In week 10 of class, our group continued to work on our creating a prototype for our SMS security system. Most of our work has been centered around programming our Rasberry Pi computer board with Python programming.
One thing that has been difficult is none of the individuals on our team including my self are very knowledgable on how to code in Python. Fortunately our teamate Charlene has a friend that was willing to help us with what type of coding we needed, and we have found numerous online resources in being able to create the instructions for the Raspberry Pi to send a SMS message when the Motion sensor is triggered. In the meantime we have started wiriing our Raspberry Pi to a breadboard, as well as starting to design a housing unit through fusion software. Going through this processhas been tricky in how technical we have to get in making sure our product functions the way we need it to. In each decision we have made in creating this in home security system, we are always thinking about making sure it functions and is made specifically for the end user in mind. Working with fusion, programming, and wiring a bread board are all areas that I am still by no means a master at. However I enjoy being able to learn these new softwares and technical aspects of making. I certainly am glad we had experience through the Fab Lab to help our team start thinking about how to actually make our product a reality, espescially considering the security system has a lot of work that needs to be put into it to make it work.
One final thing of importance was our class was able to try out the 3D object scanner. Vishal showed us a few different options for 3D scanners, which scanned anything from small to medium sized objects, to even classmates heads. I am fairly certain our group will not use either of the 3D scanners for at least creating our product. However seeing how the 3D scanners work, and the capabilities of them was one of the more unique tech I have had the opportunity to experience. Personally I am planning to do a 3D scan of my self prior to the end of the semester!