Propose a final project masterpiece that integrates the range of units covered, answering:
What will it do?
I plan on building an animal (most likely a reptile) habitat. It will monitor conditions inside the habitat to alert the pet owner if conditions are not suitable for the animal.
Who's done what beforehand?
It appears that no one in the FabAcademy custom Google search has done anything with animal habitats. I got a few hits with just "animal" in the search, but nothing relevant. I then searched for "habitat" and found a couple interesting projects. The first was Matthew Hotsko's (2018) Final Project related to keeping plants alive outside their natural habitat. There is a lot here for me to look at and consider. There was also Ariel Ekblaw's project from the CBA class about possible space habitats, but that one seems less relevant to my interests.
I then ventured into real Google territory, not just the FabAcademy custom Google search. My first attempt was to look up "smart animal habitat" but that only got me hits about smart animals, not smart as in sensors and such. So then I searched for "sensor animal habitat". I found a really interesting paper out of Berkeley on monitoring animal habitats in the wild which is not what I am looking for but very interesting and I will probably read that later. In fact, most of the relevant hits on this search were related to monitoring animals in the wild. Most of them were behind a paywall, but I am going to email the authors of the RatMote paper and see if they will send it to me. Adding the word "pet" to the search phrase didn't noticeably improve my results. A couple Amazon products that were nothing more than temperature and humidity gauges. Finally, I added the word "microprocessor" to my search and got a result of a Meta Analysis called Smart Computing and Sensing Technologies for Animal Welfare: A Systematic Review. In conclusion, it appears that not much has been done on this topic.
What will you design?
The plan is to build and/or design the following items:
What materials and components will be used?
I will use plywood, PLA, burlap, resin, wood glue, acrylic, copper one sided board, resistors, LEDs (red and green), capacitors, ATMega328, header pins, LED strip, ambient light sensor, wire, millable acrylic, Smooth Sil 940, Smooth On Urethane, and vinyl.
Where will the materials come from?
Some pieces will be ordered from Amazon and Adafruit, the burlap was from Joann Fabrics and Crafts, Home Depot and Lowes for wood, and finally a local plastics company, Piedmont Plastics, for my acrylic pieces.
How much will they cost?
See the following Google Sheet for parts and prices
What parts and systems will be made?
I will make all the parts and systems I described above
What processes will be used?
I will use Project Management, CAD/CAM (Fusion 360 and Eagle), Computer Controlled Cutting (laser and vinyl) and Machining (OtherMill and ShopBot), Electronics Design and Production, 3-D Printing, Molding and Casting, Arduino Interface for Embedded Programming, Input and Output Programming, and Composite Design. I will also solder the PCB pieces together.
What questions need to be answered?
I am still working on designing my PCB to run the input and output. I am also trying to figure out if this project shows "enough" intergration of the skills I have learned.
How will it be evaluated?
I would like it be evaluated on aesthetics, i.e. does it look good? Would you want it in your home or office? Additionally, I would like it to be evaluated on functionality, i.e. does it work? Does it do what it's supposed to do?
Your project should incorporate 2D and 3D design, additive and subtractive fabrication processes, electronics design and production, microcontroller interfacing and programming, system integration and packaging
Where possible, you should make rather than buy the parts of your project