1. The Principles and Practices of Fab Academy

Goal(s)

  • Introduction and past Lectures by Neil and briefings by Jim.
  • Plan and sketch a potential final project.

Introduction

Today we start the Fab Academy process and there was quite a bit of information imparted by my mentors Jim Seelan and Pradnya S. Given that I have been making laser projects and operating the Lab for the past 2 years, it looks like the course will focus on hardcore DIY from scratch over the kit-based plug and play method with which I have been quite comfortable.

Lectures (Summary)

Neil’s Lecture 1 (2017) - Always complete assignments in time

Neil’s Lecture 1 (2018) - Daily documentation is a must

Neil’s Lecture 1 (2019) - Report all results including negative results

Briefing by Jim Seelan (Local Guru)

  • Always complete projects on time
  • Report all results
  • Do daily and detailed documentation

Potential Final Project Sketch

Since I am from a Biotechnology background, there was a project that got a lot of media attention and the project was about a creating an alternative to single-use plastic from seaweed and the first sample we made (by hand) using simple chemistry is shown below.

So I decided to make a machine or automatic system that would be able to make these on dmenad whenever it was required. The potential sketch for this machine is shown below.

The Water Bubble machine is a response to this project that debuted with great fanfare in the UK for showcasing how packaging can be made using renewable and biodegradable materials and be made cost-effective on par with Plastic.

The final sketch is illustrated in a flowchart below for the understanding of the type of work involved

From the response expected in the media, we already have

  • Multiple local restaurants
  • Event organisers and
  • Packaging manufacturers

Who want to adopt and incorporate this technology into their existing workflows and processes.

Since this is a large project, I plan to break it down into subsystems and achieve atleast one subsystem during this course

Processes expected to be used:

  • Design, cutting and machining of the outer body and the basic mechanism.

  • Machine Design for the project to function on a semi-automated basis.

  • 3D Printing of any custom molds or parts.

  • Basic Electronic control of the project using a temperature sensor as an input and an LCD screen for output

Temperature Sensor - Input

LCD Sensor - Output

Approximate cost is expected to fall below $200 / INR 14,000/-

This is also detailed on the introductory page.