Spring 2018, Week 2a: Lightning Talks

January 31, 2018

For Week 2 of the semester, each of the sub-teams participated in Lighting Talks to debrief the other teams about each sub-team's current progress and goals. Our presentation can be found below. The main focus for our team is to construct a switch section as soon as possible. Completing a switch section prototype, along with a straight or curve section, will allow the other sub-teams to begin testing the pod car's switching mechanism. Our team is constantly communicating with the Bogie Team to determine the most efficient way to clear the switch section's clearance gap. Lastly, we have begun ordering parts for the track, and hope to have all the orders come in the upcoming weeks.

Spring 2018 Week 2b: Final Design Concepts

January 31, 2018

In the 2017 Fall semester, our team designed the new track iteration for the Spartan Superway. This year's track will utilize a double rail system to prevent the bogie from dropping during turns; a problem last year's team had. As you can see from Figure 1, our double rail design will envelope the older track. This design was chosen so that both models can be displayed at Maker Faire 2018. Overall, our track will utilize modular parts, which will speed up assembly and disassembly time. In total, there will be 15 straight sections, 4 curve sections, and 2 switch sections. 

Figure 1: 2017-18 Spartan Superway Track Design

To assemble the modular sections of our track, modular hanger brackets were also needed. These brackets would stay mounted onto the modular sections, as seen in Figures 4 through 7; mounting the brackets this way would save the team more time on track assembly. To help join the brackets together, our brackets utilized a Lego design; this would help align the brackets, as well as relieve potential torque concerns when connecting the brackets. The bolt will connect the bracket at the center holes at each side. The rails connected to these brackets will produce a 1.5 inch track width.

Figure 2: Side 1 of the Hanger Bracket

Figure 3: Side 2 of the Hanger Bracket

The straight section of the track (Figure 4) comprises of 4 ft long aluminum bar stocks, and 3 hanger brackets. The length of these section allows easier transportation to Maker Faire. In total, there are 15 straight sections. 

Figure 4: Straight Section of the Track

The curved section of the track (Figure 5) has a center line radius of 25 inches. This section utilizes 2 hanger brackets because the team wanted to avoid drilling angled holes on this portion. In total, there are 4 curve sections.

Figure 5: Curved modular section of the track

The final modular section of our track is the switch section, shown in Figures 6 and 7. The switch has a third rail to support the pod car as it goes through the clearance gap. The third is inserted into the switch attachments, show in Figure 8.

Figure 6: Isometric view of switch section

As can be seen in Figure 7, the third rail will be supported by a half bracket. A wedge is used to hold together the third rail because we wanted to avoid welding aluminum. 

Figure 7: Third Rail Angle of Switch Section

As stated above, the third rail support (Figure 8) will help support the third rail. It will be mounted onto a set of two hanger brackets, and will be held in place with bolts and nuts. 

Figure 8: Third rail support component

To smoothly transition onto the third rail, a wedge was designed ontothe third rail support component (Figure 9).

Figure 9: Bottom view of Third Rail support

The entire track will be supported utilizing the support structure in Figure 10. The L-bar on the support will use a lead screw to adjust the height of the designated modular section. Finally, to allow orientation changes, a cross configuration was incorporated into the design, as seen in Figure 11. Lead screws will be inserted into the ends of each steel bar to change its angle. This was needed because the terrain of Maker Faire will most likely be uneven. 

Figure 10: Support section for Superway 

Figure 11: Bottom of Switch Section

Overall, with these designs, our team is confident that we will be able to create a functional track by Maker Faire 2018.

Spring 2018, Week 1: Finalizing BOMs

January 24, 2018

Coming back from Winter Break, the first order of business for the entire Small Scale Superway team was to finalize the Bill of Materials for our respective sub-teams. The Track and Manufacturing team searched the shop for materials to lower the final cost, but could not find useful parts. As such, the final BOM came out to $1447.11. This can be seen in Table 1.

Supplier (I.E., Amazon..)	Description	Quantity	Unit Cost (include taxes)	Shipping Cost	Total
Amazon	Filament 1.75mm 1 kg	10	$ 24.02	$ -	$ 240.20
McMaster	Steel Phillips Rounded Head Screw (50mm/2 inch) - 25 per package	5	$ 7.65		$ 38.24
McMaster	Zinc-Plated Steel Hex Nut - 100 per package	4	$2.94		$ 11.76
McMaster	Steel Narrow-Base Weld Nut (50)	2	$10.38		$ 20.76
McMaster	Rotating-Eye Padlockable Hasp	1	$12.02		$ 12.02
McMaster	Unfinished Brass Surface-Mount Hinge with Holes	1	$1.56		$ 1.56
McMaster	Steel Hex Nut 5/16"-18 Thread Size	1	$4.57		$ 4.57
McMaster	Steel Phillips Flat Head Screws - 100	3	$ 7.87		$ 23.60
Midwest Steel and Aluminum	6061 Flat Aluminum Bar (0.25 x 1 x 48)	80	$ 4.15	$ 87.17	$ 419.29
Home Depot	12 in. x 48 in. Tube for Concrete	3	$ 17.45		$ 52.34
Home Depot	60 lb bag Sakrete Concrete Mix (Yields 0.45 cubic feet)	14	$ 3.24		$ 45.43
Gorilla Metals	Square Tub 1 x 1 1 0.065 (per ft)	80	$ 1.37		$ 109.25
Gorilla Metals	Square Tube 1.25 x 1.25 x 0.065 (per ft)	40	$ 2.19		$ 87.40
Gorilla Metals	Band Sawing Labor	1	$ 40.00		$ 40.00
Midwest Steel and Aluminum	Steel Sheets 16 gauge 4 x 4	22	$ 0.96	$ 18.62	$ 39.77
Shop	Plywood				$ -
Harbor Freight	Ring Roller	1	$ 76.46		$ 76.46
Midwest Steel and Aluminum	Hot Roll Steel Flat Bar	80	$ 0.99	$ 43.00	$ 122.53
McMaster	Grade 8 Steel, 5/16"-18 Thread Size, 2" Long, Fully Threaded (10 per pack)	10	$ 9.66		$ 96.58
McMaster	High-Strength Steel Hex Nut - 100	1	$ 5.36		$ 5.36
				Total	$ 1,447.11

Table 1: Small Scale Track and Manufacturing BOM

For the rest of the meeting, our team is preparing for the Spartan Superway Lightning talks.