design GIS Parametric Design

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About

Hands-on prototyper with M.S. in Computational Design (Carnegie Mellon) and B.S. in Industrial Design. Blends CNC/CAM (Haas + Fusion 360), composites & thermoforming, and fixtures/DFM with capture → photogrammetry → Unity pipelines. Comfortable switching between parametric CAD, physical builds, and concise documentation.

I specialize in parametric design, 3D reconstruction and modular systems.
I am a Rhino3D and Grasshopper expert but also use Solidworks, Fusion 360, Agisoft Metashape, Unity and any tools necessary to complete a job.
From orthotics design, jewelry, eyewear, personal mobility products, toys, housewares, wearable technology, cars/motorcycle components, cultural preservation and more I bring a wide range of practical experience.
CAD/CAM & Shop: Fusion 360 CAD/CAM, Rhino, SolidWorks; Haas 3-/5-axis; workholding/fixtures; finishing
Composites & Molding: Manual layup; thermoformed & bladder processes; vacuum & rotational molding
Computational/Parametric: Grasshopper, GhPython, Python; parametric systems for product customization
Reality Capture & 3D: Photography/video, LiDAR, photogrammetry (Agisoft Metashape), CloudCompare; Unity ingest
Electronics/Test: Wiring, soldering, basic inspection & test fixtures; documentation & SOPs
In progress: FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot

Experience

Industrial Designer Insightful Orthotics · Freelance Jun 2018 – Present 8 yrs MA, United States Industrial design and DFM support for orthotic devices. Iterated CAD and documentation for manufacture.
Industrial Designer Wallfacer Design · Self-employed Jan 2018 – Present 8 yrs 5 mos Palo Alto, CA, United States Self developed products such as Mica camera filters and contract work for other companies.
Computational designer Onshore Momentum / Signet · Full-time Sep 2024 – Jan 2025 4 mos OH, United States Built customer-tailored parametric jewelry design systems (Rhino/Grasshopper/GhPython). Delivered rapid DFM studies and clean handoffs.
Tools Mold Designer & Fabricator Rapid TPC · Full-time Jan 2020 – Jan 2022 2 yrs Pittsburgh, PA, United States • Designed molds and fixtures for thermoplastic-formed composites (Fusion 360, Inventor, Rhino3D).
• Supported layup/forming and operated CNC router; tuned process parameters and documented best practices.
CNC Machinist Conturo Prototyping · Full-time Nov 2020 – Sep 2021 10 mos Pittsburgh, PA, United States • Programmed and ran Haas 3- and 5-axis using Fusion 360 CAM for low–medium volume prototype parts.
• Provided DFM guidance and selected/created workholding.
Industrial design Source Design International · Part-time Jan 2020 – Dec 2020 11 mos Pittsburgh, PA, United States contract; consumer products; Fusion 360/Rhino
Documentation Engineer Nextfab Makerspace · Full-time May 2019 – Feb 2020 9 mos Philadelphia, PA, United States • Produced training guides for CNC, welding, casting, and woodshop processes using technical writing, photography, and layout.

Education

Carnegie Mellon University MS, Computational Design 2022 – 2024 • MS Thesis — Reality Integrated Design: capture (photo/LiDAR) → photogrammetry → interactive Unity experiences.
DTAD — St. Nicholas Chapel: photogrammetry + LiDAR alignment developed into a first‑person Unity walkthrough.
Reality Computing Studio — Schenley Park Tufa Bridges: field photogrammetry and game‑engine integration.
Philadelphia University BS, Industrial Design 2016 – 2019 Research, development, CAD/CAM, all design software, fabrication and craft work, presentation skills and more- a well rounded industrial design education.

Other experience

CMU Work‑Study Roles (2022–2024): videographer; robotic binder 3D printing assistant; DTAD team support
OSHWA OSHWA‑certified open hardware project “Geometer” (ID: US000157); features in Hackaday and related publications.