10/6-10/9

Monday

On the start of Monday, I helped Bella with the L-Bracket and the measurements of each hole. However, I still needed to complete the large wire for the power supply. I had cut away on the thick outer layer without cutting the smaller wires because they wouldn't be usable. The shortened time in shop allowed me to complete remove the outside but I was not able to strip the three wires.

Tuesday

On Tuesday, I had to finish fixing the Power supply's wires. I used an old blog post to check what each colored wire went into. After I found that blog post, Mr. Christy suggested that I put labels onto the wires. The old wires kept breaking from the power supply and I had to redo them. I had slight trouble twisting each wire and placing them back into their perspective spots. Before plugging the power supply back in, I showed them to Mr. Christy. Thankfully it worked and powered up the whole board. I also took some time finishing up the PCB and helping Bella with its measurements for the L-brackets she planned to install. I made another version of the PCB and sent it to her for the holes of the standoffs. I used the laser-cutter to cut out a visual of the PCB.

Wednesday

On Wednesday, I finished with the power supply by adding a polarized connection for the PCB because Mr. Christy said it would be very important to have polarized connectors due to how many volts/current would be involved. After that I was able to start working on the PCB. I put all of the components onto the board. I showed Mr. Christy each connection but at first the power running through the board had no connection at first. I had used the wrong symbol on the schematic and needed to change it so then it would have a connection. Mr. Christy also suggested me to round the edges of the PCB because it's a good habit. This is the final schematic for the PCB and this is how it will look like after it is milled. I like how it looks because there isn't a lot of clutter occurring.

Thursday

On Thursday, I wrote my blog post and also asked for help on how to mill the PCB. It's been a while since I've milled a PCB. I'm pretty excited to see if it will work because that means that is another step to completing the word clock. I didn't do much this day due to the unexpected WiFi loss in the building. I helped Jaspreet with 3D-printing in the start of 6th period once the WiFi was back online. I don't think that I will have enough time milling the PCB out for Thursday but I will be able to mill it on Friday.