Degree Final Year Project

This blog article will demonstrate the process of developing the flower blooming mechanism on a larger scale. In the previous article, I demonstrated the flower blooming mechanism on a smaller scale. Thus, my next plan is to create a larger scale of it to attach a larger size (actual size) of the petals. From my previous experiment, the lead screw will swift around when rotating, thus I have provided another design option to stabilize the lead screw with a gear.  Challenges & Process First Version -Diameter 4cm This is the first version of the chassis of the flower. The 3D printed parts are broken as it is too thin and fragile when a large force is exerted onto them. Second Version This is the second version of the main chassis. This version is fully covered from bottom to top to support the screw with a gear on top. However, the stand of the parts is too thin and will break easily. Third Version - Diameter 7.5cm    At this stage, I have designed the chassis for 5 pet...

This blog article will be demonstrating the connection between multiple Arduino. The Arduino that connects with the heartbeat sensor act as the master, while the Arduino that connects with LEDs and the stepper motor act as the slave. I have experimented with multiple sources for the connection, but I will only document the final compiled source that is beneficial. For this project, I have used I2C communication to connect 2 Arduinos. To summarize, A4, A5 and ground have to connect together to send the signal.  As with all I2C sketches, I start by including the Wire library. For the master code, masterWriter() is the main code that send the signals to the slave. Here is the code after include the I2C communication with the sensor sketch: Master Code Slave Code Slave Code integrating with LEDs  I did not screenshot the full sketch as it is just combining the LEDs code from the previous blog into the slave code. RD, in this case, is the BPM of the heart rate.  Slave Code int...

Initial Experiment [Stage 1] Based on the initial experiment, the heartbeat sensor is affected by outside factors and pressure which cause the LED to blink randomly even though there's no heartbeat. Thus, I start to look for code sources that measure a more accurate detection of heartbeat & BPM. I have experimented with 3 different codes from 3 different sources. However, the number of BPM values is not stable as it will jump from 0 to 300 randomly. Another problem is that when I place my finger on the sensor, it should detect my BPM which ranges between 60- 78, however, the BPM value doesn't change as well when I monitored through the serial monitor. Source 1: Darrah, K. (2013) HowTo: Heart Beat Monitoring! Arduino/Processing. Youtube. Aug 24. Available at:  LINK I try to implement the code and modify based on my heartbeat condition. The results seem doesn't work in my case. The BPM will jump randomly and the LEDs blink randomly even though the heartbeat is not in rang...

Initial Tryout I have tried out several LEDs light effects to mimic our heartbeat pulses. Here are some of the experimentations: Experimentation 1: The lighting above fades in and out based on brightness. Experimentation 2: Light effect that mimics the heartbeat pulses.  I try it together with different materials such as fabrics and crepe paper to see the effects of it. Experimentation 3: Experimentation with the paper combining light effect 1. I quite like this effect as it gives me a breathing, relaxing kind of feeling. [Approved] [Rejected] I also experiment with different hue values, but it turns out to be ugly. Thus, I decided to customize my own color palletes. And also, this is another light effect that uses millis to control the timing but it seems not aesthetically nice.  This is a failed experimentation on random colors of the light effect. Conclusion Crepe Paper works well with the led lights, this is due to the fabric being too thin to refract the light. Thus, the ...

Process Installation 1. Attaching all the M2, M3 screws, and T8 Lead Screw on the 3D printed parts Notes: T8 Lead Screw: 8mm diameter Pitch: 2mm (Lower pitch, lower speed, higher accuracy) Lead: 2mm (The nut moves 2mm in one turn) 2, Before installing it on the stepper motor, I test it on the lead screw motion. 3. The structure after attaching the 3D printed parts on the motor (including coupling -5mm & 8mm) Technical Part I'm using DRV8825 for the driver to control the stepper motor. The reason is that it can resist a higher voltage motor power supply (45V) so that the driver will not get burnt easily. Before hands on the coding part, it is a must to adjust the reference voltage of the potentiometer using multimeter.  Notes: Here is the formula:   I(A) = P(W) / V(V) DRV8825 : 2 pins (STEP & DIR) Maximum output capacity of 45 V and ± 2 A  Current limit: 0.85A , Rated Current 1.7A --- based on the model of the stepper motor Steps to Adjust Reference Voltage  1...

Research  I have done some research to understand more about how motor works and the difference between the stepper motor and servo motor. This is to allow me to have a better choice selection of preferred motor for the project. Below are some findings that need to be acknowledged:- Conclusion In conclusion, I have decided to use stepper motor for the flower blooming mechanism. This is because the flower-blooming mechanism requires low speed with high torque in order to support the flowers when it's blooming. Besides, I can experiment and modify the steps of the stepper motor and work on it to mimic the natural blooming of flowers. Based on the reference of the flower-blooming mechanism made in China, they also use a stepper motor rather than servo motors. 3D Modeling Reference Source:  mohkaseb (2014) umbrella mechanism. GrabCADCommunity.  Sep 19. Available at: LINK Initial Tryout At first, I try to build out the structure in 3D form based on my prototype which is made o...