Astronaut's Coat Rack
Fall 2018
Task:
Design a coat rack capable of withstanding the weight of an Astronaut's Coat (25lbs)
Challenges:
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The bracket must be laser cut out of 1/8" acrylic
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There are restrictions on where and how the coat rack can be hung
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Make it as light as possible
Accomplishments:
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Successfully designed 2 brackets that could hold 25 lbs:
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0.98 grams (Desired F.O.S: 1.3, Actual F.O.S: 1.2)
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1.75 grams (Desired F.O.S: 5, Actual F.O.S: 4.5)
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I designed my coat rack using FBD's, FEA and CAD methods.
Making simplifications and using geometric & stress relations, I was able to develop an analytical function that predicted stress and F.O.S magnitudes within 5-7% of the actual FEA values. This allowed me to construct a bracket for a given F.OS that minimized mass with little iteration and guesswork.
The development of the analytical solution and FEA studies are outlined in the "Design Analysis & Report" pdf.
Design & Analysis
