We successfully finished our MCM last week. The tape dispenser module was able to retract the tape smoothly, but it had a few small issues extending the tape. This is expected since the tape measure has a built in retraction spring; it is going to take more torque to pull the tape out than to push it in. Fortunately, this issue is easily solved by adding another gearbox to the planetary motor. We could also increase the gear ratio between the motor and the wheel axle to improve the torque even more.
During manufacturing, we learned a helpful technique when dealing with low accuracy tolerances. We were trying to mount the motor onto the module. Rather than drill all four holes at once onto the baseplate, we drilled only one hole. We mounted the motor onto the one hole and marked all the other holes from there. Drilling holes with this method will decrease inaccuracy when using rough tools such as a hand drill.
With this module complete, our next step is the arm extension module. We are approximately 40% done with our machine.
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