WEEK 10.1: FIXING A CRITICAL ISSUE

Today while we were testing the machine for reliability, we ran into the issue were the valve became detached from the reservoir tank. Acting quickly, we simply cleaned off the dried up rubber cement, reapplied a fresh coat of primer and rubber cement and waited for results which can be seen in Figure 1. Currently, the valve is holding up with no immediate issues faced. Hopefully, this will be able to hold up for the final presentation.

Figure 1: Close-up shot of the repair.

WEEK 9.LAB: PRACTICE PRESENTATION

Today's lab was a simple task as we were asked to give a test presentation of the one we give next week as the final. With our powerpoint presentation about 70% complete, we presented to the best of our ability. Below (Figure 1)is a screenshot of the title slide in the presentation. Making note of what we need to change, add, and improve, we will be sure to be prepared for the final showcase.

Figure 1: The title slide of the powerpoint presentation

WEEK 9.2: ASSEMBLING THE MACHINE (PART 2)

With the deadline steadily approaching, we decided that today would be the day that we finish the machine. With the tubing attached to the valve, all there was left to do was to incorporate the microprocessor and tinker with the design a bit. We decided to add construction paper and leaves to the exterior in order to mask the sheer dullness of a drawer set. Figure 2 shows the machine nearly complete with a few minor details remaining.

Figure 2: Full shot of entire machine

WEEK 9.1: ASSEMBLING THE MACHINE

The focus on the meet-up for today was to make sure that the tubing we have would be able to fit in the valves. An issue we ran into was that tube was indeed a bit too small. As a response, we simply applied scotch tape over the end of the tube until it would fit in well. Once the sizings were just right, we applied a primer to the tubing which would maximize the effectiveness of rubber cement (as seen in Figure 1). Unfortunately, this took multiple attempts as we would run into the issue where the tape would slide off of the tube or the rubber cement would would allow a few leaks here and there.

Figure 1: Close-up shot of the tubing bonded to the valve

WEEK 8.LAB: SUCCESS WITH THE SECOND DRAWER

We came into lab this week expecting to struggle through cutting our second drawer with nothing but a box cutter. However, things turned out better than expected

At first, we tried cutting through our drawer with a box cutter again. We realized quickly that this was causing our drawer to crack and split, most likely because of the temperature of the room being too cold. To overcome this, we decided to take our drawer into the machinery room and have a TA saw through it with an automatic saw. This method proved effective. Though we had to make the slot in our second drawer slightly larger than the first due to initially cracking parts of the drawer with the box cutter, (as seen in Figure 1), we were happy with the outcome of the lab. After all, our second drawer doesn't need to be as strong as our first drawer, which will be bearing the weight of the reservoir tank.

Figure 1: Full shot of the two drawers

WEEK 8.2: PLANNING FOR PROGRAMMING

On Tuesday of week 8, we decided to meet up again and create some clarity as to what our circuit will look like. In order to do this, we conducted some research, and found a solid example for how our circuit will operate (Figure 1).

It became apparent to us during our research that the majority of solenoid valve systems operate one valve at a time. This not only gives us very little reference for creating a system that operates two valves simultaneously, but also brings to mind the idea that our system may be made more straightforward and simplistic if we were to use only one of our solenoid valves. Using one valve is not a definite decision at this point but rather something we will consider once the breadboard arrives.

Figure 1: A picture of a breadboard operating a solenoid valve using Arduino (courtesy of www.martyncurrey.com).