Meeting with Ron and George
Over the past weekend we had a team meeting (28 January 2011) with Ron and George. In this meeting, we discussed possible design ideas and we were pleased to see that they had the same type of concept in mind. Three main tasks that are necessary for the device to handle were discussed and possible solutions to each task were discussed in detail. The three tasks discussed were lifting, transferring, and moving. Lifting can be done by a scissor lift, a column lift, or a crane lift. Transferring can be done by using a trolley system, collapsing boards, rotating boards, or a full extendable drawer. Lastly, moving can be accomplished by casters. One thing that we must consider is the different combination of caster types we will use (ie rigid or swivel).
At the end of this meeting, we agreed that our preferred concept consists of a platform, retractable arm, scissor lift, linear actuator, base, and casters.
Site Visit
We visited the client’s home (30 January 2011) with George in order to answer any final questions and to test the client’s true abilities. In order to test the client’s true abilities, we created a very crude prototype of our design. At the site, we split into two groups, one to ask any remaining questions and perform the required tests with the prototype, and the other to make measurements and photograph the kitchen. Also, we came up with a rough model of our initial design, which can be seen below, in order to give the client a better understanding of what we were thinking.
Overall, the site visit went very well as we got all of the necessary tasks done and we were pleased that the client, Heidi, and her husband, actually had something similar in mind to what we came up with. They also noted that they plan on moving soon, so the device we create cannot be site specific. One concern that we have is that they requested that the device is able to lift from floor height (or at least 3 inches above the ground). We find that this may be a problem as the casters will already lift the device a lot, and the scissor lift (when at it’s lowest form) will also need to be a small height above the ground.
Directly following the site visit, we had a team meeting where we discussed what we had learned from the visit. As we have the measurements of the kitchen, we are now ready to finalize the design and consider ordering parts.
Future Plans
After meeting again during the week, we feel that modifying the oven may cause this project to be simpler. By adding a slider system to the oven rack, the oven rack could easily slide out and a retractable arm could extend from the side, spanning a much smaller distance than originally anticipated. We believe we have found supplier that makes sliders to fit our exact needs (sliding oven trays). We are currently trying to get in contact with them for further information.
Great progress – good to see! Nice idea re oven rack.
More generally, it looks like the team in on track for completion.
Congratulations and keep up the good work!
-SN