Future projects
Future projects have been aimed towards new and existing exhibits found at the Museum of Science and Industry. These can include miners' hats for the coal mining exhibit, periscope, models of the U-505 submarine, and stamps of various other exhibits. Other projects were also taken and expanded upon.
The idea for these projects is for members to come to the lab and create something as well as learning more about the exhibit itself. This also gives the museum members a chance to take a souvenir with them as they leave and to expand their minds on what can be built in the lab.
At the moment students who have come to the fab lab were able to print (engrave) their pictures on acrylic boards, which can be used as keychains. At some angles the engraving seems very simple, but if the light is caught at the perfect angle, the image is shown with high precision and detail.
Additional opportunities for community outreach (and robotics projects) can be found through support of FIRST initiatives in Illinois. FIRST inspires students ages 6–18 to explore science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) through robotics projects and Gracious Professionalism. Teams also play an active role in their communities, volunteering to improve their environment beyond their robot.
The Museum of Science and Industry (MSI) is a science museum located in Chicago, Illinois, in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood between Lake Michigan and The University of Chicago. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Initially endowed by Julius Rosenwald, the Sears, Roebuck and Company president and philanthropist, it was supported by the Commercial Club of Chicago and opened in 1933 during the Century of Progress Exposition.
Mechatronics, also called mechatronics engineering, is an interdisciplinary branch of engineering that focuses on the integration of mechanical, electronic and electrical engineering systems, and also includes a combination of robotics, electronics, computer, telecommunications, systems, control, and product engineering. As technology advances over time, various subfields of engineering have succeeded in both adapting and multiplying. The intention of mechatronics is to produce a design solution that unifies each of these various subfields. Originally, the field of mechatronics was intended to be nothing more than a combination of mechanics and electronics, hence the name being a portmanteau of mechanics and electronics; however, as the complexity of technical systems continued to evolve, the definition had been broadened to include more technical areas.
A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who not only operates machine tools but also has the knowledge of tooling and materials required to create set ups on machine tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling machines.
Numerical control is the automated control of machining tools by means of a computer. A CNC machine processes a piece of material to meet specifications by following a coded programmed instruction and without a manual operator directly controlling the machining operation.
G-code is the most widely used computer numerical control (CNC) programming language. It is used mainly in computer-aided manufacturing to control automated machine tools, and has many variants.
Metal fabrication is the creation of metal structures by cutting, bending and assembling processes. It is a value-added process involving the creation of machines, parts, and structures from various raw materials.
A fab lab is a small-scale workshop offering (personal) digital fabrication.
FANUC is a Japanese group of companies that provide automation products and services such as robotics and computer numerical control wireless systems. These companies are principally FANUC Corporation of Japan, Fanuc America Corporation of Rochester Hills, Michigan, USA, and FANUC Europe Corporation S.A. of Luxembourg.
Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination is a traveling exhibition created by the Museum of Science, Boston, featuring props and costumes used in the Star Wars films, but focusing primarily on the science behind George Lucas' science fiction epic. Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination was developed by Boston's Museum of Science, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Ltd., with the support of the National Science Foundation, under Grant No. 0307875. This exhibit is presented nationally by Bose Corporation.
The Computer Museum was a Boston, Massachusetts, museum that opened in 1979 and operated in three locations until 1999. It was once referred to as TCM and is sometimes called the Boston Computer Museum. When the Museum closed in 2000, much of its collection was sent to the Computer History Museum in California.
Manufacturing engineering is a branch of professional engineering that shares many common concepts and ideas with other fields of engineering such as mechanical, chemical, electrical, and industrial engineering. Manufacturing engineering requires the ability to plan the practices of manufacturing; to research and to develop tools, processes, machines and equipment; and to integrate the facilities and systems for producing quality products with the optimum expenditure of capital.
Digital modeling and fabrication is a design and production process that combines 3D modeling or computing-aided design (CAD) with additive and subtractive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing is also known as 3D printing, while subtractive manufacturing may also be referred to as machining, and many other technologies can be exploited to physically produce the designed objects.
The mobile fab lab is a computer-controlled design and machining fab lab housed in a trailer. The first was built in August 2007 by the Center for Bits and Atoms at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The mobile lab includes the same computer-controlled fabrication machines found in fab labs worldwide.
A hackerspace is a community-operated, often "not for profit", workspace where people with common interests, such as computers, machining, technology, science, digital art, or electronic art, can meet, socialize, and collaborate. Hackerspaces are comparable to other community-operated spaces with similar aims and mechanisms such as Fab Lab, men's sheds, and commercial "for-profit" companies.
Pumping Station: One is a non-profit hackerspace/makerspace in Chicago, Illinois. It's modeled after similar organizations located in the United States and Europe. The facilities consists of approximately 11,000 square feet (1,000 m2) of shop, workspace, and lounge areas.
The NUST School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, commonly known by its acronym NUST-SMME, located in Islamabad, Pakistan, is a constituent school offering undergraduate and postgraduate programs in the fields of mechanical and manufacturing engineering. It was founded in 2008.
Milling is the process of machining using rotary cutters to remove material by advancing a cutter into a workpiece. This may be done varying direction on one or several axes, cutter head speed, and pressure. Milling covers a wide variety of different operations and machines, on scales from small individual parts to large, heavy-duty gang milling operations. It is one of the most commonly used processes for machining custom parts to precise tolerances.
The history of numerical control (NC) began when the automation of machine tools first incorporated concepts of abstractly programmable logic, and it continues today with the ongoing evolution of computer numerical control (CNC) technology.
Three Lakes Jr. High & High School, is a public Jr. and Sr. High School for grades 7-12, but the school also contains an Elementary School for K-6. There are approximately 250-280 students in the student body. The principal is Gene Welheofer and the district administrator is Teri Maney. The mission statement of the school is "Teaching Students to be Productive Citizens".
North Forge Fabrication Lab is a rapid prototyping workshop and business development facility located in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Founded in September 2011, it is a fabrication laboratory, intended to assist entrepreneurs in developing their ideas into physical prototypes. Facilities at the site include 3D printers in several sizes, CNC laser cutters from 50 to 120 watts, CNC milling machines, a plasma cutter, wood and metal lathes, and facilities for manufacturer and test of printed circuit boards. Software resources include various systems for computer aided design.
Laser cutter station.
CNC machine station.
Computer station.
