Summary
This lab focused mainly on aspects of the creative thinking process. The lab emphasized two techniques for creative design thinking which included generating a useful idea and effectively communicating it to others. The team became familiar with obstacles to creativity which included fear of criticism, lack of confidence, and negative stress. These obstacles were important to understand as they were taken out of the brainstorming process to make for a creative, safe environment. The team individually brainstormed unique and inventive ideas for the AEV which included features that could aid the AEV’s ability to complete the scenario as well as provide aesthetic aspects. Implementing these new ideas, individual AEV designs were created by each team member using orthographic paper and proper dimensions. This was done to give the members experience in creating orthogonal drawings from real world objects. The team then brainstormed together and the remaining time was spent combining ideas and individual drawings into one master design. This was done so the AEV would have a final design all members agreed upon as well as giving the group a chance to share ideas and collaborate on a final design. This design was made as an orthographic drawing, followed all design guidelines, had overall dimensions, scale, estimated weight, and bill of materials.
Results
The individual team members had similar designs that resembled the original AEV design for the most part. However, when the team brainstormed together, the final design incorporated aspects from each design that made for a creative and unique final drawing. This made for a sketch that is easily differentiated from its counterparts. These changes were implemented in order to cut down weight, make for a more aerodynamic vehicle, and to add aesthetically pleasing aspects to the design.
The team first decided that one propeller on the front and back of the AEV should be implemented into the new design. This makes for a combination of the pull and push design, in which the the propeller in the front is pulling the air and the propeller in the back is pushing the air. This decision was made in order to distribute the weight more evenly between the front and the back of the AEV. The team also put two trapezoids for wings on the side of the AEV. This allowed for a more aerodynamic AEV that would glide through the air and reduce drag. It was also decided that this AEV would include aesthetic aspects that would incorporate aspects of Ohio State. The team added two buckeye stickers on the wings along with an Ohio State cardboard cutout on the front. The use of cardboard instead of a heavier material allows the AEV to maintain its lightweight features. The cardboard is also in a triangle shape so that it cuts through the air better. The team also decided to take off the angle bracket that was located in the front of the sample AEV. This bracket did not serve a purpose and cut down more weight from the vehicle. The sample final AEV with most of the features we have incorporated is shown in Figure 6. All of these changes were made to help better assist the AEV in completing the scenario in the MCR.
In Figure 1: Propellers Down AEV Design, the wings on the sides were pointed downward along with the wings. This design was much different than the original design as the force created by the propellers is pointed downward and backwards. The force therefore was pushing the AEV upward as well as forward which took friction off the wheels and created lift using the wings. The wings were also pointed downward which created a lift force on the AEV and took more friction off the wheels. Less friction on the wheels would allow the AEV to travel at higher speeds and use less battery power. The design used very minimal materials as seen on the bill of materials in Table 1. Most of the materials were reused from the original AEV design. Brackets and a small piece of plastic are the only new materials needed to complete the new design.
In Figure 2 the design consisted of the 2.5 by 7.5 rectangular base, along with two trapezoids on either side at a slanted position. The two trapezoids were connected at the back of the AEV, with the propellers attached to each one. The propellers were put at the back of the AEV which decreased drag from the “wings” (trapezoids) of the AEV on either side. This AEV design included the L-shape arm and the wheels implemented similar to the original AEV design. Additionally, this drawing included a rounded dome at the front of the AEV, which worked to make the vehicle more aerodynamic and aesthetically pleasing. This addition allowed air to move up over the base of the AEV, reducing drag, and allowing the vehicle to move faster and more efficient. This dome would be made utilizing 3-D printing or would be purchased at a store in order to be implemented into the design. No other items would need to be printed or bought in order to complete the remainder of the project, as the rest of the materials were already present in the AEV kit. The team utilized a brainstorming techniques by asking questions about how far the design of the AEV could be taken. Asking these questions effectively helped the team gather information that aided in the design, and allowed the team to add more creativity and individuality to the design process.
Figure 3: Arrow Head design was similar to the original AEV design, but with some different features. The base is a 7.5” x 2.5” plastic sheet with two trapezoidal wings connected toward the back of the AEV making them wings. The motors and propellers are under the wings. There was an L shaped arm that is perpendicular to the base that will hold the AEV to the rail. The change that was made is that there is a small triangle connected to the front of the AEV to make it more aerodynamic. This would allow the AEV to glide through the air better and complete the scenario more efficiently. This triangle would be made out of cardboard so that it would not weigh much at all. The team utilized this triangle shape on the final AEV design by making an Ohio State logo that is triangular shaped at the front. This was the only thing that the team took from this design.
Referring to Figure 4, the AEV was built to go faster and withstand damage while it maintained a lightweight design. At first it was challenging to come up with an original design, but using the brainstorming technique it allowed for a more creative design. The design from the top orthographic view has a triangular shape with 6’’x9’’ and a rectangle that is 3’’x2’’ at the bottom with wings attached to the rectangle with a 6’’ distance between them to represent the propellers. The wings are built far apart from one another in order to make the AEV capable of pushing as much air behind, which allowed the AEV to move better in the air and increase its speed capability on lower battery power. Each individual sketch was done with materials that make the AEV as efficient as possible. The less materials used made for a more efficient AEV, due to this, this design does not include many outside materials. Most of the materials are used from the original AEV design. Instead of using the same exact shape of the plastic material though, it would be more cost effective and efficient to cut the thickness of plastic material in half; allowing for an AEV with a lighter weight. Cardboard would be used to build the bottom rectangle to make it even more lightweight.
Team Meeting Notes
Date: 2-6-2017
Time: 6:00-7:50 pm
Members Present: Evan Berry, Alex Savelieff, Cameron Eckles, Ahmed Negnm
Topics Discussed: Distributing parts of the lab report.
Objective: Make sure we can finish all parts of the report by tomorrow.
To do/Action Items: Split up each section between each other. Plan for all the parts to be completed by tonight and read over tomorrow morning.
Decisions: Turn in the lab report tomorrow night before it is due. Meet then to finish everything.
Date: 2-6-2017
Time: 7:00-8:00 pm
Members Present: Evan Berry, Alex Savelieff, Cameron Eckles
Topics Discussed:
Finalizing all aspects of the design and proofreading all lab material
Objective: Ensure that all parts are present and accurate.
To do/Action Items: Have each member to a complete readthrough of the lab and make sure there ar e no glaring errors
Decisions: Turn in the lab
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- Final Design
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- Ahmed’s Design
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- Alex’s Design
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- Cameron’s Design
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- Evan’s Design
Weekly Schedule
| Task | Teammate(s) | Start Date | Due Date | Time Needed |
| Write the code for AEV to travel to the gate. | Evan & Cameron | 2/1/17 | 2/7/17 | 20 minutes |
| Trial test on the track | Ahmed & Alex | 2/1/17 | 2/7/17 | 10 minutes |
| Data transferring from arduino to computer | Ahmed | 2/7/17 | 2/14/17 | 20 minutes |
| Matlab conversion of units | Alex | 2/7/17 | 2/14/17 | 15 minutes |
| Start progress report | All | 2/9/17 | 2/14/17 | 4 hours |
| Prepare next lab | All | 2/9/17 | 2/21/17 | 1 hour |
| TroubleShoot matlab errors | All | 2/7/17 | N/A | 30 minutes |