Blog 4: Project Development 🛠️💡🔧
Updated: Feb 26, 2025
Welcome back to my final blog!! In this blog, I will go through what my team and I did for our chemical device for 1 month. Before I explain my chemical device, I will divide this blog into six sections. Without further ado, let's me present to you my chemical device.
Our Chemical Device
Description of chemical product
Earlier in the semester, during week 5, when our lecturer introduced the different project options, my team and I had already decided which project to take on. The project we chose was none other than the automated half-boiled egg maker!
To give a brief introduction to our automated half-boiled egg maker, the user places eggs into the egg maker and pours boiling water inside. Then, the user selects the number of eggs being cooked. After a set amount of time, depending on the number of eggs, a song will play to notify the user that the eggs are ready. As for the hot water, don't worry—it's automatically drained by a servo motor. After that, the user can enjoy perfectly cooked half-boiled eggs!
Problems that it solves
Have you ever wanted a machine to help you keep track of time, manually drain the water, and prevent you from scalding yourself? Fret not, this egg maker we've built solves all of these problems. Did you know that studies have shown that people who skip breakfast are about 21% more likely to experience cardiovascular events or die from them compared to those who regularly consume breakfast (Ofori-Asenso, Owen, & Liew, 2019)? With our automated egg maker, we encourage users not to skip breakfast, as it is fuss-free and easy to use.
Sketch of chemical device
The figure below shows a rough sketch of our automated egg maker.
Figure 1: Sketch of automated half-boil egg maker
Team Planning, Allocation and Execution
In this section, I’d like to introduce my high-performing team. First, we have Davian, the group's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), followed by myself as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Next, we have Kiefer and Jasmine, who serve as the Chief Operating Officers (COO), and last but not least, Judith, our Chief Safety Officer (CSO). After establishing the roles, we have also planned out the project's Bill Of Materials (BOM) and its Gantt Chart so as to allocate the task for each team member. The following pictures below will show my group's BOM and Gantt Chart.
Design and Build Process
In this section, I will discuss about our building process. The building process took about 3 weeks to build the prototype from scratch. The picture below will show a timeline of what we have done.
Figure 4: Timeline of prototype During the first week, we simultaneously started with 3 different tasks and have already allocated the work between the team members in the group. Before I tell you more about the design, let me tell you about the different task allocated to team members.
Anston --> Coding, 3D designing and printing, wiring.
Davian --> Laser cutting, construction, wiring, designing.
Kiefer --> Laser cutting, construction, designing.
Judith --> Laser cutting, construction.
Jasmine --> Laser cutting, construction, sketching.
Based on the role allocation, I was responsible for most of the Arduino components, as well as the 3D design and printing. Meanwhile, my teammates focused on discussing the prototype's dimensions and the laser cutting process. Now, without further ado, let me guide you through our design and building process! We divided the entire process into four main components: the Egg Chamber and Bottom Container, the Drainage System, Arduino Coding, and Arduino Storage and Wiring.
Egg Chamber and Bottom Container
For this component, we first decided on the dimensions of the container by sketching out of how it look like and also its dimensions.
Figure 5: Sketches of egg maker and dimensions After sketching the dimensions, I then wasted no time and went to draw this design on Fusion. Soon, the Fusion design of the egg maker was done (Fusion file is available under section 5). But what's after the designing part of it? Of course, it was the making of the egg maker.
Video 1: Laser cutting process As for the execution of the egg maker, we made it out of acrylic and laser cut the acrylic by walking into T11C Fab Lab under the supervision of the lecturers there. As seen from the video above, we imported the Fusion design into the laser cutter and it helps us cut out the different pieces.
Figure 6: Laser cut parts The picture above shows the different parts we laser cut to build the egg maker. But why did we choose laser cutting over 3D printing? The reason is that when cooking a half-boiled egg, 3D-printed filament cannot withstand the high temperatures of the water, which would weaken the structure. Additionally, laser cutting has its own advantages. For example, it is highly accurate and efficient, just like 3D printing. Furthermore, using acrylic can withstand high temperatures, and laser cutting was also easy to work with. Hence, using acrylic and laser cutting was the way to go.
Figure 7: My group mates gluing the pieces After laser cutting the different pieces, it was time to assemble them. To do this, we used hot glue to bond the pieces together, using the hot glue guns and glue sticks provided by the school. But why did we choose hot glue over acrylic glue? The reason is that hot glue provides a stronger bond than acrylic glue and doesn’t come apart after being applied.
Video 2: Kiefer using silicon glue Once the pieces were hot-glued together, we applied silicone glue to the sides of the walls, as shown in the video above. Why was this necessary? We needed to seal any gaps to prevent water from leaking out. However, the downside is that it takes about 3 hours for the silicone to fully bond, so we couldn’t afford to make any mistakes. We did it by applying the silicone using a silicone gun, carefully pressing out the glue onto the joints and spreading it evenly, then leaving it to cure.
Figure 8: My teammates spray painting Last but not least, we had to spray paint the egg maker. Why was this necessary? The silicone glue made the box look aesthetically unappealing, and there were scratches and fingerprints visible on the acrylic. To address this, we used cardboard as a barrier to avoid contaminating the surroundings, and we wore masks due to the strong chemical smell of the paint.
Once everything was completed, this is what the final egg maker container looked like!
Figure 9: Completed Egg Chamber 
Figure 10: Completed Bottom Container Drainage System
Moving on to the drainage system, we designed it using a rack and pinion gear mechanism to help drain the water from the egg chamber once the eggs are done cooking. For the construction process, I went on Thingiverse to search for AutoCAD drawings of rack and pinion gears (Fusion file and link under section 5). Fortunately, there were multiple AutoCAD files to choose from, which I was able to print at school. The picture below shows the printing process and the final product of the rack and pinion gear.
Figure 11: Final look of rack and pinion gear Afterward, we glued the 3D-printed rack and pinion gear system to the underside of the egg chamber, using hot glue to secure the bracket in place. Additionally, we used a piece of acrylic to block the flow of water. We did this by gluing it onto the pusher and applying silicone glue to the acrylic for a watertight seal. The picture below shows the completed design.
Figure 12: Completed Drainage System Arduino Coding (my contribution to the project)
For the coding portion, I handled most of the programming for the egg maker (Arduino code file is in section 5). To begin coding, I had to identify what needed to be programmed, such as the LCD display, servo motor, and buttons, ensuring they all worked together seamlessly. Coding wasn’t easy, as I didn’t have much experience with Arduino. I reached out to my classmates for help, which gave me a rough idea to kick-start my coding process. From there, I modified the code to suit the egg maker's specific requirements.
Additionally, I researched online to find solutions and gather information on areas I was unfamiliar with, which helped me in writing the code. After all the research and effort, I successfully managed to code and get everything working. The picture below provides an overview of how the code functions
Figure 13: Flowchart of when the code runs Arduino Storage Compartment and Wiring
After completing the coding, I moved on to wiring the various Arduino components and designing a compartment for them to sit in. Before starting the wiring, I needed to understand the basics of wiring on a breadboard, supplying power, and connecting the wires to the LCD, servo, and buttons. To ensure I got everything right, I researched online to learn how to properly wire the components.
Additionally, I realized I could shorten the wires by cutting and soldering them to create firmer connections. This not only made the wiring neater but also helped save space in the compartment.
Figure 14: Learning how to solder wires 
Figure 15: Phases of wiring The picture above shows the iterations I had to go through during the wiring process, as it was not an easy task. Moving on to the design of the compartment, we measured the dimensions of the LCD and buttons to ensure accurate cutouts. Additionally, we had to decide the optimal placement for each component. With these considerations in mind, we used Fusion to design the compartment (Fusion file in section 5). After finalizing the design, we 3D printed the compartment.
However, this process was not without challenges. Although we correctly measured and cut the dimensions for the LCD and buttons, unforeseen issues arose, such as the compartment being too small. This required us to go through multiple iterations to make it work. The picture below shows the number of iterations we completed.
Figure 16: Number of tries to design the compartment All in all, designing the Arduino compartment and wiring was a challenging task yet rewarding task to do.
Problems and Solutions
Moving on, I will state and explain 3 problems and solutions we faced and how we manage to solve it.
Figure 17: Kiefer trying to cut the Acrylic by hand ❌ Cutting of Acrylic:
The first issue we encountered was cutting acrylic by hand. We initially thought it would be faster since we only had a few pieces to cut and booking a slot at the Fab Lab was difficult. However, when we attempted to cut the acrylic by hand, we found it was challenging to cut through because the material was quite tough, which caused us to waste a lot of time. Additionally, we struggled to achieve precise dimensions. Even when we managed to cut a piece, the edges were often messy, and the lines were uneven.
✔️Use of Laser Cutter:
To resolve this issue, we have to use the laser cutter as it can not only help us save time cutting the different pieces out, but also be 100% precise about the dimensions so that the structure of the egg maker seats nicely.
Figure 18: Messy wires ❌Messy Wires and space constraint:
Another issue we encountered was messy wiring and limited space in the Arduino compartment. As seen in the picture above, the wires were tangled and sticking out of the box, making it difficult to cover them with a lid. Additionally, the breadboard and Maker UNO were squeezed into the compartment. This cramped arrangement was not ideal, as it created stress on the wires, increasing the risk of them snapping.
Figure 19: Soldering and bigger compartment ✔️Designing bigger compartment and cutting wires:
As seen in the picture above, I used the soldering machine to cut and solder the wires, which made all the components look much neater and optimized space. Additionally, we enlarged the compartment to provide more room for the wires to stick out, as this was necessary for connecting to an external power source.
Figure 20: Missing Lid ❌Missing Lid:
The last issue we faced was forgetting to design the lid for the egg maker. As seen in the picture above, everything else was built except for the lid. We overlooked its design and missed adding it. This became a problem as it was difficult to book a laser cutting machine at the Fab Lab since all slots were fully booked. Additionally, we were running short on time, so 3D printing wasn’t an option, as it would take about 4 hours to print the lid.
Figure 21: Lid and 3D printed handle ✔️Designing bigger compartment and cutting wires:
To overcome this problem, we managed to scavenge leftover acrylic material from W319, which fit perfectly onto our egg chamber. We then used Fusion to design the lid and 3D printed it, as shown in the picture above.
Downloadable files for my prototype
Fusion file for the top egg chamber and bottom container:
Fusion file for Arduino compartment
Fusion file of Egg chamber lid
Fusion file and link for rack and pinion gear
Arduino code file
My reflection
In a nutshell, I felt that the egg maker project gave me many learning points to reflect on. However, I will focus on three key learning points that stood out to me the most. Through these, I hope to avoid making the same mistakes in future projects and gain deeper insights into project development.
Learning to Be Flexible and Improvise
The first learning point was to be flexible and improvising on the spot when unforeseen circumstances arises. Being able to be flexible and improvising brings many benefits such as being time efficient and being creative in a short period of time. For example, when planning about the design of the Arduino compartment, we initially thought that the Arduino components will take up a large space. This lead me to oversize the compartment. However, when I thought about cutting the wires, it made the Arduino compartment smaller and there is a large amount of space left in the container. At that point, we could not reprint a smaller compartment as it will take up too much time. Hence, we need to improvise on the spot. As a result, I managed to think of sticking cardboard behind to hold the Arduino in place. Therefore, this made me save not only on time but also on resources. From this point on, I must learn to be flexible and this is a crucial skill I must learn.
The Usefulness of the Skills Learned
Another learning point was the usefulness of the practical skills I gained. I was able to enhance my Arduino programming skills through research and experimentation, which showed me how much more there is to learn. The vast number of Arduino components available out there shows me that there is a coding potential for the future possibilities for my future projects such as Capstone. Additionally, learning how to use laser cutting and 3D printing was beneficial, as these skills will be useful in my upcoming internship, where I can apply 3D printing to create replacement parts for my future internship company.
Communication is important
The last learning point is the importance of having clear communication within the team. This is because having clear communication makes everyone in the team to be informed of their roles and the progress about the project so far. However, during the prototyping phase, there were some miscommunication in the team which led to some team members not knowing about changes and adjustments that were made to the project. For example, during the initial phase of prototyping, Kiefer and I were the only ones discussing about the dimensions of the egg maker and the overall looks of the egg maker. However, we did not communicate with the rest of the team members how it look like and they were confused how to start building the egg maker. Therefore, this experience taught me that it i important to ensure everyone is on the same page to prevent such situations from happening.
In Conclusion, this project teaches me to develop flexibility, improve communication within a team, and learning useful technical skills. Moving ahead, I plan to apply these lessons to my during my internship and year 3 modules. This also marks the end of this CPDD and I hope to see you guys in the near future!
References
Ofori-Asenso, R., Owen, A.J. and Liew, D. (2019). Skipping Breakfast and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Death: A Systematic Review of Prospective Cohort Studies in Primary Prevention Settings. Journal of Cardiovascular Development and Disease, [online] Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6787634/
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