• 5/22

    corbin • 06/08/2023 at 18:57 • 0 comments

    We have been working continuously on the box and the gradient design. After making the vinyl cut out letters for our gradient out of black, we realized it was too hard to see over the darker colors (blue). We made the lighter versions of the letters out of a light beige color, easy on the eyes, yet still visible. The letters are also a bit smaller, since when we put the light color on the dark color, we will use the dark color as a drop shadow, adding to the easy visibility. The magnets attaching to our box have been securely inserted, despite the glue mishaps we had been having. We have not been focusing on code this week, as one of our group members is not present. Hopefully, we will be able to work on it in the later future, to allow a fully functioning servo rack and pinion. The servo-rack and pinion has already been installed, and it works with the assistance from a control box which connects to the servo. In the future, we hope to not use this control box, but the one connected by a featherboard, transmitting data from a smaller control box slider, to the main control slider. 

    This week, no code was done because the group member that was in charge of the code was absent due to a medical issue.

  • 5/29

    corbin • 06/08/2023 at 18:48 • 0 comments

    We have completed our gradient design (vinyl, paint color, sanding,) as well as completing the look of our box. Our box is looking just as we pictured, with the servo-rack and pinion in the correct positions. However, the code itself has been a difficulty. The feather boards are connected, though the servo is not moving. We will have to use the control box connected to the servo that moves the slider, as the code will not work from the time being. We will not use the smaller control box made from wood, even though with the servo working, it could be easy to use and efficient. In contrast, our poster for our presentation is going well; we have been working during lunch hours to complete and fulfill its connection to our slider. 

  • Directions

    corbin • 06/05/2023 at 18:12 • 0 comments

    For this project, you will need to laser cut two boxes. In one, you will put in a slide potentiometer, and an ESP32 feather board that is coded to receive the signal from the slide potentiometer, and send its value to another ESP32 feather board. The other ESP32 board will be in the other box, connected to a servo. The second ESP32 feather board will need to receive the signal from the other board, and then send the value to the servo. The servo is connected to a gear on a rail, connected to a slider design, which can show where on the gradient the user is. 

  • 5/15

    corbin • 05/17/2023 at 18:14 • 0 comments

    We have successfully sent a value from the feather board connected to the slide potentiometer to the feather board that is not connected to the slide potentiometer, so now we just need to make that value move the slider in the correct direction. The code that is going to be used to move the servo back and forth is giving us an error, so we have to figure that out. We are almost finished cutting out the gradient and putting it on to the box, and we have set up the slider in the box to make sure it fits (it does). We are almost finished with this project.

    We have started on the top design of the box, for we need to add the magnetic gradient to the top. Our idea of a modular and magnetic slider is most important in this project, as it means we could add more magnetic gradients if desired by the client. We want this box to have a sleek and simple design, so we are attempting to bore holes into the top of the box, and then place magnets in these holes. We are attempting this by using a drill. This is a harder way to make these holes, and it has been taking a couple class periods. The holes we wanted initially were perfectly circular, but as it is hard to control a drill, we have been making small imperfections to the circle. In the scheme of things, this will not be a major issue, since the magnetic slider will be concealing the drill holes. After drilling the holes, we added the magnets into each with superglue. The superglue has not been drying down as well as we had hoped, and one magnet keeps popping up from the hole. We will have to bore down that hole further to allow the magnet to correctly rest in it. 

    Here is a list of some websites that we found useful during this project.

    ESP32 Communications: https://dronebotworkshop.com/esp-now/

    Slide Potentiometer and ESP32: https://mschoeffler.com/2020/11/14/arduino-tutorial-slide-potentiometer-slide-pot-controls-led-strip-ws2812b/

    ESP32 and Servo: https://dronebotworkshop.com/esp-now/

    ESP32 Servo Library: https://github.com/jkb-git/ESP32Servo

  • 5/8/23

    corbin • 05/08/2023 at 18:13 • 0 comments

    Last week, we put in the code to read the number from a slide potentiometer. The numbers maxed out at 1024 halfway through the slide, but we got feather huzzah esp32 v2 boards instead of the old feather huzzah esp8266 boards. This should solve the problem. After we have confirmed that the new boards are working, we will put code in the "client" board reading the slide pot. to send a signal to the "server" board whenever the value changes. We will then have the "server" board control the servo to move the slider. The gradient was printed, and now we need to put the colors onto it. The gradient is the perfect size, as the magnets in the corners fit in perfectly, and it fits in between the two holes in the box lid perfectly.

    5/11/23

    We had a problem with our feather board codes. We didn't know how to input the MAC address of one feather board into the code for the other to send a signal from one to the other. Now, we can put in code to send a signal from one feather board to the other when the slide potentiometer changes. Half of our group wasn't here today, so we haven't made progress in any other areas.

  • 5/1/23

    corbin • 05/01/2023 at 18:26 • 0 comments

    Last week, we put in the code for the two feather boards to talk to each other. Now, we are going to put in code so that the feather boards can control the slide potentiometer to remotely control the slider, which has been 3D printed. We are also working on designing the gradients, and working on physically connecting the slider to the rail/gear design we have to move it. Last week we finished laser cutting the final wooden boxes, and now we have to assemble them, and put everything inside.

    5/3/23

    We have made inputted the code to get the value from the slide potentiometer, and it is working. For the client side of the two feather boards, all we have to do is put it into the server and client code, and make it send a signal to the other feather board when the value changes. The wooden box was difficult to assemble, but after sanding the parts that interlock together, it and the small box have been assembled.

  • 4/25/23

    corbin • 04/25/2023 at 18:16 • 0 comments

    We have begun to 3D print the parts of our box. At first, the parts that we had printed  did not fit in correctly, so we changed them a little and reprinted them, and then they fit in better. We have also begun to program the feather boards, following the instructions at adafruit.com. We previously had trouble connecting the feather board to the computer, but now we know how to. We have also begun to design our gradients on onshape.com. Once the gradients are done being designed, we will 3D print them and attach them to our box, which we are now going to make out of laser cut wood. Today, we put in code so that the feather boards can communicate with each other.

  • 4/20/23

    corbin • 04/20/2023 at 18:22 • 0 comments

    We used the same cardboard technique as before to confirm that the dimensions for our remote controller box are good. Our remote controller fit perfectly into the small box, so we are ready to move on to printing the final designs of our boxes. Today, we began 3D printing out our main box. We have also begun to design our gradients. We have two designs in mind now, a color design with colors representing moods, and pictures of faces with emotions. 

  • 4/17/23

    corbin • 04/17/2023 at 18:36 • 0 comments

    After designing our main control box through the website "boxes.py," we assembled it through the laser-cutter computer, positioning each cut-out to make the most efficient cuts. We made sure to allow a bit of room between each piece, just in case the laser cutter cut too close in one direction. In the laser-cutter, we used cardboard initially, to have a physical object to look at. With this, we wish to position the servo-rack and pinion in correct positions with enough space to move the servo back and forth. The box's "teeth" or "connecting pieces" were a bit hard to put together, but we hope that the future box made of wood will be easier to fit together, as it is more sturdy and will slide together more easily. We also were able to laser cut the smaller control box out of cardboard, though again the "teeth" connection was difficult. We are thinking about the gradient design, and wish to 3D model it. We will email our client and understand which emotions (range of emotions) she desires, and transfer it to a gradient design. 

  • 4/12/23

    corbin • 04/12/2023 at 18:42 • 0 comments

    We have finished the design of the box. It will be made out of wood, and will be 310x155x90 millimeters. It will be made out of laser cut wood, and have a remote control to move the slider.