Process
Manufacturing
The First Prototype
Our Head Manufacturer is testing different hem shapes for the first prototype.
She is inserting pins to prevent the cherry pits from spilling out as she sews.
She is sewing the bag shut.
The finished prototype.
IMG_0476.MOV1/15/19 - 1/16/19
Our Head Manufacturer is sewing the first prototype. This prototype has 7 pockets filled with cherry pits for its filler. The Head Manufacturer brought the cherry pits herself, and if we ever need the filler again, it'll be on her to provide them. The dimensions of this prototype are 50 cm x 10-11 cm.
Experimental Packs
After waiting and planning and waiting, we finally received the materials we needed to start experimenting. There are several bags of each filler, 4 bowls, plenty of thread, and 3 different fabrics.
The Project Manager stated that she could get corn feed, and we recently realized the science classroom has thermometers.
We got our hands on 3 different fabrics: denim, flannel, and parchment.
The bag on the top is 907 grams of rice. The bag in the middle is 454 grams of black beans. The bag on the bottom is 454 grams of lentils. We have multiple bags of each.
The Head Manufacturer and her apprentice sewed 3 2-pocket packs. Each experimental bag contains lentils and are made of a different material.
The light blue experimental bag is made of flannel. The dark-colored experimental bag is made of denim. The white experimental bag is made of parchment.
Each pack has the dimensions of 17 - 18 cm x 7 - 8. The packs may slightly vary from one another in 1 cm at most, hence the size range.
STEM Night
The Head Manufacturer is making 3 packs for the upcoming STEM Night. One will be made of flannel and filled with black beans. One will be made of denim and filled with rice. One will be made of parchment and filled with lentils.
Each pack has dimensions is of 43 - 44 cm x 9 - 11 cm. The packs vary just slightly in size after the fillers are put in.
The Head Manufacturer begins sewing the rectangular piece of denim.
The Denim Pack gains its shape as it is folded and sewed.
The seven sections of the pack are still open. This way, the denim pack can be filled with rice. As each pocket is filled with enough rice, the pocket is shut with a pin.
The Head Manufacturer begins sewing the pockets closed.
The denim and flannel packs.
The parchment pack. We later took this pack apart for its lentil.
These are the students, minus the blogger taking the photo, that attended STEM Night. The Demonstrator for our table is on the far left.
Experimentation
Experimentation with Fillers
Prototype 1
This is our first prototype after it was microwaved for 3 minutes opposed to the usual 2 minutes.
The burnt cherry pits that are visible from inside the rip.
The Prototype is still wet from being thrown and drowsed in the sink.
From this, we conclude that we won't be using cherry pits as a filler. Not many of us were present during the event. It had occurred before school began. But we do hope to not burn anything again.
The Fillers
We measured the mass of a singular coffee cup first. We found that one was 7.5 grams. From there, we could subtract the cup's mass from the total mass to get the mass of the filler. For instance, when the total mass is 307.5 grams, and the filler is held in one coffee cup, you subtract 7.5 grams to get the mass of the actual filler. This means the filler has a mass of 300 grams.
Fillers:
- Lentils
- Black beans
- Rice
- Corn feed
The triple beam balance is set to 315 grams. We try to get the pointer to zero by gradually adding more black beans into the cups.
The Head Artist is watching the pointer to see if it hits 0.
For the first trial, we did not have any corn feed. These are the first trials of the 3 fillers minus corn feed. The temperature right after, 15 minutes after, and 30 minutes later being microwaved is being measured.
The corn feed after the microwave's timer is finished.
A trial for each filler, including corn feed. The phone has a timer set.
We noticed that a few of the lentils turned yellow after being microwaved.
After removing black beans from its bowl that had been microwaved a couple days earlier, we noticed they had left liquidy residue.
Trial 1 Results
Lentils
We microwaved the lentils in a clay bowl for 2 minutes at 950 watts. During the 2 minutes, the filling did not react in any visible way. When we took the bowl out, the scent of fried eggs struck out at us. It spread past the corner of the room in just minutes, but disappeared in about 5 minutes. Aside from the scent, the lentils did not have any negative reactions except for a singular yellowed seed. From here, we stuck a thermometer into the bowl and set a timer for 30 minutes. The temperature is recorded right after taking the bowl out of the microwave, after 15 minutes, and at the 30 minutes.
Black Beans
We microwaved the black beans for 2 minutes at the same microwave settings as the lentils. During the 2 minutes, we noticed the beans popping and sparking inside the microwave. According to our research, black beans do spark, but are not flammable. When the black beans came out, the scent of burnt popcorn became apparent. These first impressions make us think we we won't be using black beans for our product's filler.
Rice
As for the rice, we microwaved them for the same 2 minutes at the same microwave settings. Similar to the lentils, they did not have any visual differences during or after the 2 minutes. When they came out, the scent of a pet store met us.
Corn Feed
We did not have corn feed the same time we did the first trials for the 3 other fillers. We made up for the first trial, however. These are the results of the first trial:
During the 2 minutes, we were excited believing that the corn feed was popping. But after opening the microwave, there was no popcorn to be seen. The corn feed had brightened in color and smelled like popcorn, unsurprisingly.
Trial 2 Results
Lentils
The results were similar, if not the same, to the results from Trial 1.
Black Beans
During the microwaving process, the filler did not have any different results compared to last time. They sparked during the microwaving period similarly to how it did last Trial. When the beans came out, they smelled like beans, unsurprisingly. But compared to the last trial, the smell was different enough for us to not describe it as burnt popcorn again. Physically, the beans remained the same. The shells popped off like a mini explosion and caused sparks like last trial. We poured out the filling into the trash and noticed purple and grey liquid clinging to the bowl. We didn't know about this from the last trial as we didn't pour out the beans, deciding to leave it in the bowl for a couple days.
Rice
Nothing happened during the microwaving process, but after careful inspection, we noticed the rice was a bit darker and had an orange tone. It may have burned just slightly, but it doesn’t cause or suggests an issue.
Corn Feed
The results are easily comparable to Trial 1's.
Trial 3 Results
At this point, we are looking more into the data we get from the experiment. Nothing that we hadn't already seen occurred during the last trials. Everything went smoothly aside from the thermometer exploding in the rice bowl. Everyone who had touched the rice washed their hands. This, however, makes us skeptical about the safety of rice as a filler
Experimentation with fabrics
Experimental Bags
Round 1
The first time we attempted microwaving the experimental bags, we microwaved the flannel bag and the parchment bag simultaneously for 2 minutes. They both burned.
The microwave the flannel bag was in. The flannel experimental bag ripped, and lentils fell out as they were taken from the microwave in a panic.
The microwave the parchment pack was in. There is residue left behind.
When the experimental bags burned, the student who opened the first microwave ran off, deterred by the wave of burnt lentils that hit him. Our teacher was the one who grabbed the 2 bags and tossed them into the sink, dowsing them like last time. It looks like we hadn't learned from burning the prototype. The cars parked outside of the school could smell the burnt lentils through the closed double doors, and you could smell them from the back of the school. It wouldn't be surprising if the smell lingered in the staircases. Students went home with the smell clinging to their clothes, and the next morning, if you were early enough, you could still smell the lentils throughout the school.
It's clear what we did wrong. We microwaved too small of a bag for a 2 minutes meant for prototypes like our first one, but even that one ended up burning at 2 minutes. What did we expect?
Experimental Bags
Round 2
The Head Manufacturer and Apprentice went ahead and remade the parchment bag and flannel bag. While making the flannel bag, the lentils ran out. We experimented with the denim and parchment bag first, and asked if anyone had lentils.
A few days later, a student brought in lentils. The last experimental bag was finished, and the Head Manufacturing took the flannel pack home to experiment with.
The temperature of the experimental bags are being measured by wedging the thermometer in the fold created by the bag's two pockets.
The Final Products
5/20/19
We do not have the time or materials to create the final products by May 20. This is the sketch made by the Head Artist until we have our final products. We did decide on the dimensions.
Large Pack:
43 cm x 20 cm
Small Pack:
43 cm x 11 cm