A Portable, Easy to use Timer (008 ECE342-W25)

Soldering
Documentation
Problem Solving
Junior Design

The Portable timer system is a reasonably sized device, that proves easy to understand, yet is packed with features. It's design is intended to allow for multiple different ways of interacting with the system, to allow for the most diverse use cases. The timer itself can be powered in one of two ways, either with a 9v battery, or via USB power. It allows for interaction through the onboard range finder for distance based sensing, or for simple button interactions most users are familiar with. Information is then conveyed through either a OLED display, or through a piezo speaker present on the device. The system will detect when an object is close to the device and will subsequently begin counting down, otherwise in normal mode the timer will start and stop with the push of a button. One of our greatest achievements for this project was the microcontroller and button controls. This specific setup allows for actions to be defined using multiple buttons at a time, such as shortcuts on a keyboard like CTRL+V or ALT-TAB. In this case, combining the button presses of Start and Stop will adjust the brightness of the display in a 1-2-3 (1 Brightest, 3 Dimmest) loop. One of the hardest challenges we faced as a team revolved around designing the enclosure for the timer. The enclosure had to accommodate several different interface systems, all while maintaining an IP-40 intrusion rating. The result is a case that is subpar for the system. It gets the job done, but does not look the cleanest. Looking back, it would have been useful to dedicate more time to this area than we initially did, ultimately leading to a better looking system.

4 Lifts 

Artifacts

Name Description
Executive Summary An executive summary of the purpose of the timer, as well as a layout of the approach and timeline for development of the system.   Download
Video Description Explanation of system in video format.   Link
Technical Documentation Technical documentation of the entire system, broken down by block   Download
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