Category: Erika’s Status Reports

What I accomplished this week:

This week, I made significant progress on both the physical and software components of the project, dedicating a lot of time to work on the design, fabrication, coding, and electronic components of SmartWatt.

• Mechanical Design & Fabrication:
  I completed a full redesign of the house structure in CAD to incorporate finger joints, which greatly improved the stability and robustness of the model. This change ensures the structure is more durable and can handle repeated assembly and disassembly without loosening or falling apart.
  After finalizing the design, I finished laser-cutting all of the components for the house using both wood and acrylic materials. This marks a major milestone in the physical build of the prototype.

• Software & Electronics Development:
  I coded the chatbot system that will serve as one of the primary interfaces for user interaction. After evaluating different models, I decided to use an OpenAI LLM to power the chatbot due to its flexibility, customization potential, and strong performance in conversational tasks.
  On the hardware side, I successfully set up and programmed an LED ring to visualize the passage of time, where one minute equals one simulated day. This ring offers an intuitive way to represent time-based changes in the home’s energy behavior.

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Unfortunately, I am not able to upload a video demo because of the file size limits.

Project schedule status:

My progress is currently on schedule. With major fabrication and basic chatbot functionality complete, we are ready to move into final integration in the final week.

Goals for next week:

• Feed custom user data into the OpenAI LLM so the chatbot can give energy-saving recommendations tailored to a specific user’s home and help the user make sense of their dashboard

• Begin integration between the TypeScript frontend and the Python backend, ensuring smooth communication between the user interface and the underlying AI and hardware logic.

 

New tools and knowledge acquired:

• I learned how to use CAD to design a house, including how to sketch, add dimensions, and combine parts into a full assembly using mates. To do this, I watched a series of Fusion 360 YouTube tutorials and experimented by prototyping small sections before scaling up to the full house model.

• I also learned how to laser cut. I went to Ideate’s makerspace in Hunt Library and was taught by a friendly laser cutting attendant who walked me through the steps of setting up the machine and preparing my design for the cut.
• For the chatbot, I familiarized myself with the OpenAI API, especially prompt engineering and how to structure memory inputs. I referenced the OpenAI documentation and read through a couple of online tutorials.

• Setting up the LED ring involved learning to use the Adafruit NeoPixel library and integrating it with my microcontroller. I followed online forum posts and GitHub examples to adapt existing code for my project’s timing logic.

These informal learning strategies—particularly hands-on experimentation and community support—were essential in rapidly acquiring the skills needed.

Progress This Week:

• Planned the integration of sensors and components into the model house

• Designed initial wireframes for the user interface, focusing on an intuitive layout that allows users to monitor usage and set preferences for their household energy consumption optimization algorithm.

• I will be assembling part of the model house tomorrow in preparation for the interim demo.

Challenges:

• Acrylic sheets took longer than expected to arrive, so I was not able to laser cut them.

• Balancing UI simplicity with the need to display comprehensive energy data in a user-friendly format.

Next Steps:

• Finalize sensor placement and integration within the model house after assembly.

• Continue refining the UI design, focusing on real-time data visualization and interactive elements.

• Begin initial integration of whole system

Accomplishments This Week

This week, I laser cut all of the basswood sheets for the exterior of the model house. I also designed the DXF files for the acrylic sheets that will form the inner layer of the walls. To ensure timely progress, I placed an order for all required acrylic sheets. Ideally, they arrive in time for the interim demo, but if not we can just tape up the wiring to the wood as a quick solution.

Project Status

Currently, my progress is on schedule. The next steps depend on receiving the acrylic sheets, but designing the DXF files and laser cutting the basswood keeps the timeline on track.

Next Week’s Deliverables

In the upcoming week, I plan to:

• Laser cut the acrylic sheets once they arrive

• Assemble the exterior and interior walls of the model house

• Begin integrating electrical components if time permits

Accomplishments This Week

This week, I worked on the CAD model for the house, adjusting the design and dimensions to ensure we stay within our material constraints. I refined the layout to optimize material usage. I have also added slots in the back walls to easily and neatly slide in the acrylic sheets and sandwich the wires and electronic components within this two-layered wall.

Additionally, I researched laser cutting techniques and prepared the DXF files, ensuring that the design is ready for an efficient cutting session in the Ideate workspace next week. This preparation included:

• Finalizing the vector paths to avoid unnecessary cuts.
• Ensuring the scaling and material thickness were correctly accounted for.
• Organizing files to minimize waste and speed up fabrication.

I have chosen a low-power approach with multiple passes to minimize the risk of charring the wood. This will hopefully result in a clean, polished look.

Finally, I reached out to IDeATe to request access to the laser cutters. Hopefully, my request will be approved and I can get in there early next week to cut all the basswood sheets needed to assembly the house.

Progress:

Kitchen

• Floor: 20” x 8”
  • 20” x 12” -> cut off 4 inches from one side
• Left Wall: 8” x 9 ⅞”
• Right Wall: 8” x 9 ⅞”
• Back Wall: 19 ¾” x 9 ⅞” (cut out slots)

Garage

• Floor: 8” x 8”
• Left Wall: 8” x 9 ⅞” 
• Back Wall: 7 ¾” x 9 ⅞” (cut out slots)
• Roof: 8” x 8”

Bedroom

• Floor: 12” x 8”
• Left Wall: 7” (diagonal to 7.09”) x 8”
• Back Wall: Refer to design -> Max Height: 12”, Width: 11 ⅞”
• Roof: 9.4” x 8”

Laundry

• Floor: 8” x 8”
• Left Wall: 8” x 10”
• Right Wall: 8” x 7”
• Back Wall: Refer to design -> Height: 10” to 7”, Width: 7 ¾”
• Roof: 8” x 12.71”

Full Assembly:

 

Material Usage Planning

Project Schedule Status

My progress is on schedule with our project timeline. The CAD model and laser cutting preparation are key steps before fabrication, and completing them now keeps us aligned with our milestones.

Goals for Next Week

Next week, I plan to:

• Laser cut the house components and assess fit/assembly.
• Make any necessary adjustments to the CAD design based on cutting results.
• Order colored acrylic and create DXF files to laser cut these sheets.
• Begin assembling the physical prototype to test structural stability.

This week, I completed the design of the model house, ensuring it is manufacturable and fulfills all the requirements of our project design, including a variety of loads and a solar panel energy input suitable for energy optimization analysis. I also made significant progress on the user dashboard web app, setting up the basic framework and integrating initial features for visualizing household energy consumption.

I am on schedule with the project timeline. Completing the model house and starting the user dashboard are tasks planned for upcoming weeks, but it is great to get a head start.

Next week, I plan to integrate real-time energy consumption data into the user dashboard. I also aim to enhance the dashboard’s UI to improve user interaction and clarity. Furthermore, I plan to determine additional materials for the model house such as acrylics for walling and small decorations or toys to simulate a real home with active appliances.