Adviser Meeting with Dr. Harvey 3/15/2012

• Need to develop a wire diagram that details what goes the power supply, circuits and mechanical sub-systems
• This has already been done by Antony
• However one needs to be developed for the end caps and the electronic rack
• Look into developing a wedge type of configuration for the notch on the inside of the end cap 
• This will be used to guide the electronics into the notch allowing for a quick easier connection
• Explore options that will make the electronics to end cap connection more efficient 
• This is to reduce the time required to properly connect the more than 20 wires on each end cap to their correct destination
• Looking into using connectors (male to male or male to female) which will reduce the amount of connections down to one or two connectors if possible.
• Would be Ideal if the connector could be mounted to the end cap
• A good place to start searching would be Digi-key Electronics or Fouraker Electronics which is located in town 
• We will need to remove the fan off of the Zotac 
• The fan will act as a source of heat or displace heat to regions where we do not want it 
• PID control might be overkill for environment that our vehicle be operating in 
• For the final hardware demo we need at least 90% completion of the vehicle
• This is because the number of people working on the vehicle will be significantly reduced over the summer
• No pressure for hardware demo redo 
• However notify an advisers when we go to test the vehicle in the water so that our progress can be noted
• Talk to Dr. Frank about the reviewers attendance and having someone available for when one of our primary reviewers are not present

Adviser Meeting with Dr. Frank 2-3-2012

• Held biweekly on Fridays at 12:30PM
• Meeting will always be on the same week as our meeting with Dr. Harvey
• We may need to purchase a another type of control board for the computer vision
• The beagle board may not have enough processing power/speed
• Another possible cause of the problem could be opencv compatibility with the beagle board
• Midterm Hardware Demo. Feb. 23, 2012
• The more done we have done and are capable of demonstrating  the better
• It was suggested that our next milestone should be to have the vehicle in the water equipped with the thrusters and testing 
• Possible Test for Camera
• Small light refraction test with a laser pointer
• Performed underwater and used to determine the angle of refraction on the viewing wall of the enclosure
• For Presentation
•  Dr. Frank will like to see more software architecture, different modules and flow chart diagrams
• He feels as though we're at the stage in our project where should have a lot of code developed therefore a better understanding of how the vehicle will operate 

Adviser Meeting with Dr. Harvey 2-2-2012 

• Held biweekly on Thursday at 9am
• According to Ryan depth of camera vision may become an issue
• Cause of the problem could possible be the tilt of the camera or the testing environment is too bright
• Possible solutions: increase resolution, adjust lens (zoom in or out), lower LUX rate or possibly switch to waterproof cameras (last resort) 
•  Dr. Harvey was concerned about our progress with the thrusters
• We need to work more closely with the thrusters and get a better understanding of how they work and their behavior. Their interaction with the vehicle is critical to the miission
• We need to know thrust generated, power drawn and the possibility of stalling occurring etc.
• Possible Camera Test
• Place tint paper on the front of the camera enclosure to test the cameras ability to adjust to various light settings
• If response is not well we may need to replace the camera
• Need new location to test the camera enclosure and camera so, we should look into buying an aquarium
• This will enable us to control our testing environment/conditions for the camera (Lighting, density, clarity etc.)
• For the Presentation
• Don't focus on the test plan for the entire presentation
• This will be an horrible mistake on our behalf
• Instead place all test for various sections of the project (for example computer vision) into one table
• Rate each test plan with a simple pass or fail
• Pick one test that's interesting and expand on it
• Talk about what issues have been resolved and how we resolved them
• Talk about what issues still need to be resolved
• Picture of the vehicle with as many components as possible
• Be sure to have on thrusters
• Picture of the course will be needed
• Used to remind the professors of the competition environment and update them on any changes; they have been presented with this information since around October
• Announce that the final competition rules will be coming out soon
• Overall in this presentation we must cover what was done since last presentation, what still needs to be done, and where we are compared to where we thought we would be
• We must contact Ms. Berkita Ritz concerning how to apply for addition funding from the FAMU-FSU COE

ME Update Meeting 1/26/12

Important details from the meeting

•  Updating the Pro E model is a must!!!
• Purchased items are not in yet
• Additional measurements need to be made
• For upcoming report and presentation we need to focus on test plans
•   Watertight test for the hull and camera enclosures are in progress; it's procedure and status need to be outlined
• Actuation of the solenoid valves have been achieved
• Only 4V is needed to achieve actuation; however specs require 12V
•  Servo motor has been tested and it does not work
• A new servo motor will be purchased by this upcoming Monday
• Weight test for the whole vehicle need to be performed
• Test for torpedo launch need to be performed
• Balance is important
• Gas line test need to be developed 
• Extra torpedoes need to be made
• For testing purposes, competition and in case of lost or damage
• Monday 1/30/12 is order day
• ATTENTION ECEs
• An extra PWM will be needed for the marker dropper
• There will be a new layout for the Report paper
• The layout is not too friendly with excel spreadsheets
• Peer evaluations are due for ME
• Not sure if this applies to the ECEs also

Watertight Testing

Watertight testing was performed on the robosub last week. It was determined that both the camera inclosures and the hull were not properly sealed. The camera inclosures are in the worst condition having filled completely with water. The hull on the other hand is a issue of minor concern having let in only drops of water and should be relatively easy to completely seal.

Vehicle with slight incline due to camera inclosures initially being filled with air.

Eric with the vehicle.

Tra Giving the vehicle a push

Tra and Eric checking the natural stability of the vehicle.

Eric and more stability checks.

Vehicle Progression 

Right side view of Vehicle.

Close up view of torpedo.

Pressure vessel: outside looking in at the heat transfer plate. 

Close up view of  camera inclosures.

Finger notches on pressure vessel door.

Back view of the Vehicle.

Front view of the vehicle.

Top view of the vehicle.

ME Staff Meeting Jan. 12, 2012

Important meeting notes

• Need to put a sense of urgency of developing a test plan for entire vehicle
• We need to work more closely with our ECE counterparts
• MEs should know the current status of the ECE aspects of the project 
• Provide to ME advisers with a time and location for all staff meetings on the ECE side
• Provide to ME advisers with a time and location for all ECE presentations
• ME advisers will visit one
• We will have 2 ME presentations this semester
• Short presentations (15mins each)
• no more than 2-3 individuals should present for a given team