[technoL]

In our last meeting the Mech team was finally introduced to Inventor. I started off with a demonstration of making a basic 2D sketch and turning it into something 3D, going through most of the tool pane. We didn't have access to the projector at the meeting since there were other subteams in the room, but we were fine with a few of the students crowding around my computer for the brief overview.

Then the members were sent off to their individual workstations. I had several simple tasks assigned, such as modeling a piece of box tubing, a piece of sheet metal with holes, and other things that allowed the students to explore and manipulate all of the features. This week I'll explain assemblies and constraints and such and then have them go through some tutorials after another simple exercise. Similar to the last poster, we'll probably give them a few choices of realistic components to model after the basics are learned.

From there we'll begin to move towards drivetrains, manipulators, and overall robot design. There tends to be a fast learning curve, so be prepared to have extra activities planned in case your group also moves very quickly.