Week 17: Applications and Implications
Individual Assignment: Plan a final project masterpiece that integrates the range of units covered, answering the questions and keeping in mind that
- Your project should incorporate 2D and 3D design, additive and subtractive fabrication processes, electronics design and production, embedded microcontroller design, interfacing, and programming, system integration and packaging
- Where possible, you should make rather than buy the parts of your project
- Projects can be separate or joint, but need to show individual mastery of the skills, and be independently operable
What will it do?
Short answer: glorified chocolate dispenser
Long answer: the project and duplicates of it will be a limited interface between myself and various places of work and play around the world, especially at the academy (IRA) in Kazakhstan. Chocolate afficianados know that Kazakh chocolate is prized for its taste and purity. This project will allow students and friends to access small Kazakh chocolates on demand through keycards, they will also have a personalised greeting on the integrated OLED display.
If not in the first iteration, then hopefully in the next, they may also receive a personalised audio message, and I would also be informed by Telegram when someone has accessed a chocolate. It will make me happy to know that someone nice is enjoying something nice, and if the project is durable, and I have someone trustyworthy to restock, then I may continually get these nice messages from various locales around the planet.
Who's done what beforehand?
Nobody has made precisely this project before, specifically with small chocolates coming out from a Robot's mouth/head at a Robotics academy using the bus cards of children, and that's the point - it's something new.
Of course there are vending machines, and of course people use keycards. There are even Arduino vending machine projects available online that are accessed or "paid for" by RFID cards. So these are very similar. Some of the good examples are here, here, here, and here. But our project is nevertheless a unique combination, inspired by international life and travel, fine chocolate, and good people.
What sources will you use?
By far the biggest source of information will be Sheikh Saheen. Although he is young, he has a deep knowledge of electronics all topics of Fab Academy. Of course our friend perplexity.ai will be of great assistance, as well as various projects and tutorials on the different devices that will be incorporated into the project.
What will you design?
We'll need to design a few things, as well as the integration of those things:
- Candy dispenser mechanism (Fusion 360, motor/gears)
- Structural form of head - 3D printed (Fusion 360)
- Board with ESP32-C6, connected to devices (Kicad)
What materials and components will be used? Where will they come from? How much?
As we'll make a few copies of the project, we must carefully calculate the cost as well as keep that cost to a minimum. Note that while we purchase the components in different countries, we calculate the cost in dollars. The total cost is $20 as detailed below:
| Item | Source | Link | Cost | Quantity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| XIAO ESP32-C6 | **fablab inventory** | Seeed Studio | $6 | 1 |
| RC522 Module | radiomart.kz | RC522 Kit | $2 | 1 |
| Hall Effect Sensor | **fablab inventory** | Texas Instruments | $1 | 1 |
| VEX Robotics 393 Motor | IRA - Almaty | VEX Robotics | $4 | 1 |
| Motor Controller 29 | IRA - Almaty | VEX Robotics | $2 | 1 |
| eSUN PLA+ Filament | Kaspi | eSUN 3D | $4 | 200g |
| Copper Plate | **fablab inventory** | Copper-plated boards | $1 | 1 |
Total cost: $20
What parts and systems will be made?
We plan to make what we designed:
- Candy dispenser mechanism
- Structural form of head
- Board with ESP32-C3, connected to devices
What processes will be used?
- Autodesk Fusion 360 to design the head
- Bambu Lab A1 mini to print our design
- Kicad for design of PCB
- Rolland Milling Machine for engraving the PCB
- Inkscape for design of logos
- Siloutte vinyl cutter for production
What questions need to be answered?
- Reliability: Can the mechanism be strong and reliable? Can it deliver chocolates consistently and not get jammed?
- Likeability: Will the children find the Robot head and interface comfortable, friendly and inviting (not scary)?
How will it be evaluated?
I'll consider the project a success if it works:
- Children can get chocolate (and personalised messages)
- It works consistently and reliably (even when I'm not there)
In other words, as long as the Robot successfully dispenses the chocolate when presented with the child's bus card through the RFID system - and give a personalized greeting! - then I will call it a success.