DROP IT LIKE IT'S HOT
This was my group's project for Machine Week in How To Make (Almost) Anything. My sub-team was responsible for designing the blocks and grabber, and I created the final video.
INSPIRATION
IDEATION
Mission: The cable-suspended grabber can pick up blocks and stack or arrange them however the user wants.
TIMELINE
Since we only had one week, our group set an aggressive timeline to ensure adequate time for debugging:
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11/11: Initial meeting + team assignments
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11/13: Initial CAD designs for system complete + parts list drafted
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11/14: Frame complete, parts list v2
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11/16: Integration components complete, begin assembly, initial code draft
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11/18: Assembly complete, begin debugging
BLOCKS
Our goal was to 3D-print blocks that could snap onto each other through small magnets embedded on their faces. We quickly found out that the magnets would stick to the electromagnetic grabber even when it was not activated, so we decided to pivot to using laser-cut metal disks instead.
We tried multiple block shapes and colors, in the end choosing the simple, pink block.
VIDEO
To showcase our machine to the class, we had to create a short, usually comedic, video:
I started by planning a general outline for the video to figure out what shots we needed to get. I just used iMovie, and was very impressed with what I could do with such a simple program.
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