Week 17 - Applications and Implications
Week 17 goal :
propose a final project that integrates the range of units covered, answering:
- what will it do?
- who's done what beforehand?
- what materials and components will be required?
- where will they come from?
- how much will it cost?
- what parts and systems will be made?
- what processes will be used?
- what tasks need to be completed?
- what questions need to be answered?
- what is the schedule?
- how will it be evaluated?
projects can be separate or joint, but need to show individual mastery of the range of skills covered
where possible, you should make rather than buy the parts of your project
Questions to be answered
Here is a link to the different questions to be answered:
what will it do?
I will make a tinkering physics kit that consists of simple tools for students that are hackable and that can be assembled and integrated easily to explore the world around us. The tools are standalone tools that can be used independently or connected through wired connections in between them.
The kit is evolutive meaning that it can be hacked, expanded and personalized. The basic toolkit consists of a stepper motor module, a camera module, an air pump, a pressure sensor and a device interface that will collect data and display them.
- The stepper motor module will be made to actuate a series of experiments requiring a controlled rotating device. The motor can be set on and off by a button. The rotating speed can be adjusted with another button and the speed will be displayed on a LCD screen. Automatic control of the motor with a central device will be possible as a wired connection with the central device will be made available.
- The air pump module will be used to decrease or increase the pressure in any physical experiments that requires it. We will have an on/off button and a wired connection that allows a remote control. The pressure sensor allows to measure the pressure and to display it on a lcd screen. A wired connection to the central unit should allow to remotely measure the pressure synchronously to other signals.
- The camera module will be made of a pi camera and a Raspberry pi. With this module, we can take picture, record movies with a great control of the camera parameters: frame per seconds, exposure time, ... It will also serve as a tool for live image processing to make the invisible visible.
- As a central device interface module, we will use a raspberry pi to collect data comming from the sensors and the camera but also allows a control of some of the different modules (stepper motor module, air pump module,...). With this module, we can take control of the different modules and run C or python scripts automatizing the running experiment.
- A power supply unit producing at least 5v and 12v to power up other module units.
- A breadboard and a fixation set that allows to
Constraints : open and hackable, high building quality, light, precise, low cost, ...
This kit should be transportable and deployable as it is intended to be used during class to make physics demonstration, in science faire exhibition, in the lab to explore physical phenomenon or simply to play with and have fun with it.
who's done what beforehand?
Lego Mindstorm
Little bits
Scientific optomechanical tools
Vernier sensors and actuators toolkit
Seeed grove sensors and actuators
what materials and components will be required ?
Where will they come from ?
How much will it cost?
Materials and components |
Where will they come from ? |
price |
Stepper motor and driver module
Small size stepper motor 14HM11-0404S |
www.gotronic.fr |
17.8 EUR |
Microcontroller |
RS components |
2.73 EUR |
LCD screen |
from the lab |
4.5 EUR |
DRV8833 stepper Motor Driver |
RS components |
2.074 EUR |
Rotary encoder KY-040 |
From the lab |
3 EUR |
On/off button |
From the lab |
1 EUR |
Universal power supply 12V |
www.amazon.fr |
13 EUR |
Other electronic components |
From the lab |
< 10 EUR |
Total |
|
~ 50 EUR |
Power supply unit
Electronic components |
from the lab |
< 10 EUR |
Rotating axis and kit tools
Acrylic, 3D printed spools, metallic axis |
from the lab |
< 10 EUR |
Ball bearings (od:13mm, id:6mm) |
RS components |
8 EUR |
Total |
|
< 18 EUR |
The camera module
Mechanical components for the kit
3mm MDF wood 120x60cm |
Hardware supply store |
2.5 € |
4mm MDF wood coated with bakelite 120x60cm |
Hardware supply store |
6.9 € |
150 x M6 nuts (3mm height) |
Hardware supply store |
7.35 € |
Various nuts and bolts (M3 and M6) |
Hardware supply store |
< 10 € |
Total |
|
~ 30 EUR |
What parts and systems will be made?
The stepper motor module will be completely made from scratch : from the design of the board to its fabrication and programming. The wires and connectors will also be customized made. A case will be laser cut in MDF. The stepper motor accessories (holder and spools) will be design in Illustrator and Fusion 360 and will be laser cut and 3D printed.
The mechanical components of the kit and the rotating axis will essentially be made using the laser cutter and the 3D printer.
The physics experiments will be designed and made from raw materials.
What tasks need to be completed?
To develop and build the different modules that I need, I will develop a few experiments and fabricate the modules that I need to run the experiments. While developing the modules I will have in mind several other experiments for which those modules should be useful.
Being an experimental physicist specialized in soft matter, I chose to start developing 3 experiments on granular media.
- Exp 1 - granular 2D silo
- Exp 2 - granular segregation
- Exp 3 - phase transition in granular media
Continue the website.
What processes will be used?
Experiments:
- silo - 3D design, laser cutting
- Stepper motor module - 3D design, 3D printing, electronic design and production, networking
- Camera module - interface and programming, networking, ...
- Pressure pump and sensor - electronic design and production, networking, interface and programming
What questions need to be answered?
- What will be the material that I will use for the cases enclosing electronics ? laser cutted MDF wood, 3D printed case ?
- What DC output do we need from the power supply ? 3.3V, 5V, 9V and 12V ?
- What kind of materials will I use for the breadboard ? MDF or Nylon ?
- What should be design of the wheels and wheels holder for exp 2 ? get inspire from toy cars ?
- How should I transmit the rotation from the stepper motor to the wheel ? With spools and a rubber band ?
What is the schedule?
I have two weeks to finish the final project and I'll make use of the spiral management system to finish it.
How will it be evaluated?
This kit will be evaluated by the students themselves and a close observation by myself (and people that wants to help me to develop it) on how students use the kit.
What is the module that students use the most ?
If some modules are not used, why is that ? Is it a design problem ? How can we improve it ?
What did the students used along with the kit ? How did they hack it ?