This is our MCM. We found out after testing that one planetary gearbox is not enough to move the balls in the slot. To fix the problem we will add an additional motor by changing the pillow block design to accommodate an additional drive gear.

Update for week of November 21

This past week, before leaving for Thanksgiving break, we finished the scoring arm module of our design. After running into some initial problems with the exact dimensioning of stock pieces, and a lot of sanding, we assembled the module to present for MS8 on Wednesday. Testing of the assembled module exposed some flaws in the positioning of the motor, and torque calculations. Solutions are being devised and tested.

After our scoring arm was ready, we finished the designs for our rover and locking arm. This week's schedule will involve machining and assembling these modules as well as testing for the entire machine. Our machine shop use is starting to wrap up, as much of what is left is to be done on the water jet cutter, and then simply assembling the pieces.

Update for week of November 14

Lecture has officially concluded and we have turned all ME 250 efforts towards our project. We have been working on completing all of the components of our most critical module, the scoring arm. The two end pieces of the rail support and the largest section of the arm itself were completed last weekend, with all of the smaller and more complex parts being the focus this week.  Here is a more detailed list of our tasks completed this week:

-Machining of many of the components for the scoring arm

-Researching the most realistic spring configuration for the locking arm

-Beginning planning of fabrication of the rest of the the machine

On Monday this week we'll be presenting the first 3 components of our scoring arm to our GSI for milestone 7, and we will be finishing our scoring arm so that it can be presented Wednesday for milestone 8. This week will consist of a lot of design and machining on our parts.

Update for week of November 7

We have begun fabrication of our machine, and split up the remaining logistical duties left before we finish our project. We have purchased most of the additional raw materials we will need, only needing a few more specialized parts, like springs. We hope to have fabrication of all components of our MCM, the scoring arm, completed by the end of this week.

Machined Parts

We have three parts machined and completed.
The two short parts are the guide rail posts and the long square tube is the scoring arm housing.

Update for week of October 31

This week we completed our MS6, the review of our most critical module. We choose our scoring arm, as it is our main method of scoring, and the most complex component of our machine. The included

-Finalizing the CAD and engineering drawings of the module
-Bill of materials for the scoring arm
-Planning out the machining process of each of part

This weekend Marc will be obtaining the extra materials we will need, and we hope to finish most of our main machining this coming week.