The purpose for building this mechanism was to learn how to use and utilize stepper motors in a system allow for 2.5 degrees of motion. Our goal was accomplished through a pump and a dual-degree of motion using 2 belts and two stepper motors. 

The first stepper motor was placed to move the plate along the y-axis, similarly, the second stepper motor was placed on top of the frame to move the funnel along the x-axis. Both systems used 80/20's as the primary foundation and all the 80/20's were connected using 3-d printed connecters which were made of PLA. 

The pump was a separated system that moved a piston up using a rack and pinion to allow fluid flow through the cubic container. The pump and its holder were entirely 3-d printed from PLA filament to hold up to 23 cubic inches of batter and the plastic tube was about 12 inches in length and the .5 inches in diameter, with a thickness of .075 inches. 

The stand for the pump was created to align the rack and pinion with a close fit with the motor suspended above the pinion to allow for full extension and contraction of the rack. 

The main issue was with the pump. The pump initially was designed to pump brownie batter through the tube, but as it turned out, the batter was too viscous to be pumped through, and needed more pressure than what the pump and the stand could supply.  For instance, the motor would rotate but the racks clearance allowed for the motor to slip against the rack. 

After ultimately deciding on using water for our "batter", we saw that the problem now was that the pump's clearance was too large and allowed water to pass around the piston. This was fixed by using a plastic bag to contain the water and push it away. 

Our last problem, was that the tube acted as a siphon for the pumps placement and would cause the amounts dispersed by piston movement to vary. This would be solved by placing a removable cap into the container to plug and unplug the tube at will. Our team wasn't able to fix this problem due to the time constraints of the project. 

To improve the frame,  common 80/20 connectors would be used instead of creating each and every connector ourselves through 3-D printing. Also, the pump valve would have some component to block the valve in order to allow specific water quantities to pass through the tube.