Computer engineers
This week was a happy week for all of us. Not only for our group but all the groups at least we think. The reason for that is that we have received our ordered items from AliExpress. Since we already have tested the code together with the items as a whole system we decided to further investigate our future design issues. We discussed and helped machine engineers with several tasks like setting up the rail system. Furthermore we had to dissemble our motors from the drivers and start connecting it on the beta system that our machine engineers have made. As we went further the question we were not sure if we were going to use the same drivers as we started with. Since they are a bit big so we started looking into our options. Therefore we went on by searching up drivers we have been using on other subjects before, L298N motor driver. We found that it could be used on the motors we had. We started to connecting up the motor with the new driver but it did not work. We tried to check the voltage to the motor with multimeter and found that it did not give enough voltage and there were even more cables involved to the Arduino with this solution. So we discussed more with the mechanical engineers and found that we might go ahead with the drivers we had before. Still nothing is decided yet we might come up with another solution as the time goes.
ABC requirement
Since we have some goals we have to achieve, we sometimes have to look into the requirements we have set for ourselves and therefore we came up with a good solution to the “verifying problem”. This goal was a very ambiguous goal at the beginning we did not know how hard it would be before now. Since to verify we might need some intelligence involved and that kind of code could be complicated. Therefore we had a better solution, what if the customer could use the led screen to verify that his item indeed has been picked up correctly and if not he could press a button and the machine will try again. This way we both achieve the ambiguous goal and will have a working system in the end at, least we hope.
Commenting the code
Since we have to make our code understandable we looked into different sources to make it easier for everyone in our group to understand the code and of course make it understandable for the teacher. We decided that our commenting should be standard only for the header files and also on over each section. Therefore the name giving for the variables and etc. should be very logical so that it is easier for everyone to understand. Since commenting and name giving is an art in it self. We used our creativity and set our handprint on the code. Since saving the code was forgotten when pushed to git we lost the commenting so we will provide screenshots. later on, but below you can see an example of how we comment.
/*
@desc
@parameters
@return
/*
Mechanical engineers
This week consisted largely of group work for the mechanical aspect of the project. Kim and myself (Ole Markus) worked together closely.
New parts and prototype
The parts that were ordered arrived, and work began constructing a physical prototype of the system. We encountered many challenges associated with the physical construction as fundamental parts such as screws and nuts were not freely available to us. On a stroke of luck we ran into a teacher with access to some screws and components. From this we could start some assembly. This certainly tested our ability to improvise and come up with quick solutions on the fly. See some of the components received in the picture below.
Another challenge we had this week was issues with the optics of the lasercutter. A component of the lasercutter had blocked some of the light beam causing the laser to not cut properly. We used the downtime of the lasercutter to manufacture the temporary wooden prototype support beams of the system. Nearly all of these componenets will be replaced with 3D printed parts, as plywood and wood as materials are too inaccurate resulting in less rigidity and more friction in the system. These factors were luckily small enough to allow physical testing of the prototype.
A lot of time this week was spent trying to find fundamental components, sawing wood, dealing with a faulty lasercutter and assembling the system. If we had free access to tools and components, work would run much more efficiently. Unfortunately we were not able to complete the most basic structure of the system this week due to all these challenges. See pictures of the semiassebled system below.
3D design
The most fundamental 3D parts were sent Tuesday this week in STL format to Richard for 3D printing. Hopefully we can get these parts next week or as soon as possible. The parts we received do not entirely coincide with the 3D model. Therefore some adjustments have been made to the 3D model, and some parts will need to be 3D printed again. The picture below describes the progress we’ve made on the 3D design. the movement in the z axis is a suggestion and is still being developed.
– Ole Markus & Kim
Electronics
This week the assembly of the prototype began, so while I am waiting to be able to wire up some of the components I continued working on the wiring diagram. I also started thinking about what type of wires I wanted to use, soft or hard. Considering there are many moving parts, soft wires are the best option for those parts of the system. However, where there is no movement I can use hard wires, which are more sturdy.
– Mathias