Consideration of Design Viability
Element F shares our theory behind the choices our team made while designing our product.
We decided on low-power consumption components which allows us to leave a small amount of space in the overlay for the battery and so users will have to change the battery less often. The components we chose to use were also constrained by the power it needs to run and the general consumption of power overtime.
Nano Controller
We chose to go with a product very similar to the Arduino Nano to control our overlay system. It will be able to supply our components with power while taking up as small of a space and as little power as possible. It is also 10x more affordable compared to a name-brand nano, with the same functionality.
Passive Infared (PIR) Sensor
We ultimately chose a PIR sensor as through research we learned the PIR sensor was most effective at sensing movement. We are continuing to do more research into the specific sensor that will be used in our final product for concerns around affordability.
Servo Motor
The servo motor has a low power consumption, consumes only a small amount of space, and handles enough power to flip the light switch.
For the material to construct the majority of the mounting and the shell of our overlay, 3D printing. We chose to choose 3D printing as our main medium for manufacturing due to the overwhelming amount of customization that occurred during the design phase. After researching the two major 3D printing materials, PLA and PETG, we came to the conclusion that PLA would be best suited for our solution. PLA is strong, easy to print with, cheap, lightweight, and has an overall good print quality. Given our solution will be placed in a residential setting, we also chose to move forward with white PLA so as to create a cohesive, low-attracting product as it should serve its purpose, saving the owner money and energy, while maintaining a “low-profile” on one's wall.
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