In this project, our goal was to design and build a recycling robot that could collect and sort recycling materials efficiently. To accomplish this, our team was divided into two sub-teams: one responsible for modelling and the other for coding. As a part of the modelling sub-team, my teammate and I oversaw the design process and fabrication of a mechanism to elevate a hopper and deposit recycling into containers. The mechanism was a critical component of the robot, as it allowed for the efficient depositing of materials into the correct bins. Our team worked closely with the coding sub-team to integrate the mechanism into the robot, allowing for seamless sorting and depositing of materials.
An initial concept sketch for the mechanism in the depositing position using the linear actuator as a means of driving force. By using a scissor lift style device we can turn horizontal movement into vertical movement by a large factor, determined by the number of linkages.
“ Design an accurate, quick and safe system for sorting and recycling containers for Canadians to minimize carbon footprint and improve yield of recycled products ”
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The final recycling mechanism is now fully assembled and secured to the base plate. The linear actuator is the driving force behind the mechanism, and in the video, you can see it being activated to apply force to the system. The mechanism deposits the recyclable materials collected in the hopper with precision and efficiency.
As the project manager, I was responsible for creating the preliminary Gantt chart, which involved planning out the duration of various milestones and due dates throughout the project. Additionally, I managed the team's meetings and ensured that everyone remained engaged and productive. This experience taught me the critical importance of ensuring that operations run smoothly and on time. Despite the challenges posed by the team members' varying schedules, I learned to plan effectively to ensure the project's success.
Throughout the project, I gained valuable technical skills, with 27 different parts working together, this was my most complicated design yet. Assembling all of the parts in Autodesk Inventor taught me a great deal about how to approach complex designs and how even small changes can have a significant impact on the final product. I also discovered the importance of subassemblies and testing to evaluate how different parts would perform in real-world scenarios. Reflecting back on the project a major improvement that I could perform would be a stress test on the parts to identify weak spots under heavy loads, this could greatly increase the operational time of the mechanism with only minor tweaks. These lessons were critical in identifying and addressing issues early on in the design process, saving valuable time and resources.
Overall, my experience as a project manager and a technical contributor on this project taught me the value of planning and testing to ensure that projects run smoothly and that technical problems are addressed early on. I'm confident that the skills I've gained through this experience will serve me well in my future engineering work.
Introducing the talented team behind this amazing project, pictured from left to right: Colby Schwartz (myself), Muhammad Raza Ahsan, Ziwen Cui, Vivian Nguyen, and Alyssa Cristofari. Each member of our team brought a unique set of skills and perspectives to the project, and we worked collaboratively to create a successful outcome.