LESSONS THAT WE LEARNED FROM THIS PROJECT

While our analysis suggested that the servo would be more than able to lift the weight two inches, we were not able to. There was not much room for error in our design, and although we’d strengthened the structure so that it deflected less than an inch under a 1-lb load at the end, this was too much give. We were about half an inch short. There were also some minor discrepancies between our design and our fabricated result, due in equal parts to the unprofessional setup of the shops used, the unprofessional process taken, general haste, and general ambivalence. We still managed (somehow) to produce a sturdy, mostly-functional mechanism that, with elaboration and better execution, could certainly have lifted the weight to the full extent. There were lessons learned about time management and quality of product (as well as “getting out what you put in”).