Test Plan

Test Plan (for each specification):

• • All specifications tested will utilize the testing matrix while undergoing test runs and debugging potential issues that come up
    • The team decided to use a testing matrix in order to document the quality of testing, and the plan for re-testing items that don’t fall within the bounds of our specifications the first time through

• Finger Length Specification:
• • • Steps involved in test procedure:
      • When designing fingers in Autodesk Inventor, be sure to keep the range between 2-4 inches. 
      • Once 3D printed check with a ruler to make sure it still falls within the specified range
    • Equipment required:
      • Ruler
      • Autodesk Inventor
    • Safety Precautions:
      • None
    • Anticipated Results:
      • We anticipate falling within the required specifications
    • Anticipated Time/Duration/Testing Date:
      • We anticipate testing the finger length before and after 3D printing each finger

• Pinch Strength Specification:
• • Steps involved in test procedure:
    • Use a dynamometer to measure the amount of force in lbs-in that the robotic hand can apply. A dynamometer was used to measure average pinching strength for the team and set the bounds for our specification, therefore to stay consistent it would make sense to use the same device to measure the pinching strength of the robotic hand.
  • Equipment required:
    • Dynamometer
  • Safety precautions:
    • The dynamometer will likely need to be secured to a stable surface in the event that the robotic hand does not have enough pinching strength to keep the springs in the dynamometer from bouncing back
  • Anticipated Results:
    • The robotic hand is expected to fall within the range for the pinching strength specification. Possible ways that it could fail to fall within the bounds could be attributed to not enough friction between the PLA plastic and the dynamometer, or  the PLA plastic not being strong enough to withstand the force required by the specification. 
  • Anticipated time/duration/testing date:
    • This specification is expected to have a few iterations to get it to fall close to our target value. More reinforcements in the design or a different material choice could cause potential delays between test runs.
• Degrees of Freedom Specification:
  • Steps involved in test procedure:

1. Connect wire from motor through each finger using the hooks, one on the knuckle joint, and one on the joint closest to the fingertip
2. Use arduino code to activate the motor, which pulls down on the finger and holds that position for 2 seconds
3. Springs within finger will bring finger back up to resting position

• Equipment required: 
  • Motor
  • Robotic arm and fingers
  • Wire

• Safety precautions:
  • Safety glasses will be worn

• Anticipated results:  
  • The robotic hand is expected to have between 8-12 degrees of freedom because each finger will have two degrees of freedom besides the thumb which will be controlled differently since it needs to be extremely versatile

• Anticipated time/duration/testing date:
  • Since the biggest issue of this specification is the arduino code, it may take us an extensive amount of time to figure out code to initially get the fingers to move and then figure out how to modify the code to keep the fingers in that position before they return to their initial position 

• Reaction Time Specification:
• • Steps involved in test procedure:
    • Reaction time can be measured using a stopwatch to record the time it takes for a signal to be sent from the data glove to the robotic hand.
  • Equipment required:
    • Stopwatch
  • Safety precautions:
    • The person who puts their hand inside the data glove should be sure to follow all safety precautions (wearing safety glasses, long pants, closed toed shoes, and hair tied back), in case of malfunction. They should also be sure that their hand is completely dry in order to prevent any damage to the wiring. 
  • Anticipated results:
    • Staying within a reaction time constraint of no more than 5 seconds will be necessary to keep the device usable.  Tests run with the bluetooth and arduino indicate that the specification that was set was reasonable.
  • Anticipated time/duration/testing date:
    • Since this specification was based on previous research and testing of the bluetooth capabilities, it is not anticipated that this testing will take an extensive amount of time. Some potential issues that would need to be accounted for in testing time include: the bluetooth not working correctly, or the Arduino code containing bugs that slow it down.

 

• Load Capacity Specification:
• • Steps involved in test procedure:
    • We will test the robotic hand with holding weights up to 10 lbs (the weight the hand will be required to hold to operate the sand blasting machine). 
  • Equipment required:
    • Labeled weights of 3, 5, and 10 lbs.
  • Safety precautions: 
    • Safety glasses should be worn in case any parts become loose and fly off while testing. 
  • Anticipated results:
    • The PLA plastic could fail at 10 lbs in certain parts of the hand if it is not thick enough, but we anticipate our design being able to withstand 10 lbs.
  • Anticipated time/duration/testing date:
    • A few iterations or changes in design if the robotic hand fails to meet the load capacity specification could cause testing to be delayed. The testing date for this specification would be once we have an operable prototype, as the hand will not be able to grasp 10 lbs without the motor running.

• Cost Specification
• • Steps involved in test procedure:
    • Document all expenses to keep it within the bounds of our specification
  • Equipment required:
    • Budget spreadsheet
  • Safety precautions:
    • None
  • Anticipated results:
    • Expecting to stay on budget given the large constrained value of $2500
  • Anticipated time/duration/testing date:
    • Cannot be completed until all materials have been purchased

 

• Weight Specification
• • • Steps involved in test procedure:
      • Once all the other tests are conducted, the robotic arm will be weighed
    • Equipment required: 
      • robotic arm
      • scale
    • Safety Precautions: 
      • Arm will be heavy so closed shoes in case it is dropped
    • Anticipated Results:
      • The weight will be between 8-30 lbs. 
    • Anticipated Time/Duration/Testing Date:
      • End of April after all other testing is done

 

• Length of Arm
• • • Steps involved in test procedure:
      • When designing the arm in Autodesk Inventor, be sure to keep the range between 10-14 in. 
      • Once 3D printed check with a ruler to make sure it still falls within the specified range
    • Equipment required:
      • Ruler
      • Autodesk Inventor
    • Safety Precautions:
      • None
    • Anticipated Results:
      • We anticipate falling within the required specifications
    • Anticipated Time/Duration/Testing Date:
      • We anticipate testing the arm length after we gather the motors so that we can fit the motors into the arm

 

• Distance from Data Glove
• • Steps involved in test procedure:
    • Begin relatively close to the receiver and simply increase the distance between the transmitter and receiver until there is little or no response from the motor
  • Equipment required:
    • Receiver
    • Transmitter
  • Safety Precautions: 
    • None
  • Anticipated Results:
    • We anticipate the wireless connection working up to 10 feet
    • OSHA Standard Number 1910.1053 states that the employer shall use engineering and work practice controls to minimize silica exposure (which happens in the sandblasting industry). With the data glove being operational from 10 feet away, the user may stand in another room and use the data glove to control the robotic hand to sandblast the denim
  • Anticipated Time/Duration/Testing Date:
    • This test will be one of our first tests that we complete