Fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing two B.S in Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering.
Automatic Shirt-Folding Machine
Undergraduate Mechanical Engineering course project (05/2021-08/2021)
Design an automatic controlled shirt-folding machine, and build a prototype using the components provided.
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University of Michigan - Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute project team members: Daniela Mata, Xinhao Leng, Jin Wu, Tongfei Zhu, and Andres Migliano.
Final Design
The mechanism is composed of 5 moving plates that will start moving in a specific order once the t-shirt is placed on top. First, the two plates rotate inward one after the other, folding the sides of the t-shirt. Then front plate rotates inward to finalize the folding. Finally, the last two plates move away from each other simultaneously so that the t-shirt is dropped into storage.
Manufacturing and Assembly
Manufacturing:
The laser cutting technique was used for manufacturing. Wood and Acrylic board were cut. Manufactured the plates with holes, the linkages, the team logo design on the wood, and other components.
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3D printed, using PLA, the joints.
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Assembly:
Reinforced the structure with screws, glue, and copper pillar. The rack and pinion were connected with the box. The N20 motor was fixed with a sheet iron supporter and hot glue. The instant adhesive was also added in the D-shape hole of the gear.
A self-locking nut was used for the linkage system to avoid losing, and the rotating joint was polished with sandpaper.
A copper pillar, PLA supporter, and small wood board were used for the wire arrangement to avoid interruption between the wires and mechanism.
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Final measurements:
Size: 46cm length x 44.5 cm width x (6.8+10)cm height
Weight: 3.5 kg
Folding Mechanism
Working Voltage:
DS3218 digital servo: 9V
N20 motor: 12V
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Power source:
S30: 12V
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Motor output:
For the plates folding the shirt:
Rotating speed: 55.6 rpm
Torque: 217 N.mm
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For the sliding plates in the middle:​
Translational speed: 10.5 cm/s ​
Performance
Performance:
Size of folded shirt: 18cm x 20cm
Finishing time:
4 seconds for folding​
3 seconds for falling into the storage
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Folding mechanism:
Symmetric shape
Neat edges
High reliability
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Improvements to be made:
Apply hinges to connect adjacent plates - can narrow the gap between the two plates
LED sensor - warn the user that the clothes drawer is full
Synchronous working of the opening boards:
Step motor​
Relevant motor driver
Belts and pulleys
Acknowledgement
Professor Youyi Bi, UM-SJTU Joint Institute.
Dongxiao Yang, Jinyao Zhou, VM250 Teaching Assistants at UM-SJTU Joint Institute.