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Mechanical Design & Mashine Design

This week’s goal was to collaboratively design, build, actuate, and automate a machine that combines mechanisms, electronics, and software, while documenting both the group project and my individual contribution.

Introduction

As part of FabAcademy Machine Building Week we developed Artista Amara, a machine intended to automate parts of the latte art process through a combination of motion control, milk foaming, sensor feedback, relay-based actuation, and a browser-based user interface. Over the course of roughly two weeks, we invested around 330 hours into the project.

This is a summary of the main tasks we worked on during the project. Not every small task, workaround, or spontaneous problem-solving step is included here, but we hope the overall scale of the work still becomes clear.

Concept

Compared Machine Ideas

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Sketched Machine Function

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Project Management

Structured Task Groups

Contribution:

Nico: 30% William: 70%

Maintained Build Backlog

Contribution:

Nico: 70% William: 30%

Salvage

Collected Coffee Machines

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Collected ATX PSU ANET V1-5 Ultimaker Mini Prusa MK3

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Extracted Pump Heating Element

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Planning

Worked Out Schematic

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Planned Frother

Contribution:

Nico: 70% William: 30%

Researched Stable Foam For Visual Media

Contribution:

Nico: 80% William: 20%

Evaluated Mesh And Screen Structures

Contribution:

Nico: 90% William: 10%

Considered The Influence Of Pump Heat And Screens

Contribution:

Nico: 60% William: 40%

Evaluated Pump Selection And Behavior

Contribution:

Nico: 90% William: 10%

Considered Behavior At Lower Voltage

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Considered Tube Pinching As A Valve Principle

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Researched Solenoid Valves And Pinch Valves

Contribution:

Nico: 70% William: 30%

Considered Fluid Dynamic Effects

Contribution:

Nico: 80% William: 20%

Prepared AliExpress Order

Contribution:

Nico: 30% William: 70%

Prepared Reichelt Order

Contribution:

Nico: 10% William: 90%

Researched Veneer And Finish

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Precise Planning Of The Machine After Testing

Contribution:

Nico: 90% William: 10%

Drew A System Diagram

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Planned And Revised Adapter Parts

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Prepared Last Minute Component Orders

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Plumbing

Selected Tube Adapters

Contribution:

Nico: 70% William: 30%

Turned Hose Adapters

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Cut Threads

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Connected Devices With Tubing

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Built A Cleaning Station

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Tests

Tested PSU Output

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Tested Pump

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Tested Heating Element

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Reverse Engineered ANET

Contribution:

Nico: 30% William: 70%

Ran Blink Test On ANET

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Measured Through Glass

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Measured Coffee Surface Distance

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Infinite Foaming Up Milk Tests

Contribution:

Nico: 80% William: 20%

Tested Nozzle With Milk

Contribution:

Nico: 80% William: 20%

Tested Filament LED Voltage And Current

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Tested ESP32-S3 Controller

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Frame

Cut Frame Poles

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Inserted M4 Nuts Screws And Angle Connectors

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Rebuilt Acrylic Walls

Contribution:

Nico: 60% William: 40%

Added Threads And Feet

Contribution:

Nico: 20% William: 80%

Added Bottom Printing Room Plate

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Added Base Plate

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Motion

Raised Z MK3 Steppers

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Used Prusa MK3 Steppers

Contribution:

Nico: 33.33% William: 66.66%

Case

Cut Ultimaker Panels

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Exposed Aluminum Finish

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Mounted Side Walls

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Added Holes And Threads To Rear Plate

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Designed PSU Case

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Built Heating Element Case Pump Brackets

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Designed Outer Walls

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 0%

Designed Mug Bed

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Engraved Mug Bed Logo Plate

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Integrated ToF Sensor

Contribution:

Nico: 15% William: 85%

Prepared Glass Cover For ToF

Contribution:

Nico: 20% William: 0%

Prepared LED Ring

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Integrating Nozzle

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Logic Circuit

Desoldered R52 And R53

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Configured Marlin For ANET

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Flashed Marlin

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Built Raspi Website

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Built G Code Conversion

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Created Raspberry Pi AP

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Designed Milled And Soldered Pi HAT

Contribution:

Nico: 0% William: 100%

Electronics

Wired 240V Components

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Grounded Components

Contribution:

Nico: 20% William: 80%

Installed Wago Distributors

Contribution:

Nico: 100% William: 0%

Wired Voltage Levels

Contribution:

Nico: 70% William: 30%

Crimped And Prepared Cables

Contribution:

Nico: 10% William: 90%

Integration

Installed Vee Belt

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Installed Threaded Rods

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Installed Bed Rod

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Printed Alignment Spacers

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%

Wired All Axis And Ran First 3 Axis Motion Test

Contribution:

Nico: 50% William: 50%