Final Project Tracking Page

~Final Project: Prof. Sloghorn's Hourglass~

This page tracks my progress towards the final project...

What I Want to Achieve

The hourglass will be placed in a box with a touch pad on the side to control the speed.
The PCB will be placed at the bottom of the box to connect with the touch pad and control the motor that controls the speed of the hourglass.
Ultimately, I want to automate the process to get rid of the manual control, and the flow will be controlled by “conversation quality” with audio sensing/processing.

Early Thoughts- September 2025

Sketches — Ideas for different designs to achieve controlable hourglass rate.

Prof. Slughorn and the hourglass design in the movie.

Utilizing symmetry is an excellent way to play with Fusion. Here is hourglass model file.
To functionalize the iris diaphagram or the origami, still need to work on spur gear parts.
Since this class won't include glass design, maybe the hourglass vessel can be substitue for other materials.

October Updates

I'm excited about the potential of this project and the challenges it presents. I want to explore various design options and functionalities for the hourglass, including:

Integrating a touch pad for speed control.
Using audio sensing to automate the flow control.
Experimenting with different materials for the hourglass vessel.

I also came across an interesting kind of origami structure called Kresling Pattern

On Week 8, I tested and refined the audio input device, and I have been following this tutorial to try ensuring it accurately captures voice commands for controlling the hourglass.

On Week 9, I did some research on origami structures and magnetic field control, which could potentially be integrated into the hourglass design. After discussion with Anthony, we explored the idea of using the electromagnetic properties of iron filament as sand flowing in the hourglass structure.