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Buoy Body Construction
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We started the project with constructing the buoy body out of insulation foam. Large panel of insulation foam was then cut to roughed out doughnut-shape by hand.
Two holes were then drilled for the threaded rod to go through before gluing each layer. Top and the bottom were then sandwiched by plasti-dipped plywood pieces.
Expanding foam was then added to the conical portion of the buoy. The entire buoy body was then sanded to have smooth profile before painting.
Finally, we painted the buoy with exterior grade yellow wall paint to finish constructing the buoy body. The middle of the buoy is hollowed out for the weights (in out first prototype, rocks) to provide stability.
Acrylic Housing Construction
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Next step to our project was to construct an acrylic housing for our electronics to go. We started this process with making a CAD model in SOLIDWORKS to ensure all of our electronic components and mechanical components could be fitted and functioned correctly.
We then sent the file to a laser cutter on campus to cut out the individual pieces.
After the pieces have been cut, we bonded each panels using Dichloromethane.
Mechanical & Electronic Components Construction
Net step to our project was to construct mechanical and electronic components of the Sol Sweeper. We used lathes and mills to machine the metal components, such as the sliding rod, angled bracket, and the carriage piece. For the wiper itself, we took apart an old SUV to obtain the car wiper.
For the electronics components, we wrote the code and used alligator clips until the system functioned as we intended. After confirming the functionality of the electronics, we soldered everything together and enclosed it in a waterproof plastic box and wire loomed the wires that extended out of the box.
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