A collection of test fixtures and Machines that I have built.

IMPACT TESTER

Often times development requires extensive amounts of lab testing and it quickly becomes cheaper to handle that testing in-house.

When tasked with improving the performance of helmet impact padding, my plan was to test varying thicknesses and densities of comfort and impact foams to determine the most effective combination.

Lab testing was fairly cheap at $150 per test, but the large number of combinations brought the total cost way out of budget. Impact testers of this size retail for $15 - $30k which was also way out of budget. I realized that to effectively quantify the data I needed to build an impact tester.

In designing the impact tester I focused on simplicity. We would need to have official testing performed anyway, so this fixture was just a means of quickly comparing combinations, rather than completely duplicating the laboratory results.

An impact head rides on a linear guide bearing, and impact speed is adjusted by varying the distance of the drop. Height is adjusted through a pulley system and worm drive winch which provides simple, precise adjustments.

The impact heads can quickly be swapped out to switch between flat and hemispherical forms. Impact deceleration is measured with an accelerometer attached to the impact head.

Total cost including software was under $2000 and build time was 2.5 days.

The unit was designed in Solidworks prior to assembly.

Pruning Saw Cycle TEster

Built using a FESTO PLC and pneumatic cylinders. This test fixture cycled the lock mechanism while applying pressure to the blade in order to simulate the wear of repeated opening and closing.

Bottle Paint Durability Tester

A quick cycle tester built to compare the durability of various painted finishes.

AirLite Cycle Tester

Airlite replaces individually sewn bands of webbing with a single lasercut composite sheet. This test fixture allowed us to test different sample panels as if a soldier was jogging, showing how the materials would hold up to random cyclical loading.

Velcro Cycle Tester

A quick test fixture to cycle test Velcro panels in order to determine which suppliers fabric would hold up longer.

Paper Vine Dispenser

We needed a quick way of making paper vines to decorate for a party.

This machine allowed massive amounts of paper vines to be made by one person.