Week 14 - The Last Week

For this last week, I created the design and CAD files for a wooden model to demonstrate the connections between the beams, which also included laser cut clamps and two different beam size (representing the main arch and the guide way supports). Unfortunately due to the very tight time constants I did not have the time to get the clamps design ready for the laser cutter, though the CAD should still be very helpful to demonstrate how they work. I also reused the parts from my my previous cardstock model to make three smaller models to show different sheet configurations, then I grouped up several files to show everything that I learned about how the beams worked over the semester.

Of course, the semester isn't completely over, and there are still a few things I must do. Firstly, I will sort through and upload all of my files to upload to the team google drive, which will then be uploaded to the general Superway Database. In addition, I will also have to put the finishing touches on my parts of the final report. Finally, during winter break I will also keep in touch with my group, and do whatever I can to help, as well as contact Banderbend to further improve my files and to get ready to turn them into real testable parts.

Week 12&13 - After the Break

During the Week of thanksgiving I did not manage to complete a lot of work for the superway as I had to catch up on another classes project and had a busy three day vacation. However, the weekend immediately afterwards was a very different story.

The first thing I did was create a streamlined SOLIDWORKS template to easily design bent sheets used for the column. With it one can quickly choose the unit system and sheet metal thickness, and tweak the external dimensions to immediately designs a sample sheet for new models. In addition, I also modified the template to generate a representation of the cement core that would be created for the given values and that could also accout for the interior tabs and the external gaps at the sheet intersections. Then, I used 4 of the sheet metal files and 1 of the concrete core files to make an assembly file that could be used for an ANSYS analysis. With these templates, I remade the parts and assembly for a 4 foot 1/8 inch sheet full scale beam, and two 4 foot half scale beams (with sheet thicknesses of 1/8 and 1/16 inches).

Lastly, I worked with the group to make the third presentation, which allowed me to show these new template files, as well as talk about new things I learned about the clamp system.