Steve Rundell and fellow engineering students at Michigan State University never go thirsty, thanks to the ingenious automatic drink-making machine they designed and built. The contraption allows the "bartender" to select various drink mixtures displayed on an LCD screen. A controller sends a signal to a servo motor that drives a rotating carousel, which positions the drink cup under the appropriate liquid reservoirs. A solenoid valve opens, automatically dispensing a predetermined amount of liquid into the cup.
Drink-o-Matic 3000 Parts List
Amt
Part Description
Allied Part #
1
Solid state relay
235-7602
1
Resistor kit
635-0120
1
Prototype kit
508-7713
1
Microcontroller
671-0052
Additional parts required: dc servo motor, solenoid valve, desk lamp, lazy susan device, wire, 2-liter bottles for liquid reservoirs, various lumber and plumbing products (there's a lot of leeway for creativity in this design)
For more information or to see all our gadget freaks, go to
We looked at a number of sources to determine this year's greenest cars, from KBB to automotive trade magazines to environmental organizations. These 14 cars emerged as being great at either stretching fuel or reducing carbon footprint.
Researchers at MIT and Sandia National Labs have observed a reaction in lithium-air batteries that could help improve the design of these cells for electric vehicles and other applications.
Healthcare might seem to be an unlikely target application for the Internet of Things technology, but recent developments show small ways that big-data is going to make an impact on patient care moving into the future.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
0 
