Week 11. Mechanical Design

Before the Start

Introduction 🖊

This week relates to creating a Machine in a group.

I did work together with Bas, Sander, and Saco. We built a Zoetrope Machine + a mechanical hand which is able to draw.

Fab Assignments 📚

• Group assignment:

  • Design a machine that includes mechanism + actuation + automation.
  • Build the mechanical parts and operate it manually.
  • Document the group project.

• Individual assignment:

  • Document your individual contribution.

My Goals 🎯

• What I think I already know:

  • I never built a machine before. I have theorical experience working with machines because of my background.

• What I want to learn:

  • Build a machine to work with biomaterials, or a machine to play with light.
  • Build a kinetic art machine.

Project Management

How I’m going to organize my work during the week.

Research

Our machine has 3 main systems which are needed to be developed:

1. Zoetrope system.
2. Mechanical Arm which Draws.
3. Projection System.

I designed the Projection System together with Saco.

Research Projection System:

Those are the websites which I researched in order to design the Projection System of our mechanism:

• Overhead Projector - Animation Video
• How to Make a Projector for Wall Murals
• How Does An Overhead Projector Work?
• Which Lenses Are Used In Projectors?

Research mechanism for the draw hand

During the Process

Results 🖖

Group Assignment Process 🏊‍♀️ 🏊🏾 🏊🏽‍♀️

In the attached link can be found the group development of the project. We worked as a team in the ideation of the project, the design of the systems, and the manufacturing, assembling, and testing of the machine.

Link to repo with the group assigment info

Individual Assignment Process 🏊‍♀️

As my individual contribution to the project, I mostly worked on the design of the systems, and manufacturing of the components.

Product Design

Due to my background as an industrial designer, my first task in the group was to 3d design the system. I used Fusion 360 in order to do that. Attached are photos of the result:

Projection system research:

I researched and designed the Projection System together with Saco. We bought an old cinema projector which was disassembled to understand how it works. We use that knowledge to design a very similar system in our machine:

Kicad board design:

I designed together with Sander a board which we used to work with the light sensor in the mechanisms:

Mechanical Components Design:

System Design

Disk Design + Production with the Laser Cutter Machine

I did 3d design and fabricated the components of the system that interface with the electronics parts. Attached pics of them:

3D development of components + Production

Assambling

Retrospective 🤔

It was a long week. I think we did a great job, even if we did not have the result we were looking for.

When working in a team, is needed more time to work together in the same place, and we missed it because of our other responsabilities.