Group 075-02: Automated Pill Dispenser

During the eighth week of our design project, the team worked on creating a preliminary presentation for the project. Practice presentations were held during the lab period, in order to prepare the groups for the final presentations. In the making of our presentation, we focused on design needs, constraints, and requirements, outlining how our project so far is making progress in each of these categories. The opportunity to have a practice presentation also gave the group a chance to improve  our presentation skills and delivery, which will be important for the final presentation.

Beginning the construction of our final prototype was the task set aside for Week 7. The group purchased a sheet of reinforced cardboard that would be needed, and cut out each part of our dispenser on a table saw. The dimensions of the dispenser were scaled down to 9 x 12 x 11 inches. Using hot glue, the pieces were assembled, and gave the device a much cleaner look and sturdier shape. In order to add in the wiring, we needed to laser cut the bottom section of our dispenser compartment, so that the motors and moving parts could be put inside. The laser printer inside of the Innovation Studio was used for this purpose. For more details on the project thus far, please consult our Draft Final Report, which you can find in the pages tab.

During Week 6 of our Design Project, the team worked on programming the arduino servo motor system, and finishing up the construction of the prototype build. This included setting up all six motors for all six dispenser pods, ordering the plastic pill bottles, and finishing up the construction of the dispenser. We began by laying out the motors and circuitry on the inside compartment of the dispenser, and proceeded to make measurements about where we would need to have everything placed. By the end of our class period, we had the template drawn up and the motors were wired. In addition, the group began planning ahead to the prototype we would be starting in Week 7. We discussed the new dimensions, keeping in mind that we were planning on making the device smaller, and also settled on reinforced cardboard as a building material.

For the fifth week of the design project, the group gathered in order to start drawing out the dimensions of the proposed pill dispenser. We settled on a rectangular shape, with pill compartments up top, the wiring in the back, and the delivery system on the front of the device. During the lab period of the week, the group began working on constructing the device. We started by cutting out the cardboard pieces and gluing them together. Next, the doors were constructed so that we would have easy access to the top and rear of the device. The final step was laying out the arduino board, servo motors, and wiring. All of this allowed us to get an idea of how much space we would need, and what changes we needed to make an the spot. One problem we noticed is that the top of the device was not adequately supported, so wood supports were added on the bottom in order to add strength. While Victor and Frankie worked on assembling the body of the pill dispenser, Fernando and Alexa worked on settin...

During the fourth week of our Design Project, the team worked on sourcing and gathering all of the materials that we would need for the project. This included cardboard, hinges, servo motors, wiring, and an arduino board. The weekly lab period was used for creating the basic design concept of the device in AutoCAD, and starting the coding for the arduino board. For our first prototype, we plan on constructing the body out of thick cardboard, which will allow us to make quick adjustments and changes without the use of much hardware.   Figure 1: Front View Figure 2: Back View