THT Component Assembly Machine
Independent project
A bench-top machine that takes loose LEDs, singulates and positions them, strips wire, and solders the leads on. Built for a lighting project and adaptable to other through-hole components.
Tools: Fusion 360, CAM and CNC machining, 3D printing, pneumatics, Arduino
Design
Six subassemblies modeled in Fusion 360, with joints to check fit and motion. Pneumatic cylinders sized from piston-force calculations; escapement, lead-screw and leaf-spring compliant mechanisms move each part.
Build
Parts CNC-machined from self-programmed CAM toolpaths and 3D-printed, mounted on an aluminum extrusion frame. Drawings and BOMs made for the build.
Results
All six subassemblies built, tested and iterated. The passive vibratory feeder couldn’t orient the LEDs because the body outweighs the leads, so it was redesigned with an active stage that detects and reorients each LED.
Lunar Ice and Regolith Separator
NASA HUNCH, named a finalist
A prototype that pulls water ice out of lunar soil. Vibration lets the lighter ice rise to the top of the mixture, where it spills over a ledge into an output tube.
Tools: Fusion 360, CNC milling, 3D printing, ESP32
Design
Assembly modeled in Fusion 360. The mixture is held just above the outlet ledge so only the ice-rich top layer overflows.
Build
Parts CNC-milled and 3D-printed. A photoresistor senses the mixture level, and an ESP32 opens a valve at the bottom to keep the level constant.
Results
Separated 85% of the ice in tests, using cement as the regolith simulant and ABS pellets as the ice simulant.
Automated Food Packager
Built for a volunteer kitchen
A conveyor machine that closes the lids on aluminum to-go containers. Volunteers kept cutting their fingers doing it by hand.
Tools: SolidWorks, 3D printing, CNC machining, Arduino
Design
Modeled in SolidWorks with interference checks to confirm clearances between moving parts.
Build
Parts 3D-printed and CNC-machined. Arduino drives the stepper motors, servos and solenoids, plus proximity sensors.
Results
Passive guide rails replaced servo-driven lid placement. With faster motors and simpler logic, cycle time dropped from 46 s to 27 s.
ISS Mobility Arm
NASA HUNCH
A soft robotic arm for moving a robot along the handrails of the International Space Station. A rigid arm could damage the instruments around it, so the arm is built to give.
Tools: Fusion 360, nitinol shape-memory alloy, TPU printing, silicone molding
Design
Modeled in Fusion 360, actuated by current-driven nitinol shape-memory alloy, with a soft gripper and proximity sensors to avoid collisions.
Build
Soft body and gripper made with TPU printing and silicone molding.
Results
Prototype 1 had no nitinol and couldn’t extend. In Prototype 2, a printed TPU body replaced the corrugated tube, whose uneven tension bent the arm sideways.