Journal entry week 1 spring term

1. Are you still happy with your project choice? Why or why not? If you are not, what would you like to do instead?      I am still happy w/ my project because I am still determined to have the rewarding outcome of making a functional rc boat.
2. What are the major roadblocks to your project right now? What is preventing you from taking your project to the next level?   What is an obstinate right now finding out how the properties of buoyancy will effect my boat and figuring out how to much weight the boat will need to hold.
3.  How would you like to change the structure of the 15% Time project? Journal entries, work time in class, presentations?    I think that, working for a full class of 15% time will really give us the time to get into what we are doing and accomplish a lot more than if we broke the time up into smaller portions.

Journal Entry Week 1 Spring

What are you doing?

          My project is an RC boat.  I am going to build a fan boat out of wood and seal the bottom with flex seal to make it water proof.  I am then going to put fan blades and a motor on it.  My end goal is that it will be fully remote controlled and have a speed controller as well as a direction option of straight, turn right and turn left.

       
Why are you doing it?

          I am doing this project because I enjoy building toys and the satisfaction you get when it works and is controllable.  I also think that there are some good challenging obstacles that i can work around such as, building a structurally sound boat that can hold a set amount of weight, learning the mechanics behind some mechanical engineering and how revivers and signals work.


What does this help you to so that is important?

          This project helps me to think in a way that i have not before and challenge my mind in a new field of work that i have had little experience with.  I also understand that it may not be all that easy to achieve all that i want and this will help me in the future to realize what is a rational goal and how productive i can be under certain circumstances.

journal entry week 9

          Air Boat

          For my project I am planing to be constructing and assembling a remote control fan boat.  I will be firstly deciding the type of plastic or wood that I will use to make the body as well as the adhesive.  I will throughout the process have to learn more about RC machines as well as fan boats, buoyancy and aero-dynamics.  The end goal is to have a floatable fan boat that can be controlled by remote, monitor speed as well as direction.

          The reasons that I have for doing this project are that RC machines and motors are somethingI know very little about.  Although I do not have a great mind for electrical mechanics I would like to have a basic understanding of properties of such.  I think this is an interesting topic that has many obstacles to work through but in the end could feel very accomplishing.  

          What this project will help me do is delve into a intricate topic that I know little to nothing about.  I will understand machines in a different way and also step into a completely new perspective upon machines, boats, weight and buoyancy and electronic engineering.

Week 8

Shopping list,


Boat body/ plastic or wood to construct body

Fan blades

Prop.

remote

 receiver

Rudder

electronic speed controller

servo.
Hobbyking.com is a site that I have heavily considered looking at for some of the components


Goals:

I would like its size to be roughly, 10.5 inches or 27 centimeters in length, 4 inches or 10 centimeters and roughly 2 inches + in height


I would like to be able to 3d print this body but considering we only have access to prints up to 4x4 inches I don't think this will happen.

Journal entry week 6

Things i has learned:

For this project I will need to utilize a hydrophobic light but durable and malleable material for the base of the boat.  I will also need a specific fan and motor to drive it.  This is the most crucial part of the design.

The fact that I would like it to be remote controlled is also challenging considering that it will need a remote, receiver, rutter, electronic speed controller and servo.  Hobbyking.com Is a site where I may be able to purchase some


Design: It needs to be light primaraly so that it can be pushed by a fan easier but I can make it stable by making it low and wide with some rigges to control water flow like a pontoon boat.

Journal entry week 4



Brad W., Week 4

I am planing on doing a boat roughly 2ft in length that would be powered by either batteries or, more probably, a motor.  I will have it be either a wind prop. powered boat w/ a large stand up rudder or have one prop. in the back in the water.   The boat will be low and wide w/ a curved up front tip.  Its base will take a \_____/ shape.