02/02/2018: Prototype completion and Leg building

This week, I was able to complete the assembly and testing for the prototype. Despite some delays in the process of putting the prototype leg together, such as the fact that some of the pieces had to be redone to fit the leg, I managed to complete the prototype leg in time for testing. After finishing the assembly of the leg, I went to solder wires used to link the motor to the motor shield. Once this was done, I was able to connect everything together to test out the functionality and effectiveness of the leg. The results were satisfying, as the prototype leg proved to be able to stand on its own while bearing weight. It was also capable of recreating a walking motion and was much less prone to jamming in comparison to the legs I built for last year's walker. Pleased with the results of the testing, I decided to move on to work on the legs that would be used in the final iteration of my robot. While I was able to print out all of the pieces needed for assembly, I was not able to complete all of them in time and I only had time to put the main parts together. In the upcoming periods, I plan in finishing these legs as soon as possible and to design a body/frame that would hold all 4 legs together. I also considered about lowering the center of mass, as  suggested by Aaron, and thought about the different types of feet, both of which  would help giving the walker better stability. All in all, I believe that I made considerable progress during this week's classes.