LED Sign
Background
With one of my friends, I’ve made a housing for an LED sign. The goal of the sign is to be able to have an easy to program LED sign. This sign has an onboard gyroscope, and can be programmed for many functions. The function shown is connected using the MTA’s public API to find when trains are arriving.
The Challenge
For this sign, I’ve been tasked with designing a housing for the LED.
My Role
I am in full control of the design of the LED housing. I am also in charge of thermals, optics, and work in tandem with my friend on aesthetics.
Process
16 times. That’s how many times so far I have taken this bike apart and put it back together. It’s been a rough process filled with blood, sweat, and tears. Boyce Technologies does not really do a lot of simulation, and so far I have been working on the guess and check process. I have, however, thrown in some of my own simulations from time to time. For instance, I used FEA to determine that the main driveshaft was bending under load. As well, I used FEA to find sources of “slop” in the steering. I was able to reduce the slop of the steering system from about 25 degrees, all the way down to about 2.5 degrees. Getting rid of the slop may prove to be impossible with the current system, so all of these changes may be swapped out.
Along with the physical labor has also come testing, which I have done rigorously. I’ve slammed many a curb with this trike, and of course all in the name of science.
Final Outcomes
This has been an excellent project to work on. It is currently a work in progress, however I believe in time, Amazon will want to purchase the final product. This trike will go in conjunction with other projects that I am working on, including a cover for a cart (for whole foods), and perhaps to other clients. I’ve learned a lot from this project so far, and I think that’s what counts.
