Category: Sizhe Chen’s Status Reports

This week, my main focus was on completing the design of the PCB. On Monday, I fully tested out the new analog hall effect sensor and tested out the voltage different resulted from different magnet size. I also worked on the ethic assignment and finished designing the PCB. However, I have not yet placed the order since the team want to make sure the dimension actually match the x-y motor system so we plan to place the order after completing that part of project.

Our progress is still behind as Zipiao was unable to return to US in time due to some unexpected issue. However, we have made significant progress and we will continue working this week to catch up.

Looking forward, we anticipate that we will finish x-y motor system as a team and begin to do some basic integration with the Arduino so we can move the go pieces by next week

 

This week, my main focus was on completing the design document, which was due before Spring break, as we finalized the design of our system. Additionally, I successfully tested individual hall effect sensor circuits on a breadboard with an Arduino and began designing the PCB components. The hall effect sensor performed as expected, registering a higher voltage in the presence of a magnet. After the break, I plan to discuss with team members the precise threshold for distinguishing between black and white game pieces.

Our progress is slightly behind schedule due to the time spent testing the magnetic levitation device, but we are actively working to catch up as we finalized the change to the system after making the decision to switch to electro magnet.

Looking forward, I anticipate completing the PCB component design and placing the order by next week. Simultaneously, I will assist Cheiv in completing the construction of the x-y motor system and aim to have it operational with the arrival of the CNC shield by next week.

I am pleased to report that this week, we successfully completed testing of the magnetic levitation device. Despite initial setbacks with the old device, the new device arrived this week and turned out to be functional. We tested for interference with permanent magnets.

Schedule-wise, we are somewhat behind as we just finished the magnetic levitation testing. We will try to catch up by working on everything we currently have on hand. We have started the software component, and we may receive the XY gantry by next week, which we will test as soon as it arrives.

Moving forward, Chiev will be working on the software component. Shuailin and I will implement the Hall effect sensors with Arduino and try to simulate our product scenario, putting a magnetic go piece onto a Hall effect sensor. We are confident that with the completion of device testing, we can now allocate more resources towards testing other parts of our system.

This week, my primary focus has been on constructing the magnetic levitation device that was delivered on Monday. I soldered everything up yet the devices failed to work (see the attached photo for the device). I dedicated hours to troubleshooting, but the lack of  instructions and feedback from the manufacturer hindered progress. My team decided to move from this device to an existing commercial device that is ready to use out of the box. 

Regrettably, this setback has delayed our progress with magnetic levitation testing. However, we aim to regain momentum next week by completing testing with the new device and start moving the focus to the software component of our system, which remains independent of the physical device.

 

With the arrival of the new magnetic levitation device expected by the end of next week, we anticipate completing testing. Additionally, we aim to finalize the entire system design, while I will personally start testing the hall effects sensor components for detection.

The majority of this week was dedicated to preparing and attending presentation sessions and finalizing the semester’s schedule. Additionally, I did some research on the feasibility of magnetic levitation online and researched different devices that we could use for the final project. I am tasked with the detection and locking system aspect of the project, so I delved into researching how to connect hall effect sensors to an Arduino by reviewing existing projects online. I believe I am confident to conduct actual experiments by next week.

We are on track with our schedule in terms of researching as we have created a comprehensive list of possible components. However, we have encountered delays in feasibility testing due to the delayed arrival of the magnetic levitation devices. We plan to conduct these tests promptly upon their arrival on the new scheduled date of 2/14.

Moving forward, our goal for next week is to complete testing of the magnetic levitation device and make decisions regarding the devices to be utilized in our final product.In the meantime, I aim to start the creation of a GitHub repository for the team to commence work on building software components as it does not depend on any physical device. Additionally, I will begin testing hall effect sensors for go piece detection next week.