Tuesday, March 21, 2017

03/15 to 03/22

We have decided to move away from using the brake calipers against the bogie railway. During last presentation some issues regarding switching and how the calipers might hit the rail proved to be a valid problem. Furthermore, the structure of adding hydraulic system was something that created some difficulty as well. We are looking to design a brake system that would function as both fail safe and normal braking for the bogie. The lever will be controlled by the motor and will feature a spring load that will force the lever down. The lever itself will be connected to brake pads that will come in contact with the wheel. We are currently working on models and calculations for this design. Furthermore, upon further discussing with the rest of the subteams, the wayside team noticed that they might need space for their redesign which will be in close proximity to our new brake design. We will be working closely with them to make sure our systems do not interfere with each other. This new brake design would require more metal, springs, and possibly cable wires. The springs and wire should be pretty cheap, depending on the final design. As for the metal, Craig has access to a limited supply, and any purchase of additional metal should not be expensive.

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

03/08- 03/14

This week the fabrication for the motor mount has begun. Additionally, we are reconsidering altering the brake design to better suit the bogie and the track. We await the motors for propulsion to begin testing but are attempting to complete components for braking and test braking by the end of March.