Final Entry - Reflecting on Learning (Appendix 10)

Supervisor Meetings about Report

I have started my report a few weeks ago. When I was done with my first draft I send an email to my supervisor together with the report and asking if I could plan a meeting for us to go over the report. The emails I send and received for that I have put below.

 I then had the meeting with my supervisor, she put comments on my report and explained the comments and mentioned how to improve etc.

She then send me the file later on with the report including the comments. The email is put below:

I went of and improved my report. Later I send her the second draft asking for another meeting. These emails are again listed below:

We did not have a meeting discussing the report this time as all the comments were put into the file. I then went of and improved it again. This became my final draft.

Testing my Product

In one of my previous post I have explained that I will test the product myself. I have clarified before how I will determine if the specification is achieved. These clarification I have listed again below with underneath the feedback and if I have achieved the specification.

Size of a shoe box (excluding Pendulum)
Measuring the outline of an average/random shoe box, and measuring the outline of my clock. I will allow myself a 10cm margin of error.
I measured the length, width and height of my clock (excluding pendulum) and put them in the table underneath 'Rounded average' and then calculated the difference in size underneath. 

	Length (cm)	Width (cm)	Height (cm)
Box 1	30.5	20.5	11
Box 2	30.5	17.5	10
Box 3	31	17.5	10.5
Box 4	30.5	17.5	10
Average	30.625	18.25	10.375
Rounded average	31 cm	18 cm	10 cm
My sizes	40.5 cm	8 cm	13.5 cm
Difference	9.5 cm	10 cm	3.5 cm

As you can see I just managed to achieve this design specification. All lengths are inside my allowed 10cm margin of error. Therefore I can proudly say that I have achieved this specification.

Made mainly of wood
Other materials are allowed to be used in my product, but it has to be mainly wood. If I have achieved this specification mainly relies on common sense.
The main material I have used is indeed wood. All the wheels and the background is made from wood. I have used other materials like glue, nails, etc. But I kept this to the minimum and whenever I could avoid using other material. Therefore I believe I have achieved this specification.

Looks just like the design
Looks just like the design is an easy one. I have in no aspect in any way changed my design compared to my final product. The slightest change causes this specification to fail.
It should show how the mechanics work
The clock looks exactly like the design. I made minor adjustments, but it never changed the appearance of the clock which is what I was aiming for. Therefore I have achieved this specification.

Shows how the mechanics of a clock work
I designed my clock in such a way that it will show how the mechanics of a clock clearly. If I will stick to the design then this specification will automatically also be achieved.

I stuck to the design, therefore I have automatically achieved this specification. I did not put a case around the clock, so all the wheels are visible, I made sure that the wheels are big and didn't add anything unnecessary so the viewer wouldn't get confused.

The weight has to be easy rewindable
Then again, I designed the clock in such a way that the weight will be easily rewindable. So if the design works out OK, then I automatically achieved this too. But if I don't achieve the 'just like the design' specification I will time myself rewinding the clock. If it takes takes 60 seconds or less in a normal (not rushing) speed, I have achieved this specification.
I timed myself rewinding the weights. All six tries I first had to think which side the weight has to be rewinded, and then carefully rewinded it. 

Try #	Time (seconds)
1st try	48.4
2nd try	45.6
3rd try	43.8
4th try	35.4
5th try	48.3
6th try	49.9
Average	45.23 seconds

The average is 45.23 seconds, which is well within my specification. I can confidently say that I have achieved this specification. 

Product is Done!!

My product has been done for quite a while now. It was due somewhere in November last year, while it is already January.
I never really got the clock to work, the problem was all in the pendulum. The wheels are all good, no problem with that. The problem is that the pendulum doesn't work to continue on its own. But underneath a few photo's of the process of the making with some small captions of what's happening.

The original piece of wood I have used to create the product. 

 

 

FINAL PRODUCT

1, 1, 10, 4, 1, 1.

Starting the Product!!!

So last weekend I finally decided to start my product. I still have a few things on my check list that I wanted to do before starting my product, and I will do those things over time. But I found out that we have one month left before the product has to be due, and I thought that they would exstend the deadline anyway because we started a few weeks late on the personal project last year. But then I logged into our school website and found this:

So I send an email as well to Ms. Trumic to make an appointment for a new meeting, and this is what I recieved:
(Email of Ms. Trumic here)

Today it's the 17th of September, and the product is due the 10th. So last friday when I saw this I started panicking a bit and I wanted to start my product ASAP!! So saterday I got my equipment (the wood), but I had to go to a birthday party, so I was able to start my product on sunday. I drew all the wheels on the wood and started sawing some out. I took pictures of all my progress as I tend to forget to do that on my Technology projects. These pictures can be viewed in Appendix #?

List of materials

I have mentioned most of my materials, but not made a definite list.
So I will start with a list of materials and then a list of equipment

• Wood (0.5x1x0.02 m)
• Wood (0.5x1x0.008 m)
• Nails (0.8 cm thick, 10 cm long)
• Rubber bands (or something with friction)
• Nails (0.1 cm thick, 2 cm long)
• Weights (to hang on the rope)
• Weights (to hang on the pendulum)
• Rope

• Figure saw
• File (rough and fine)
• Final design
• Compass (to draw circles)
• Pencil
• Rubber
• Drill

How will I test my product

So originally I wanted to survey people about my product against my design specifications. My design specification are:

• Size of a shoe box (excluding Pendulum)
• Made mainly of wood
• Looks just like the design
• Shows how the mechanics of a clock works.
• The weight has to be easy rewindable.

So I was planning on asking questions like:

1. Is the clock (excluding the Pendulum) about the size of a shoe box?
2. Is the clock mainly made out of wood?
3. Does it look just like the original design?
4. Does it show how the mechanics of a clock work?
5. Is the weight easily rewindable?

But for people to answer some of these questions they would either have to see the product or know how it works. As I cannot bring the actual product around with me, or have time to explain exsactly how it works I decided that I will not do a survey. I would also need a lot of people to survey which is very inconvenient and time-consuming.
I decided that I would just reflect myself on how well I have done in my design specifications. As most of them are either common-sense or measurable I believe I can decide myself if I have achieved the specification.

I will check myself if I have reached the specification by:

Measuring the outline of an average/random shoe box, and measuring the outline of my clock. I will allow myself a 10cm margin of error.

	Length	Width	Height
Box 1	30.5	20.5	11
Box 2	30.5	17.5	10
Box 3	31	17.5	10.5
Box 4	30.5	17.5	10
Average	30.625	18.25	10.375
Rounded average	31 cm	18 cm	10 cm

Other materials are allowed to be used in my product, but it has to be mainly wood. If I have achieved this specification mainly relies on common sense.
Looks just like the design is an easy one. I have in no aspect in any way changed my design compared to my final product. The slightest change causes this specification to fail.
It should show how the mechanics work
I designed my clock in such a way that it will show how the mechanics of a clock clearly. If I will stick to the design then this specification will automatically also be achieved.
Then again, I designed the clock in such a way that the weight will be easily rewindable. So if the design works out OK, then I automatically achieved this too. But if I don't achieve the 'just like the design' specification I will time myself rewinding the clock. If it takes takes 60 seconds or less in a normal (not rushing) speed, I have achieved this specification.


If the majority of the questions are answered with yes... then I can proudly say that I achieved my goal.