Week 6 Post

This last week we started making ProENGINEER models of our designs. We completed the basic design for the wringer which squeezes the water out of the clothing and are working on the design to heat the clothing(see Picture 1). We also started researching the materials we will use for the devices. For the wringer we will probably use a metal. The metal needs to be rigid and noncorrosive and should not leave the clothing with any odor or discoloring. One metal we considered for this is stainless steel. However stainless steal is expensive so we are still looking for a more affordable alternative. The material for the heating device needs to be a good conductor so it will get as hot as the fire it is placed in, this means it will also disperse of its heat quickly so we may need to use some sort of insulator around it. The material also must have a melting point above the temperature of the fire or else the pipe will just melt in the fire. We are also looking to try to minimize the environmental impact of the materials we choose. We also looked into ordering some of the parts for our prototype design from a couple different places but so far we have not ordered anything.

Picture 1 - Conceptual Wringer Design