Mechnical Design

GROUP ASSIGNMENT

Objectives

- design a machine that includes mechanism+actuation+automation
- build the mechanical parts and operate it manually
- document the group project and your individual contribution

Hardware and Softwares used

Design

-Fusion 360
-X cut

Electronics

-Arduino IDE
-See Below for Full Hardware List

CNC

-V-Carve
-ShopBot

3d Printing

-Cura
-Create Table D2

CONCEPT

Idea Sketch

Our group decided that we would make a vending machine for the machine week assignment. Common vending machines have seperate motors for each compartment holding items and work soley on the z axis. Rather than have the motors work independently of one another, we wanted to create a 3-axis joint machine.

DESIGN PROCESS

Prototyping

The first prototype was based on a 2 y-axis, and single x- axis design. It was a bit unstable as it didn't have a base, so were free standing.

Our second prototype was an upside down T design, with an x-axis base. This design proved to be more sturdy and also allowed us to remove one motor as the previous prototype required 4- 2 x- axis motors where one would be sufficient.

For the portion of the machine that holds and dispenses the items, we designed boxed compartments with a coil. The back end of the coil was attached to a component that had a small hole in which the stepper motor could be inserted into to initiate the spinning of the coil. However, the hole was quite small and left little room for any deviation.

In the second design, the stepper motor was attached to a larger conical end that would complement a female counterpart attached to the end of the coil. The pieces had teeth, which would gave for a steady grip and a larger target for which the z motor could move towards.

BUILDING PROCESS

Fabrication

For the outer shell that would house the mechanical structure of the vending machine, we used the CNC on 15mm plywood & 5mm acrylic in the lasercutter.
The mechanical structure was made from CNC milled 15mm acrylic and structural slider poles.

Rotating coil holders were 3d printed and attached to the end of coiled wire.

Assembly

Our lab has a few old 3d printers that we were able to disassemble and repurpose parts for our vending machine. We used slider poles and a coiled pole allowing parts to move along the axis.