Multipurpose Wire Pin Protector
Oakbrookrobotics
Entry ID #: 3635
Created: Wed, Jan 11, 2017 11:11 AM
Introduction: Team 8926, Combined IQ, would like to suggest the production of a new part for VEX VRC called the Multipurpose Wire Protector. Our experience with storing and using VEX products with exposed pins including motors, sensors, motor controllers, and wire extensions has demonstrated that these tiny pins are very fragile and can easily break or bend. These pins can be caught between pieces of metal while storing a partially assembled robot, allowing them to be inadvertantly broken when the team retrieves the tangled pieces of their machine. Replacing these delicate, but crucial pieces of wiring can be expensive. In order to better protect the wire pins, Team 8926 created a simple, yet elegant protective cap that can be placed over any two-prong or three-prong wire pin. The cap can also be placed over a wire pin and then secured into a VEX wire clip in case the wire is attached to the robot, but not currently connected into the cortex. We used Autodesk Inventor 2017 to create our part. First, we used calipers to measure the distance between the wire tips on both a 2-prong and 3-prong VEX 393 motor. We also measured the length of the exposed wire tips. A rectangle measuring 3 x 8 mm was drawn. Next, the holes were drawn into the end of the rectangle according to the caliper measurements. The rectangle was then raised to 13mm to produce a block shaped structure. The holes were centered. The part was exported as an .stl file and 3D printed an our Makerbot Replicator using ABS filament. We were pleased with our final product after finding that it not only fits well on many VEX wiring components, but that it is also simple to print in multiples and easy to install. In conclusion, we enjoyed experimenting with Autodesk Inventor. We learned that we could quickly and accurately design and produce parts that contribute to the overall durablity of our robot. We look forward to using Inventor in the future to create other parts for use on our robot and many other personal projects including a custom-printed drone and an underwater ROV we are creating for our senior research course. The skills we have gained in working with Inventor will give us an edge as we enter college as engineering students and will most certainly continue to benefit us as we move into a workforce that is ever more dependent on modeling technology.
