MARBLE COLLATING DEVICE

Background:

There are many industrial and business applications for devices which handle, count, move, sort, and/or place items. This design project is intended to model such a materials handling application.

Project:

Each EGR 3380 design team shall design, construct, and test a marble-collating device. The marbles represent manufactured products, such as ball bearings, which require packaging.

User Needs:

General Description: The marble-collating device (hereafter called the device) shall accept 24 marbles of three different colors – 8 of each color placed in three separate input bins. The device shall then deliver the marbles in collated form to an output container (clear plastic tube). Collated form is defined as the marbles being in the output container in alternating colors.

· The marbles shall be delivered to the device by pouring from a cup.

· The output container shall be positioned to receive the marbles.

· The operation of the device shall be initiated by a single electrical switching action. After initiation, the device shall process the marbles without further intervention by the operator.

· After all of the marbles have been processed, the operator shall turn off the device, if necessary, by a single electrical switching action.

· The operation of the device shall not exceed a duration of two minutes.

· The device shall be immediately ready to accept and process another batch of marbles.

· The device shall fit within a cube 30 inches on a side (not including output container or circuit board/power supply), shall be portable, and shall function on a standard desktop/tabletop.

· The device shall not present safety hazards to humans, nor shall it damage, disfigure, or mar the tabletop, the marbles, or the container.