Final Project¶
“Ayes” Concept¶
I plan to make a humidifier for my eyes to relax them as my eyes always feel not so good and sometimes there has blood in eyes especially after I wear contacting glasses for a whole day. Eyes is the windows for the heart, it’s also the windows for exploring the colorful world. So it’s never too much to pay much attention to protect our eyes and relax eyes with multi-methods.
The eyes humidifier should be small enough to put in my bag and stay with me. In this way, I can relax my eyes at anyplace in anytime, especially in the subway. I always sleep with wearing the contacting glasses in the subway, and when I wake up, my eyes is extremely dry. If there is moist for eyes, the eyes should be feel better.
The first design of my project is
It could release the steam when the button is pressed. The tired eyes could feel better in the mist.
The purpose of my final project is to improve the above prototype in the following points : - Allow enough cool mist to reach the skin of eyes and help the eyes to relax and not dry anymore. - The mist could last for several minutes, press the button once, the mist appear.When you press the button twice, there’s no more mist coming out. - The electric board module is apart from the water container as the mist & water could make the wire or board rust. - Ayes is not only one eye humidifire, but also maybe one decoration.
Who has done what beforehand?¶
I find several similar final project in the Fablab, they are - FLO made by Kae-Nagano The FLO is an interactive fireplace humidifier. When you put fire wood, the size of flame will change accordingly. - Grow IT Yourself made by Albot Dima The project is a self contained growing system that cultivates plants from seed to maturity. Ultrasonic atomizer is used to water the plants through fertilizer-infused mist.The mist generator itself is purchased and MOS FET on the original board controls the output. - Cogus made by João Milheiro Cogus is a mushroom cultivation system. Ultrasonic mist generator is used for watering.
Design¶
The AYES is consists of following modules.
- The eyeball & Water container module
- Electric board module
The eyeball & water container module The eyeball module is designed to put eyes on it directly and enjoy the mist. For 1st verson, I design a eyeball shape in Rhino and print it by Ultimaker printer with PLA materials. It could focus the mist on the eyes and after 10 seconds, the water starts to drop from my eyes skin.
The water container is to supply enough water for the mist generator, and to add water easily. It looks like a simple container and is printed by 3 D printer.
So in my second trail, I design a flower to allow the mist spread out in the air, and my eyes could feel the cool mist and get relaxed without more liquid water remain in the skin. The water container is smaller but could contain enough water.
Electric board module
The module has 4 components, including the mist generator driver board, Ayes board that control the on/off of mist generator, the mist generator and the battery. - Mist generator driver board that I use is bought from Taobao. It needs 5 V, could connect with 2 atomized films and control them.
- Ayes board is designed to program and control the mist generator by connectting the GND & VCC & EN1 pins.
- The mist generator is a atomized film with one cotton swab, which could make the water vibrate and forms the mist. In this way, the mist is always cool and won’t hurt eyes, no matter how high temperature the water you use.
- The power could use USB wire or 1.5 V * 3 batteries. As the electric module is afraid of water, so I plan to design a seperate part for this module.
Problems & errors that I met¶
- In my first draft, there’s nothing to fix the atomized plate and it moves around and is easily broken. So I desgin one component to hold it tightly and also can fix the water container and flower part.
BOM (Bill of materials)¶
The materials and components will be required for the final project.
Used Processes¶
how it evaluate?¶
- Can the humidifier continue to release mist for 2 minute?
- Can the mist fromthe humidifier touch the skin of eyes?
- Is the humidifier small enough that I put in my bag and I can use it at anypalce?
What other questions need to be answered?¶
- Does Ayes have any other functions? The cool mist could relax the eyes and reduce the symptoms of dry eyes. And warm air could speed up the blood circulation and reduce the chance to feel uncomfortable. So I want to add LED to provide the heat in the 2nd trial.
- Can I design and make all the parts that I need? I bought the mist generation driver board in Taobao, which is very big and can connect with two atomized film/plates. I have to design and cut a big wooden box to put it in. However, Ayes just need one, so I’d like to design one driver board as small as possible.
What I learned?¶
This is my first time to design and make something totally by myself. I have many ideas and don’t know how to choose one as the final project. Until my instructor suggest me to spend several days to record my life and find what I really needed. Then I found my eyes alway feel dry and sometimes painful as I like wearing contacting glasses and watching the PC screen whole day long. So I plan to design and make one small humidifier for my eyes.
At first, I want to make one pretty beautiful and powerful eyes humidifier. My idea is too big and I don’t know where to start and alway delay doing it. Until my instructor tell me that my first trial could be very simple thing, then iterate it based on the first trial product. He also suggest me to quickly draw the first sketch in 10 minutes with the basic and necessary elements. The suggestion is very helpful. I finish my first draft, meanwhile I draw it in the Rhino, print it in the same day and even start to write code for Ayes. Then I spend much time on changing the shapes and codes to make a eye humidifier which is useful and could meet the purpose of my final project.
I never though I could make a such beautiful eyes humidifier looking like a record player when I started to do it. I am surprised by myself. Never look down SIMPLE . Everything can be simplified to a simple idea, can be finished by many simple steps, can be developed and itareted by some simple changes.
Future step of the project¶
My second trail will be - Change the button to capacitor touching button as input device. - The mist is cold, not warm. And warm eye mask can accelerate the blood circulation, so I want to increase LED to provide a little heat for eyes. - Change the shape of flower to allow more cool mist could go out of the flower not remain inside of the flower. - Design and solder a mist generator driver board, make sure the elctric parts in a small size and prepare to create a much smaller Ayes which is small enough to put in a small bag and take with myself. - If possible, design Ayes as small as possible that could put in the little bag and take with me. - If possible, the Ayes might combine with the tomato timer. It could count donwn, the cool mist will auto-release when the time is gone.
Files¶
Mist control board
3D models
References¶
Special Thanks¶
Thanks my instructor Mr. Saverio. He is a experienced, humor and kindly teacher. He not only teaches me how to use the machine in Fablab, how to start my final project and make it out, but also how to resolve it when I meet one problem, how to bulid the maker thinking mode, how to use the thinking mode in my life.
Thanks Mr. Neil. He is a knowledgable, humor and kindly teacher. His courses not only provide creative and excellent ideas, expands my mind,but also teach how to make something impossible, changing the impossible to possible. His courses deserves to review again and again, and each time I can learn new knowledge from it.
Thanks all the teachers in Fablab O Shanghai and Fablab Asia network for their suggestions and help.
Thanks my family, friends and classmates for their understanding and support.