Fab Academy

Thanks to the partnership of Chevron and the Fab Foundation to bring Fab Labs across the United States, the Intermediate Unit 1 is providing digital fabrication into its curriculum to bring communities, adults, and students of all ages into the Fab Lab movement.

The Intermediate Unit 1 is a regional educational agency located in Southwestern Pennsylvania (below Pittsburgh) that strives to provide educational support for students, parents, educators, school administrators, and the communities throughout it's three counties and beyond.

About Brandon

Brandon Prentice is a technology educator, mentor, and manager for the IU1 Fab Lab program. He’s a hands-on generalist when it comes to construction technology, engineering, manufacturing, and graphic design. You can find him on Twitter talking about Fab Lab conventions, community events, student projects, and other lab experiences.

Final Project: Remote Controlled Spotter

The idea for this project sparked for me when I was driving our Mobile Fab Lab between School Districts. One common headache for me was backing up our 28ft long trailer into tight areas for loading/unloading machines. The fact that our pickup truck didn't come with a backup camera made it even more difficult. I then came up with an alternative that could further my knowledge in utilizing the same Fab Lab I help drive around.

The idea is to have a device to help aid the driver when having a person be your spotter. This remote controlled spotter would provide a real time wireless communication ability from the person spotting to the driver with the simple touch of a button.The primary features would include a bi-directional navagation along with stop/go. One part of the device would attach to a side-view truck mirror for the driver, while the other half would be a hand-held remote for the spotter.