Head of the Fish Plaques

Although we are not 100% sure that we have a deal with Head of the Fish, we still are taking steps to prepare for the job. Today after school we made a 3D model of the plaque in Autodesk Inventor. We plan to use this file and cut out a template on our CNC. To ensure uniformity in the roughly 150 plaques we have to cut out, sand, stain, engrave, and poly-coat each base. We have high hopes that we will get the job and if we get the go ahead, the wood shop will become a busy assembly line.

Posted by Will Fortin

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One Milestone, One Setback for Computer Cooling

Today the Self-Contained Submersion cooling group completed work on one of two designs! We finished tapping threads into the 3D-Printed complex design, and assembled the base, pump, radiator, and fans into the case of a broken computer so leakage testing can begin next class.

Amid the joy of completing the initial assembly phase of one design though, came the heartbreak of finding out that another design needs an overhaul. The fittings we ordered to attach coolant tubes to our base were larger than we had accounted for, and as a result they did not fit on the simpler base that we had milled in class. This simple base design will need to be altered over the next few days before we can test it out.

-Post by Aaron Batker-Pritzker

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Plotter Disassembling

Yesterday the Makerbot group took apart the plotter by removing all the uneccessary chips that we won't be using. We plan to use the x and y axes from the plotter and build the z axis on our own. These axes will eventually come together to make our own 3D Printer. The benefit of using the plotter will be to have a much larger build surface compared to what the Makerbot currently offers. We have a good handle on this project and look forward to making progress and creating a finished product of a new 3D Printer.

-Post by Celia D'Agostino

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InvenTeam Co-op

We are very excited to form relations and interact with other Inventeams at different high schools. This past week, we skyped with the Berlin InvenTeam, and gave each other feedback and suggestions to our designs. Moving forward, we plan on assisting newer InvenTeams to the best of our ability, and sharing all that we have learned through our experiences in project lead the way classes.

-Post by Paige Waechter

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February Break

The upcoming week is February vacation, so while we don't have class we'll still be working hard on our projects! The 3-D Printer group plans to meet to finish the 3-D printer and discuss plans for turning the 2-D plotter into a printer with a larger build area. The Campus Security group will also be meeting to work on their programming skills. A small group of the class is also going to meet to make plaques for the Head of the Fish, a crew race held locally, to raise funds for our team. Speaking of funds, I've recently updated the books; we have a total of a little under $3,000. So, we are still going to be looking for companies interested in investing in us so we have enough money to complete our projects and to leave a comfortable amount of money for next years team! Along with that, I will also be contacting our local Lion's Club and Rotary Club so we can increase our network.

-Post by Kelley Florence

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3D Printer Progress:

Today in class, the 3D printing group split up to work on separate tasks to optimize our time and move forward with the project as quickly as possibly. The Maker-bot is in it's final stages of wiring. Kelly, Sam, and Celia finished soldering all the necessary wires and it looks spiffy. It'll be up and running very soon and it will be great to see it print. Paige, Will, and I spent the class modifying a 2D plotter to prepare for the addition of a third axis and a new extruder nozzle making the plotter into a large 3D printer. We decided that taking the back panel off would allow us to turn the plotter on it's side for a great range of motion. This was no easy task as all the bolts and screws have rusted. Using many tool we did manage to remove the board and fully clean the dusty plotter frame. The two pictures show the circuitry of the x and y axis on the plotter and team mates Paige and Will holding the clean and modified frame.

- Post by Emma Rocco

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