I’m excited to share this latest update with you, as progress has been made on all fronts. To recap, the main elements of the product are the plastic enclosure, the electronics inside, and the software that makes it all run. Let’s take them one by one!
Plastics
In the last update I shared that the factory where the plastic enclosure is being made had been shut down due to COVID restrictions. Since that time, I’m happy to report that they’ve been able to reopen and have even completed a first pass at the molds.
Here’s the first image of the production assembly…
They used clear plastic for these first test shots in order to see exactly what’s going on with the parts, even after they’re put together. Kinda neat!
While it looks kind of “done” (just change the plastic color, right?) there are several additional steps that need to be completed one by one… from getting the fit right, to polishing, texture, and materials. So many samples are still to come but it’s exciting to see this first one!
Electronics
Likewise, the electronics are moving into the sample phase. That is, the prototype is being replicated using the production methods and components. I received the first samples of the completed boards and they look really good.
But they not only have to look good- they need to work! Which leads to the last element…
Software
This portion has been a bit challenging and, to be honest, not as tangible as the progress on the housing and electronics.
The first phase of this will be to get everything working just how it was on the prototype. This can mean tweaking drivers or other little things to get it working. It's tedious, but necessary. Then we'll turn to the final features and QA all along the way to ensure things are working properly.
The first phase of this will be to get everything working just how it was on the prototype. This can mean tweaking drivers or other little things to get it working. It's tedious, but necessary. Then we'll turn to the final features and QA all along the way to ensure things are working properly.
Whats Next
Moving forward, each of these tracks will be getting finalized, but meanwhile we’ll also beginning to put them all together into fully functioning samples. This is where the interdependencies begin to arise. The circuit boards need to fit in the plastics, the plastics need to all fit together, and the code needs to work seamlessly once loaded.
This can sometimes be super challenging but hopefully we can begin to attempt assemblies so we’ll know how smoothly things go together.
Thanks again for your support on this project and I hope you’re enjoying following along! I wouldn’t be able to make this progress without you so I really appreciate it!
3 comments
Feb 02, 2023 • Posted by Dustin Copening
Thanks for the detailed update! I appreciate that you continue to focus on quality over speed of production. Good luck the rest of the way!!!
Feb 02, 2023 • Posted by Susan Eiseman Levitin
I am interested in being a beta tester when the time comes.
Feb 02, 2023 • Posted by Phil Bradford
Keep up the good work! It’s amazing how something so seemingly simple can be so complex.
(Although not as complex as teaching my autistic son social behavior)
Phil B
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