January and February Minutes

January 29, 2011

Met with Calvin to introduce the project
Familiarized ourselves with the current mechanical testers and the CNC machine on the 7th floor
Discussed General phases of the project
Next Steps:
- Create a Problem Statement
- Contact Dale for programming information
- Use the CNC machine manual to find physical parameters we have for designing the load cell attachment

Met in class to combine schedules
An additional member joined the group (Michael)
Weekly meetings with Calvin will now be on Thursdays from 4-5pm
These meetings will include:
- An informative session presented by Calvin
- An overview of what has been done and what needs to be done
- Future questions which need to be answered in the near future

Met in the Prof. Lima's lab to see the first demonstrations of the CNC machine, the Mechanical tester, and its computer software
Found out that the physical connection to the CNC is simpler than we initially thought (a 4/10' diameter connection)
Created an intro video to be posted online on a later date
Distributed Research to be done
Calvin suggested that we use the connection at the front of the CNC (used for position jogging) in order to control the mechanical tester- Research will be done on this particular connection
Needed improvement: The wires around the current mechanical tester are disorganized. When dealing with the CNC, we plan to attach an organized, compact, single unit to the load cell for improved presentability, and in order to reduce the possiblility of any wires getting caught or tangled in the machine.

Established subfunctions for project:
- Physically moving load cell
- Programming
  - Direct commands (such as position)
  - Dynamic communications with the CNC test through the front port
  - Raw data⇒ Graphs, info, etc.
- Getting rid of wires (Organization)
- Allowing for multiple tests in one session
Found the product # for the CNC machine. We will send it to Roland to get information about the front port.

Measured parameters for 'control tower' containing signal and low voltage conditioners, and a DAQ board.
Discussed next steps for project:
- Compliance testing using an LVDT vs. the position control of the CNC machine
- Accuracy testing: Determining the amount of noise which would significantly decrease the accuracy of the data. This will lead to the control of the rate at which the position changes using the CNC in all three directions.
Set a goal for March 10th for when the preliminary tests should be complete.