Pictures

log 36

Last week, we did tests conserning only the foam.  We found that one sheet could hold five pounds, the weight of our entire robot.  We decdide to use four sheets.

log 35

Yesterday, we cut two sheets of the foam so that the metal framework can sit into the foam.  then we cut another, smaller hole int the remaining two sheets so that the propulsion mechanism can fit through ant be submerged underwater.  We then conducted tests.  We observed that the forward port side was sinking, so we then screwed on more sheets foam to that side. this corrected the problem.

log 34

Tuesday, my partner and I were forced to stay after school in order to get our bearings.  Here we re-designed our entire propulsion system.  We made great progress in the construction.  In school, we cut our foam we ordered off-line in to four equal slices.  We then bolted them together.

log 33

On Monday, I contacted the four e-mail addresses at the end of the article.  I received six different responses from different people.  Two merely sent us the link to the VEX robotics website, while the others provided with great information.  One was even great enough to provide the packet given to the participants of the AIM challenge.  This was the most valuable piece of information we have ever received.  We are now on the right track.

log 32

Yesterday, we tried to switch to only the land challenge, but we failed.  We must complete the water challenge.  We tossed around ideas on how to change it, and then DA discovered the Coast Guard AIM challenge article.  We decided to base our robot off of the one on the cover.

log 32

Today, DA is absent from class; therefore we cannot go down to the lab.  Instead, we will work on thinking about what is still left to do.  My partner and I still have three major things to do: propellers, floatation, and water proofing.
For propellers, my partner and I need to make another trip to Hobby Masters.  By now, they should have received the shipment of the larger propellers.  We need to attatch the propellers to the designated drive shafts.
For floataion, we have already aquired very buoyant foam that will be able to easily support our VEX kit.  It has 55pounds of buoyant force, and our entire kit weighs 5 pounds.  The foam needs to be attatched to the kit by VEX screws.  It will extend past the claw on the forward part of the kit and two inches on either side.  This is done in order that the VEX robot may ensure stability.
For waterproofing, we need to do some tests, and we have two different ideas.  For the PIC microcontroller, we can wrap it in shrink plastic wrap and use a hair drier to shrink the plastic and create a water proof seal.  We can test this by wrapping a piece of paper in the plastic wrap and submerging it in water.  If it is dry, it worked.  If it is wet, the it did not work.  For motors, balloons will be put around and super glued together.  This will have the same test as the plastic shrink wrap.