Our ungodly code that likes to turn off natural language for some reason. It's okay it works usually. This code functions the cookie topper.
Final Product
Side view of the cookie topper and its elements.
Top view of the cookie topper. You can see the whole setup with the arm and the cortex.
Video of our cookie topper working in all its glory, back in the old days. Sigh
Conclusion Questions
1.Describe the objectives for this project in your own words.
The objective of this project was to challenge ourselves using the physical and programming aspects of our machine to complete a task. We combined VEX building and RobotC programming.
2.What were the most difficult parts of the problem? Describe the difficulties you had with these things.
One difficult part of the problem was having two conveyor belts. We realized when the cookie fell onto the second one, it would bounce off of it and we didn't want to build high walls on either side of it. So, we completely got rid of the second one and replaced it with a place to catch the cookie. Another problem we had was with the program. Our program would work only 1-2/3 of the time, but when it ran, it ran perfectly. We worked for two entire classes trying to fix it and couldn't figure it out entirely, so we created an entirely new program with the same basic features, but with using an if and a counter instead of a while(1==1). There were still a few problems, but for the most part it worked better than the first program.
3.List and describe two features that were not part of the design problem that could be added to improve your design.
Two features we could add to the machine to improve it would be walls on both sides of the conveyor belt and a timer on the belt. If we had walls on both sides, we wouldn't have to worry about the chocolate bouncing off of the cookie or falling off of the edge. If we had a timer, we wouldn't have to guess when to push the button and stop the belt, because we could overshoot and have it go past where the arm opens and drops the chocolate.
4.Describe how your design and program worked during the official test? Was your design successful? Why or why not?
During the official test, our code did the thing where it wouldn't start up at first. After a few times, it did work, but we accidentally dropped it at the wrong point so it didn't land on the "cookie"(Reese's cup). It was both successful and unsuccessful, because when it worked, it worked great, but it was completely inconsistent in its capabilities and success, so it could never be used in a real-life situation.
5.Describe some things you learned during this project.
I learned that we shouldn't assume that things will work without testing them. Our program looked wonderful and perfect, but when we tested it out two classes before it was due, our program had problems(mentioned in question 2) that made it almost unusable.