The team has worked on a couple of tasks for the work period of March 9 – March 23. One of the main tasks the team worked on was making changes to the device. The figure below shows the newly edited device.
Figure 1: Newly Edited Device
As seen in the figure, two changes were made: the Styrofoam was placed at the bottom of the device between the wheels, and the attachment at the top of the device was created for the force meter gauge. The Styrofoam was added to protect the user’s shins since the team members realized that the device was hitting their shins when they tried to lift the buckets with the device. Also, a black attachment was created so the force meter gauge could be used with the device. The attachment is designed to have the body of the force meter gauge screwed onto the attachment's platform. The hook will then be attached to the force meter gauge; then, the nylon strap will be run through the hook and the attachment. This strap will be then tied into a handle for the user to pull. The figure below shows the attachment's design.
Figure 2: Design of the Attachment
Additionally, the figures below show the force meter gauge attached to the device for better visuals.
Figure 3: Force Meter Gauge on the Attachment of the Device
The black circle on the image is where the force meter gauge will be attached. The red circle on the image is where the strap will run through and be tied to a handle. The handle is loose and is not connected to anything. Additionally, the team has finalized the prototype's budget in Peru, totaling 260.65 soles, which is a 26.45 percent reduction. This meets the team’s scope of a minimum price reduction of 25 percent less price than that of a regular hand truck and the total manufacturing cost of lower than 278.90 soles.
As mentioned before, the attachment has been made. However, the strap causes the handle not to be straight and causes the users to pull the device at different angles. The team realized this problem after the meeting with Dr. Chang, and the team will make more adjustments to the attachment for the March 24 – April 6 work period. The plan is to add a separate platform with a handle attached to it, which will be able to slide back and forth to get the pulling force readings. The sliding mechanism will be added using the bearings. This is to get the handle fixed on one angle the whole time while the device is being used. Once this is completed, the team will get the force readings before starting the validation experiment. This saves time and allows the validation experiment to be completed quickly.
After that adjustment and the force data have been gathered, the team will start the validation experiment. Several testing subjects have already been contacted, and a schedule has been made. Once the device adjustments are completed, the team will proceed with the validation experiment.
Lastly, another task that the team may work on is painting the device. The rebars have been rusting; the best solution is to paint them. However, this task is something that the team will worry about after all the tasks mentioned above have been completed. This is a minor problem, and the team does not believe it should be prioritized now.
While doing all the abovementioned tasks, the team will work on the technical report presentation due on April 6th.
The main obstacle the team foresees is making the sliding mechanism for the attachment for the force meter gauge. At this point of the semester, the project is almost due, and it takes quite a bit of time to 3D print some parts of the attachment. This is the last major task that the team foresees, and once this task is complete, the device will be 100% complete. With this, the team can progress with the validation experiment and finish the project. The team does not necessarily need a backup plan for this since this will be a simple task that will take some time. The team is close to completing the project, and there is no need to adjust the schedule.
Kommentarer