210129332 Benjamin Nkosi Final-report2

TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING PRACTICE 2 – EXP2ENM

Final REPORT – June 2013

FOR ATTENTION: Miss NM Ratlhogo Department of Mechanical EngineeringFAX NUMBER: (012) 382-5602

NAME OF STUDENT Benjamin NkosiSTUDENT NUMBER 210129332NAME OF TRAINING PROVIDER Fifth Dimension TechnologiesDATE 02/01/2013 - 02/06/2013

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Table of content:Page:

A.) Overview……………………………………………………………………….5

B.) Declaration…………………………………………………………………….5

C.) Summary……………………………………………………………………….6

1. Background1.1. Company history…………………………………………………71.2. Business activities………………………………………………71.3. Engineering activities…………………………………………..81.4. Structure of organisation………………………………………8

2. Project 10. Thorncliff project……………………………………………………….662.1. Definition of project………………………………………………….662.2. Activities undertaken………………………………………………..662.3. Training and experience…………………………………………….66

3. Project 3- Exxaro Grootegeluk Mine Landscape……………………………223.1. Definition of project……………………………………………...223.2. Activities undertaken…………………………………………….223.3. Training and experience………………………………………...223.4. Time taken for project…………………………………………...25

4. Project 6- Design project 1……………………………………………………………..324.1. Definition of project…………………………………………………...324.2. Activities undertaken………………………………………………….324.3. Training and experience………………………………………………324.4. Time taken for project…………………………………………………384.5. Solid works drawings of project…………………………………….404.6. Bill of material…………………………………………………….…….76

5. Project 6- Design project 2……………………………………………………………..325.1. Definition of project…………………………………………………...32

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5.2. Activities undertaken………………………………………………….325.3. Training and experience………………………………………………325.4. Time taken for project…………………………………………………385.5. Solid works drawings of project…………………………………….405.6. Bill of material…………………………………………………….…….766.

7. Project 8- Low profile motionbase…………………………………………………497.1. Definition of project…………………………………………………..497.2. Activities undertaken…………………………………………………507.3. Training and experience……………………………………………..517.4. Time taken for project……………………………………………......527.5. Solid works drawing………………………………………………….53

8. Project 10. Cube assembly and shipping……………………………………………………….668.1. Definition of project………………………………………………….668.2. Activities undertaken………………………………………………..668.3. Training and experience…………………………………………….66

9. Project 10. ERA (Ethiopia ……………………………………………………….669.1. Definition of project………………………………………………….669.2. Activities undertaken………………………………………………..669.3. Training and experience…………………………………………….669.4. Time taken for project……………………………………………679.5. Solid works drawings of project………………………………..67

10. Discussion………………………………………………………………………….68

11. Time sheet(log book)……………………………………………………………..70

12. Mentor’s report……………………………………………………………………..73

13. Student report evaluaton.

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A.) Overview

This is my final report on the work I have done at fifth dimensions technologies doing my Practical 1 and it started on the 2nd of August 2013 ending on the 02 of January 2013 and as required from the institute I have performed al required objective that needed to be done and also please note that the objectives not given by the company the company was responsible of sending me to a company that will help me in complete my practical 1.

B.) Declaration

I hereby declare that the Mechanical Engineering Practice 1 was done as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the National Diploma: Engineering: Mechanical at Tshwane University of Technology. I further declare that the report is my own work and that the content of this report depict the training that I have undergone.

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INITIAL(S) SURENAME

SIGNATURE

DATE

C.) Summary

At fifth dimension technology we work on building virtual reality simulators and a summary of the work I covered was firstly was safety as we work with a lot of heavy material and power tools and sharp aluminum; basic PPE was covered and PPE gears are provided like steel point boots and gloves, and glasses and mouth covering when working with hazardous gasses.

Secondly we worked on console wiring which is basic electricity; soldering, working with resistors, console circuit diagrams, measuring wires and testing of wires and other electronic devices which are computer related green boards.

Thirdly we worked on basic sheet metal, building a cube where it will create the environment of the simulators and grinding, planning, basic measuring techniques and bench work is applicable on building the cube.

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As I have said before, at fifth dimension technologies we work on building virtual reality simulators and some simulators are built in containers and the containers need to be modified as we combine containers and processes that are applied on the containers are, surface grinding, and cutting where we cut the sides of containers on each parallel side to combine the containers to create bigger area to work in.

One of Fifth dimension technologies’ products is building a classroom for simulator training in containers and we busy working on a project; Thorncliff project. And the projects requires that two containers to be fitted classrooms with each containing a cube related simulator and my work covered for the project, was to cut and grinding a doorframe to fit on the container to assemble a more environmental friendly door. I also worked with one of our designers to install the Visual display system were images are projected. A lot of bench work and measuring skills were applicable on VDS installation.

After the installation of the VDS we had to work with sheet metal to use it as a roof and projector mount and a lot of riveting was done on the sheet metal, facing problems with the sheet metal bending. The container needed to be wired for electricity and also had to wire PC racks, so a lot of electricity applications were also covered.

The work I covered for february for my P2 was; I have received an individual project that I will be working on and also cover working production projects at the sametime. My objective is to design and create a hydraulic actuator that solves the following problems:

Lift containers which are 2-3 ton of weight. Be able to move containers close to each other as much as possible. Be able to align the containers to required desires. To be able to remove containers away from each other for shipping purposes.

For the February month I was doing investigation on the problem faced and worked on calculations on how to solve the problems in terms of forces and stresses subjected while accomplishing the task. Proper planning was done on the project as I compiled the engineering approach to the project and was confirmed with the workshop owner Wimpy and it shall be the same data that will be on the gaunt chart. Also I have done research on hydraulic actuators that exist and see if I can have a proper guideline on designing my project.

The next step on my project is to do calculations and research on hydraulic machines on how to come to the problem solving using my hydraulic machines and fluid mechanics knowledge and also do stress analyses which will require my design and applied strength of material knowledge to get the right material to be used for my actuators.

Another project was given and it was to build a stand that can hold bubble wrap and Rotospool cable wires that are used frequently in the workshop. The item should be able to cut the bubble wrap and the wire. It should be able to measure the wires used and the project should be kept simple and should be user friendly. It should be mobile as usage of bubble wrap is not only within the workshop. And to build it processes that were applicable on this was grinding, cutting, welding, bench work and basic measuring techniques.

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For processes not mentioned it was performed at a company doing the milling, turning, TIG, Arc and Oxyacetylene welding at on the.

The watervall project which requires two containers as it is one of our products and the two containers had a lot of work to be done on and a lot of team work and planning to be done on the containers. My part on the containers was to be part of the assembly team as I know have more experience on what is done on containers. I was in a team of four people installing VDS system which are screens where images are projected and we also installed the inner roof that are made from sheet metal and assembled with riverts (we assemble it our self) and it is installed for the projectors and also we faced many problems from the manufacturer and also mix-up of older parts and new modified parts that did not fit to required assemlby butr the a=the team and I manage to face the problems and finish the project. We were working under the supervision of Carl and Morne our designers as they hand out the assembly drawings of how to complete the container and the deadlines for completing the containers were met. Other teams like electrical and mechatronics technicians joined us and we worked together in installing the wires of the containers for electrical power and also in aligning and setting of projectors, computer rack etc. a lot of work was put in the project abd it was a success.

1. Background information

1.1. Company history:

5DT (Fifth Dimension Technologies) is a high technology company specializing in Virtual Reality (VR) which started with four people in 1993. 5DT develops, produces and distributes VR hardware, software and systems starting with the data gloves coming to the name “FIFTH DIMENSION TECHNOLOGIES”. 5DT started working on 3D technology also ten started with simulator projects for Eskom(high voltage yard), and Sasol(the first CM Sim). On 1997 5DT started producing mining simulators starting with Sasol, which started with the first simulator; a system that used a controller with a Head Mounted Display (HMD), and nowadays we use full system cabs inside a Cube

. 5DT also develops turnkey VR systems for clients. 5DT's main focus is Training Simulators (Virtual Reality), Training Systems (Computer Based Training - CBT) and Virtual Reality Peripherals. Most of the 5DT systems and products may be customized to suit the requirements of a user. At 5DT we believe that: "Virtual Reality is not intended to replace reality-based training; instead, it is a powerful training medium to prepare the trainee for reality-based training."

5DT branches started as marketing and support offices, first in the US in 2000 and more recently Australia 2009 and Chile 2011. We also believe that:" If a picture says more than a thousand words, a virtual reality experience says more than a million." Virtual Reality is the ultimate training medium.

1.2. Business activities:

The Virtual Reality industry has been plagued by hype. This led to unrealistically high expectations by prospective users, and generally gave the industry a bad name when these expectations could not be met. With this in mind, we coined our company slogan: 5DT - Virtual Reality for the Real

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World! SM. Our Mission is to provide solid solutions that work well. We strive to be low on hype, and high on results. Instead of promising prospective customers the world, we have adopted a 'Technology Demonstrator' approach. If a client approaches us for a training solution, and we do not have a suitable product that would match the training needs of the client directly, we demonstrate similar products to the client.

This helps us to determine the exact training needs of the client. We then normally propose the development of a 'Technology Demonstrator'. With such a demonstrator we try to provide the client with a system that addresses the most important and critical issues of the required training solution. We normally develop the Tech Demo at a fraction of the cost of the final solution.

The Tech Demos have proven to be very useful for our clients to visualize their solutions in advance and also to demonstrate the proposed solution to their superiors or board members that have to make the final buying decision. The Tech Demo is also an ideal specification development tool. We fully realize that: "It is easy to promise; much more difficult to demonstrate". We therefore try to base our promises on technologies that we have mastered.

1.3. Engineering activities of 5DT:

5DT developed they own Software Development Kit (5DT SDK). The 5DT SDK is a comprehensive set of C++ class libraries that contain components for building Virtual Reality applications. This fully-documented SDK enables 5DT developers to share and re-use developed code. Using the 5DT SDK, technology demonstrators and full training solutions may be developed much faster than before. Virtual Reality is our passion! Whilst doing everything documented in this web site, we also strive to enjoy what we are doing. Product Portfolio for 5DT; 5DT has a wide range of products, including VR Hardware, VR Training Simulators and Computer Based Training (CBT) Systems.

VR Hardware include products like the: 5DT Data Glove Series (6 different products) 5DT Head Mounted Display 5DT Virtual Binoculars 5DT Space Controller 5DT 3DOF Orientation Tracker

VR Training Simulators and CBT Systems include training and visualization solutions in the following fields:

Automotive Aviation Defense High Voltage Industrial Medical Mining Virtual Landscapes Visualization

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And for all this products engineering applications from mechanical till computer engineering is needed as mechanical products comes together with computer software’s which brings the skills of our engineering together from the talented minds from our engineers other employees producing products for customers like; European Aeronautics Defense and Space Company (EADS), (Formerly known as DaimlerChrysler Aerospace), ESKOM (Fifth biggest utility company in the world), SASOL (Petrochemical), De Beers (Diamonds), Denel Aviation, Kentron, Sony and many more.

1.4. Structure of organization:

Personnel

5DT consists of a small group (30 people) of highly talented, qualified and motivated individuals. 5DT's potential and capabilities are based on a solid knowledge and deep understanding of Mathematics, Physics, Engineering, Computer Science and Business. 5DT's Development Group consists of Electronics Engineers, Computer Scientists, Artists and Educationalists.

It first start with Paul Olckers the company CEO and Mario Scheler the COO to investigate and look for customers in the mining industry, giving the customers an opportunity to come for a demonstration on how the simulators work.

The customer then specifies what simulator they are looking for. With the request from the customers the specifications are given down to our design team, graphics design team I.T team, computer engineer’s team and our marketing team.

The marketing team will do business proposals to the mine industries to our potential customers before the customers actually approve to buy any specific products from us.

The graphics design team will investigate the visual display system of the simulator, meeting the computer visual to a realistic visual of driving the automotive vehicles on mine sights.

The computer engineer will work on the operating systems of the simulator software working together with the I.T team getting the system to run as smooth as possible with the latest computer system, capable of running the software required for the simulator to run.

The design team will then go on the mining sight and go investigate the automotive vehicles and machines used at the mines and they will be responsible to make drawings and bill of materials for the consoles and the necessary system that comes along with it ordering them to be assembled.

The engineering assembly team then get the material and build all that has to be built like the permanent assembly and modifications like cube profiles and the consoles. The temporary assembly is done for quality check and again disassembled and the consoles will test the software system on the console if there is any faulty with the software or the console itself. The console will then be sent to the assembly team to do a quality check again. If all is approved the products are to be packed into crates and then shipped to the customers.

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The assembly team is also send to the sight where the products are to assemble the products and to do a final quality check on the system, sending them with necessary tools for any shipping damages that might occur.

2. Engineering project 1- ERA project:

2.1. Definition of project:

The first project I experienced first at the company was the ERA project (Ethiopian roads authority). The contract involved no less than ten (10) Simulator Base Systems (SimBASEs) [Cube-type] with

motion bases and ten (10) Simulated Cabs (SimCABs).

A few Months ago we shipped ninety four (94) crates to Ethiopia. These crates have reached the capital in Addis Ababa and are currently being trucked to the two training Centre’s where they will be assembled.

2.2. Activities undertaken:

Assembly of cubes. Quality check of the cube. Assembly of motion base Quality check of motion base Disassembly of cube. Wiring of 16H console Assembly of 950H and 140H consoles Quality check of console Customization of parts and error fixing. Shipping of products (94 crates)

2.3. Training and experience:

Firstly we had training lessons on PPE and basic safety measures that needs to be abided while working in the workshop as it is most important in the engineering industry and this training was given by the safety officer Carl Grunbeger. Basic PPE was given to us to use daily.

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We then started off with assembly, assembling Pc-racks that need basic hand tool usage, where six computers, motionbase box, UPS and power supply are installed within a sheet-metal rack that accommodates all the items mentioned and all computers will be used for running the softwares for the consoles. All the Pc-racks also needs wiring where electrical measuring and electronic instruments are required and from my own background from being exposed to computers and also from the subject completed by the name control of machines have aided my knowledge on computer rack assembly.

Secondly I worked on the high profile motionbase, and the motionbase is a structure build out of strong steel that will hold the console and give it motion as a person is on the simulator, giving the customers more of a realistic feeling to driving a simulator. Power screws are used as actuators to apply necessary forces and giving the console two dimensions of freedom motions. And assembling this motion basic bench work is used and you learn the usage of tools and also you get to see the difference in permanent assembly and temporary assembly.

Quality check is then done on the motionbase to check if there is any faulty on the motionbase. The motionbase then connected to a computer and gets run by our supervisor; Armando to check if the actuators works perfectly. After the quality check the motionbase was packed in a crate ready for shipping.

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Then we worked on the consoles cables which required a lot of wiring and testing of wires with interpretation of circuit diagrams and the cables I made was table safety switch which cuts power for in case of emergencies when driver is on the console. Also I had to wire a console called the 16H where all the mechanical parts, steering unit, lamps, peddles and switches have to be connected electrically to be able to send signals to the computers in usage of the simulators. I learned how to do basic electronic modification and soldering skills. Also worked with resistors and different wires for example; brown and black wires are for lamps, white and green wires are used for switches, blue black and yellow are for gauges etc. and lastly on the 16H console I learned about the different ports that are used on the console and they purposes coming with them are circuit diagrams on how to wire each port and if need of a resistor to know which ohms usage to use applying the colour coding learned from electro technology 1.

After the 16H console is been assembled and wired it got tested by Elvis for quality check and we have run into numerous of problems where wires are connected into the wrong ports, so a multi-meter will be used to solve the problem encountered by the wrong connections. The mutli-meter is a an electrical measuring device that is used to measure voltage, amps and ohms through any electrical connection. The multi-meter we used is the same one received from electrotechnology, only applicable for low current testing. The mutli-meter is then set to test for current flow setting it to make a sound if current is flowing through the wires. Working with connectors with 25 ports to connect wires will make it possible to find any wrong connection. The computer will indicate which switch port or gauges are not responding. After it has specified which item is not working the numbering and labeling of the wires will be usefull as we can test it with the multimeter that to which port it is connected to and when found to be connected to the right port. The 16H console will then be send to yhe computer engineers to check if the system software works on the console. Then it will get send back to us to check for mechanical quality check and permanent assembly will be done. This routine has taught me how to perfect products before selling them. And also I learned different problem solving skills on the mechanical and electrical application. After the quality check the console will be put in a crate for shipping purposes.

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After working on the 16H I got to work on other two console, the 950H and the 140H. I worked under the supervision of Elvis and Armando. I have helped with the wiring of the consoles with experience from working with the 16H. the electrical applications and wiring is the same although it has different switches, lamps, ports and gauges. On this consoles I had the opportunity to assembling the mechanical parts of the consoles. A drawing of the console was provided and I managed to get parts and started to assemble the steering unit of the 140H, and I assembled the actuators of the 140H as it has nine levers connected to electrical valves that actuate a specific current and I learned more about parts I never thought existed life a left and right hand nuts. The are nut really manufactured in our country but in the U.S, also have improve my skills in reading an engineering drawing and where to start assembling befor it becomes difficult. Also I learned how to surface grind for the first time on a stainless steel plate that required to be grinded a half moon on it so that the stearing column can fit inside. I was given the proper PPE and the plates were assembled on a table vice andi grinded it with the surface grinder, it was hard as the feedrate was less on the grinder but chances to get inaccurate was less then using a cutting blade. There was a lot of material to grind of but it is great practice to know how to opperate a grinder. It is also best to use the surface grinder to get round shapes out of material than using a cuting blade. The feedrate might be less than using a cutting blade but chances of meeting accurate tolerances is more. The 950H required seats to be installed and it was my task to assemble them on the console. I got to learn how to use a inset tool that insert rivets with threads as th plate only has holes and the M6 insert was the inserted in the sheet metal plate and the seat gets alligned ontop of the plate and then assembled with M6x16 screws. I also learned to not tighten the screws fully until the seat is properly alligned.

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Problems encountered while working on the 140H and the 950H was firstly the mechanical assembly of the 140H, looking for parts for an assembly that has more then 40parts isn’t easy if the parts are not sorted and kept together and somehow the parts were mixed with parts from a different console, and with the help of a partlist you can find the parts and it is best to group ur assembling into groups like; steering unit, switches, lamps, mainbase etc. also it helps to plan where to start and to work in a team to assemble different parts and finally coming together for the final assembly. In the grinding the challenge was getting used to the vibrations of the grinder and also you need to pay attention so you don’t make mistakes.also taking brakes and having someone to substitute you while grinding a lot of items. The challenge in inserting the rivets are inserting the rivet scew as it does happen when the hole drilled is to big or not holding the insert tool properly while applying force on the tool to assemble the rivet on the plate. If the rivet is scew its best to use a drill to drill out the rivets. You use the same drill bit diameter as the hole-diameter. Also if tightening the screws before checking if the holes alligned it will be difficult to assemble the seat so first you try to get althescrews in then tighten the screws.

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After working on the 16H we started working on one of the company’s most famous assembly called the CUBE; the CUBE is a as called a cube form room made out of strong metal, sheet metal and aluminum profiles, and inside it gets projector screens where images gets projected on as people are training on a console giving the person a four dimensional view of the virtual reality we offer from the company.

Before assembling the CUBE we had to cut aluminium strips from a 90 degrees l profiles, acting as one of the profiles used on the CUBE, the aluminium profiles are also use on the crates we use for shipment and to cut the aluminium strips were cut with a table saw. The table saw is a very accurate saw, that can cut in different angles and it also has a laser light leading you to cut accurately and the vice of the table grinder can rotate in 180 degrees angle to be able to cut the required angles like we had to cut 60 degrees angles on the aluminium strip.

There weren’t many challenges using this power tool as long as you wear your PPE and the machine itself has safety measures, with a cover plate on the side opening the cover as you lower the blade.

And on the CUBE we work as a team to assemble it and basic sheet metal work is applied together with bench work as surfaces of profiles needs to be prepared for adhesives chemicals and also connectors from a company called tectra that holds the CUBE and the CUBE has taught me more about strength of materials used for their specific application and also the geometry of specific metals and also the assembly skills where holes are drilled and rivets, screws, nuts and modified connecters are used to complete the CUBE. On the CUBE I also got to learn an application of permanent assembly called riveting. We had roof profiles that required sheet metal to be permanently assembled to them and we used a pneumatic compressor with a rivet gun to assemble the plate and profile together with rivets. There was a problem encountered where we needed to remove a rivet because it was assembled in the wrong hole, and I learned that with a drill bit of the hole-diameter u can drill out the rivet, using the torque of the drill to loosen the rivet. The cubes where assembled for quality check before they get shipped and again it was disassembled and learned that disassembling is faster than assembling but the chances of damages the profiles are more as you breakdown the CUBE. It’s best to have extra hands while disassembling and to work as a team and not to try doing too many things on your own.

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The challenges faced during the ERA-project started we might learn about safety from the subject completed manufacturing will prepare a student, but applying it is not as easy because as a person you want to be comfortable while working with power-tools, example wearing gloves while welding da grip may not be as firm and also wearing protective gloves and helmet develops steam from breathing and humidity and it decreases accuracy of sight and while grinding or welding the chances of accuracy is less, also the safety jacket will protect a person from sparks but only for specific time can it withhold the heat from sparks and taking regular breaks will help to reduce the chances of flaming up.

Not much challenges where met while assembling the Pc-rack as I personally have experience with computers and might have learned latest computer cables used in the industry, but on the motionbase a lot of attention has to be paid because forgetting something small like applying lock-tight on nuts and screws will require a lot of disassembling a lot on the motionbase to fix errors started because the motionbase can be dangerous as the actuators used on the motionbase can harm people if fracture occurs. Also precise displacement for the power-screws has to be given attention.

Most challenges and knowledge was built while working on the 16H console working with a lot of wires and learning practical circuit diagrams as one little error can blow fuses and replacing them will be challenging. Also with the amount of wires used within the consoles needs to be neatly organized as at ports like DB25 connectors requires 25 wires connected to just one port and the

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16H has more than 10 DB25 connectors. As mentioned above a multi-meter is used to test which wire is connected into the wrong port. Removing the wire also needs a tool and without the tool it is impossible to remove the wire from the DB 25 connector without damaging the wire or the connector.

When shipping the products it is very much necessary to check that the profiles don’t scratch the only tool used was a power drill as some crates needs to be disassembled before packaging the products. The crates are made out of wood and aluminium profiles assembled with screws. The drill will be quick to open the crates; some gets open from the top but the crates for consoles needs to be open on the top and sides as the crates are 1.6m high.

2.4. Time taken for project:

The time taken for this project was the 2nd of August until the 20th of September so it took more than a month including all the tasks mentioned above

3. Engineering project 2- Desk assembly.


This project requires that we must build new desks for our own personal usage in the new workshop. Because I was new I had to build a desk out of tectra profiles, connectors and brackets.


Gathering and sorting of material and profiles Gathering of tools Measuring of profiles Assembly of desk Wiring of desk Desk quality check


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Before I started to assemble the desk I had to gather all the material necessary to assemble the desk which was;

wooden top wooden panels 45x45 tectra profiles 90 degrees 45x45 brackets Connectors Screws an washers Legs End caps. Power cable Female wall plugs Lights plastic ducting Steel panel

Then I also gathered the tools necessary to assemble the table which is;

drill Ellen-keys 13 size spanner Mallet

I first started with assembling the legs on the tectra profiles assembling them first with the 13 size spanner linking the other tectra profiles using the Ellen keys and connectors to assemble the frame of the desk. A mallet is used for some links that doesn’t want to connect properly.

Then the wooden panels are assembled on the frame still using the connectors and Elle-keys. The brackets were assembled on the legs with the 13 size spanner and after the wooden top were assembled using the screws, washers and a drill through the bracket, holding the wooden top on the frames. Then the plastic ducting was assembled also with screws and the drill on the front wooden panel. The plastic ducting is used to hold the wall plugs and the power cables. The plugs

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are connected in series and parallel to the lights and in series to the main power source. The sheet-metal plate is assembled also with screws and a drill, and it is used to hold tools.

The biggest challenge here was working alone and working without a drawing but analysing the existing desks and also connecting the power of the desk can get confusing but with basic knowledge from electro technology it got easy to successfully complete my table. My table was evaluated by my supervisor; Armando and he was happy with my desk.


The desk assembly was a project that only required one day completing the project.

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4. Engineering project 3- Exxaro Grootegeluk Mine Landscape.


Exxaro Grootgeluk is a contract that requires containers acting as a classroom with a consoles inside and the whole system required for a hexagon to go inside with containers assembled together on sight, and for this project the engineering department have to customize the containers so they can be fitted to be classrooms on mining sights, and before they get shipped we started to work on the containers.


Cutting of container Grinding of surfaces Welding of plates Surface finishing Quality check


Firstly for the project we needed to cut sides of four containers so two of them have to be assembled together creating a bigger area for the classrooms required for the project. PPE was first thing that was obtained which was;

Earplugs denim jackets Grinding gloves Welding gloves Face cover helmet. Welding helmet Head cover cloth

We started off by using a big grinder to cut big surface areas, and I got to learn that a grinder can change blades for the required activities that is going to be undertake, example: cutting through material we use a cutting blade with different thickness for also different material to cut, also we needed to surface finish the material by using a surface grinding disc that has less feet rate but covers a larger area making ends and edges smoother to prevent people from cutting themselves also for appearance to have neat work. I got to learn how to change the blades safely without getting injured and also tight with a chuck-tool to prevent the disc on the grinder to come loose and hurt someone. The big grinder is faster to use but also heavier than the small grinder but the

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changing of cutting blade is also less; saving a lot of time but comfort ability of the big grinder is less but with Carl’s supervision and teaching we managed to finish the job without injuries and a job well done. I learned how to hold the grinder, to position the grinder with a distance from the material and stabilizing the grinder before slowly feeding it the material, creating a grove within the metal before you start cutting through helping with accuracy. Trying work faster with the grinder decreases the accuracy of cutting. Also that needs to be taken in notice is also working with tolerances to at least cut 3mm of the required size, so you can problem solve any accuracy errors that might have occurred while cutting the material, because me myself have made the mistake of cutting too much into the material, creating new problems to be solved. Under Carl’s supervision it was advised to solve the problem when we get to welding activities and to continue cutting to meet the deadlines.

The challenges met while cutting the containers with the grinders was firstly the big grinder is big and requires steady hands and to pay attention on your surroundings and to always switch the grinder off if grinder is not fed on the material to be cut. It is always best to take brakes while cutting with the grinder; because fatigue can cause you to cut inaccurately and also with heat developed by the human body, you sweat and create heat within the cover helmet and it decreases sight and chances or being accurate is less, so it’s best to rest and clean your helmet regularly. Also if you feel fatigue in forearm, neck and shoulders it’s best to give someone else to proceed with the work done unless you will cut inaccurately, which is also the cause of my error by cutting too much in the metal plates. The small grinder was less challenging as it is smaller and less torque is induced by the machine but the still it is a dangerous power-tool and must be cautious while using it. Also to take notice is the sparks that occurs while cutting and grinding are harmful, for all the cutting process creates more sparks and it is best not to wear cloth’s that are flammable and to also trying to direct the sparks from your body without compromising your accuracy on cutting the metal. There were also times as you in the process of cutting the cutting discs break loose from the grinder, making the cutting disc useless after that. Switching the grinder off is best so the disc can’t hurt anyone

After cutting with the big grinder a small grinder was used because it has smaller cutting discs and the small grinder also have the same applications as the big grinder mentioned above but with less feed rate. For us cutting off the side walls of the container, only using the big grinder, possibility of cutting into areas not required are more so the small grinder cuts of the finishing pieces that will remove the side walls completely, requiring help from colleagues to hold the wall not to fall on people and to scratch valuable objects around the area. Using the small grinder is very comfortable but also taking more time.

Challenges met while grinding the surfaces of the metal was fatigue as the feed rate of surface grinding is less. It is also best to take brakes and to have someone substituting you from grinding. But accuracy is the most important while surface grinding, because taking too much of the material

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it cannot be replaced. I also learned not to use the surface grinding disc as a cutting disc because its thickness is too much to cut off material and the disc can break loose causing injuries.

After cutting of the container walls, the grinding discs on both big and small grinder, was changed to surface grinder. The purpose is to deburr the edges cut off by the grinder to make the edges neater and also preventing to cut people with sharp edges also to fix cutting errors. The big grinder was used to feed the big pieces of material that were left after cutting. The small grinder was used for smaller offcuts and to perfect the smallest areas as it is lighter and feed rate is less reducing to feed too much of the material.

After grinding we had the problem fixed where I cut too much into the metal, creating a hole in the roof profile. The problem solving for that problem was to get a piece of metal plate and to cut it in a size specific to cover the hole without overlapping the material. A metal plate was cut to size and using the MIG welder it got welded within the roof and after surface grinding the weld, making the piece fit in the roof making it look like any problems ever occurred.

The surface grinding was covered and the required geometry and tolerances were met and what came next was welding. The welder used was a MIG (Metal inert gas) welder also taught to use it by the welder but also different PPE was used because the welding process damages people’s eyes. At that moment not much was taught of the welder but we were supposed to weld a metal plate on top the top profile of the container which will assemble the containers together and we had to climb on top of the containers to be able to weld the metal plate. The plate was first clamped by G-clamps on the roof profile of the container before welding the plate. I then started by welding on a metal piece, so I can get the feeling of the welding because it needs steady hands as the high voltages creates a thrust force while applying the weld creating a jumpy effect trying to weld. After welding on the metal piece I started attempting spot-welding which is welding in spots, skipping a specific distance from welding because we were welding a long metal plate and if a person welds from one end to the other, the accuracy of the metal plate displacement will be reduced, also the bar will bend on the end of the parts not welded because of the high heat created while welding, so it is best to weld from the center then on the very ends of the metal plate then moving in spaces spot welding the plate. After spot welding it is always best to check your accuracy of the metal plate before completely welding it and if there are errors it will be easy to grind the welding pieces off and to displace the metal plate accurately. After the accuracy check we started to weld the bar completely. In this process I learned that it’s best to be very comfortable for the sake of stability and to be steady while welding the metal plate. Also taking regular brakes helps to check the way you weld to decrease errors. Patience and accuracy is the key while welding and also the metal gets very hot while welding and giving it time to cool of is best before the metal starts to deform.

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The challenges met while welding was accuracy and stability, the welding helmet provided creates a black-screen while welding protecting your eyes but also compromising your sight, so taking brakes is best to actually see were you are welding. Using both hands helps to have a steady grip while welding also swirling the welder slightly from the one material to the other. Also a big problem that occurred was that the welding had holes in it, also spattering all over instead of being distributed in the area aimed to weld. The welding would have holes enough to brake when struck with enough impact force. The welding machine was then investigated and taken to William our workshop manager and he have concluded that the pipe using to weld had broken, a new pipe was bought and the welding was then better with less holes within the welding and also applying the welding was smoother and cleaner.

After the welding the containers were mounted on jacks and put together to evaluate the size and accuracy from the welding and grinding. The container had wooden floors and it was required to sand of surface layer of the wooden floor with a sanding machine which is also a similar process as surface grinding, but the material is different; its wood and a machine with a slower feed rate is required to remove layer. After the surface was sand we had to cover the holes with primer then paint the floor with varnish to prevent wood from breaking off creating splinters and also for appearance.


This project only took five days to completely fully modify the container.

5. Engineering project 4- Electra mining expo.


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5DT had the opportunity to present one of the products at the Electra mining expo in Johannesburg, where companies all over the world in the mining engineering business can promote their products.


Disassemble the hexagon Tool preparation Assembly of hexagon Exposure to other mining engineering companies


I was fortunate to be chosen to be part of the four men team for the Electra mining expo, which was; Mokete an electrical engineering intern, Tinyiko an electrical engineer, Lionel a junior technician, and myself Benjamin mechanical engineering intern. We started with disassembling the hexagon in the demo-room and packed it with the console, instructor table and computer rack. When we got at the mine expo on Saturday we got to our area and started with the hexagon. Now the hexagon is a simulator frame that has four display systems and it is shaped in a hexagon form when viewed from the top and it is made out of aluminium tectra profiles and various connectors to connect the profiles together. We started with sorting the tools into groups of various parts of the hexagon, which is the bottom frame, middle frame, roof frame, door frame and projector mount frame. After the profiles and connectors are sorted we get our basic hand tools to assemble the hexagon, and they are:

Ellen-keys A Mallet Flat screwdriver 13 size spanner 22 size spanner

We then start with the bottom frame using the Ellen-keys and the 13 size spanner to assemble the legs and the bottom hexagon frame, with the use of a mallet. It requires a lot of team work assembling the hexagon frames, because if one person tighten the connectors too much, it becomes difficult to connect the linking profile. I have learned the purposes of tolerances of geometries as factory faulty can be solved with the spaces given by tolerances. Working with precise alignment and improving skills in basic measuring techniques.

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The challenges met when assembling the hexagon is bumping into factory faulty where holes doesn’t align properly with connectors and profiles and solving that problems would be not tightening the connectors to much but to a point where the profiles can be moved, to assemble the remaining linking profiles, and at every completion of frame like bottom frame and middle frame, it is best then to tighten the connectors to increase stability in the frame. Also teamwork is most important while assembling the hexagon.

After assembling the frame after 4-5hours we continued to finish the system the following day, and we positioned the hexagon in a place where the rest of the system is built around the hexagon. We installed the screens where the images are displayed and it required someone holding the screen and the other person tightening the screws with the drill. We then positioned the computer rack and the instructor cable, mounting the projectors and connecting everything into a system.

Problems met while connecting the system is sorting al the cables and working neatly so no one can trip over cables. And we sorting the cables are important for appearance. Also testing the system takes a while and calibrating the system is sometimes engineers can’t fix.

The system was used for the week by two of 5DT marketing employees, demonstrating the system to customers. And on the last day of the mine expo, the engineering employees from 5dt had an opportunity to attend the mine expo before packing up the hexagon simulator. It was a great experience being exposed to world leading technology systems, in the engineering business. I saw various machines we learn from textbooks and getting to communicate with engineers from various groups of engineering. Questions were answered patiently and getting to see centrifugal pumps, CNC machines, bending machines, trucks, motors, milling & turning machines etc. was a great experience.

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While we were at the mine expo the marketing employees, who were running the demonstration communicated with us that on the motionbase one of the power screws had a faulty where the steel channel holding the top frame was turning loose and the demonstration could not continue, unless it can be harmful to the drivers. We were advised to wait until the mine expo to end before investigating the problem. When we got to investigate we found that lock tight was not used on that channel and was told that applying lock tight on permanent assembly is always important.

5.4. Time taken for project

The mine expo was on for a week but it required two days to assemble the whole system. And disassembling the system took only a day.

6. Project 5- Clean up and hexagon assembly training:


For this period it was necessary to clean up the workshop and to sort out tools and also to train all the interns on how the hexagon is built. Also to do a quality check on the hexagon before it can be sold.


Cleaning of tools Sorting of tools Assembling hexagon Quality check of materials Disassembling hexagon


This might seem irrelevant but sorting of tools can be seen as an advantages being exposed to tools for various applications because as a technician I have seen many problems on how to assemble or disassemble items but not knowing which tool to use for that situation. I have been exposed to tools I haven’t met before and also giving you design skills as you now know what engineering tools are capable of.

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After the clean-up, the engineering interns got split into teams of two to assemble two hexagon frames for quality check and so that we get proper training in assembling the hexagon. Same procedure was followed sorting out the profiles with the help of a solid works drawing and from the experience from the mine expo I took lead with Lionel, making the process faster.

The more training we get to build the hexagon, the better I got with hand tools and stripping of screw threads was less but group work was a little better but still had to be taken into notice. Assembling with too many people can result in not being able to connect links on profiles as not everyone will tighten the connectors with the same torque.


The time taken for the cleaning and assembling of the hexagon and disassembling it was two weeks.

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7. Project 6- Design project:


The objective of the project is to build a stand that can hold bubble wrap and Rotospool cable wires that are used frequently in the workshop. The item should be able to cut the bubble wrap and the wire. It should be able to measure the wires used and the project should be kept simple and should be user friendly. It should be mobile as usage of bubble wrap is not only within the workshop.


Come up with ideas Draw up designs from research Draw solid works drawing Create a gaunt chart Research cost of project Get material for project Assemble the project


This is more a P2 project it will be mentioned again for my P2 report. I was teamed up with Ruan du Toit to design a stand that can make packaging and shipping of our profiles easier. The purpose of this assignment is; the company uses bubble wrap and erolite to wrap the profiles for the CUBE and hexagon. The bubble wrap is used to protect the profiles from scratching against each other. The bubble wrap comes in a size of 1.6m vertical length and diameter of 0.6m. because of its size it’s hard to work with, laying it horizontally on the ground and the rolling it out , it also requires a big open space to put it on the floor and roll it out as the profiles from the cube is at 3m of horizontal length. During shipping the bubble wrap gets dirty and can scratch the profiles, the bubble wrap requires an open area also as it rolls, it overlaps the length required and to roll it back damages the bubble wrap with dust and rock pieces.

Also one of the problems we have is using the Rotospool wires becomes a problem if a person is making looms for a console, the wire is usually laid vertically on the floor and the wire is pulled for the required length. This method becomes difficult working with more than one wires, also the packaging of the wire is also difficult because when checking the stock on the specific coloured wire required is out of stock, it is difficult to know if we are out of stock.

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The item products used to build the stand was:

1. 45/90 bracket(x6) with their connectors.2. T- connector with connector set(x10)3. D43 round tube L=1.3m(x5)4. Rexroth-45/90 profiles (see attached drawing for dimensions)5. Rexroth wheels(x4)6. 45/45 black caps7. 45/90 black caps8. 34x10mm washers9. M10 nuts

Now we did research and we designed a stand that is made out of tectra profiles and five tubes, where the bottom tubes will hold the bubble wrap and erolite and the top three tubes will each hold twelve different wires. We designed from an engineering background, making calculations and investigating similar designs that already exist, trying to improve them for our required applications. The most designs we came up to be only applicable for bubble wrap packaging but we manage to combine the stand to have two applications.

Challenges encountered while designing was getting back to using solid works, it requires regular practice to perfect your drawing skills and also drawing a design and be advised to change it requires time and deadlines has to be met.

According to our gaunt chart, we designed and researched for two weeks, reporting to our design team William, with William’s guidance and supervision; we managed to come up with a design. We then started the research on what material to use on the stand and also how much it will cost to practically build the project. We drove around and researched prices and quality of material. We came to a conclusion of using the tectra profiles not used by the company, recycling the profiles and saving money for the company. After a week of research we reported to our supervisor Armando on the cost of our project also communicating Wimpy on the cost of the project. It was suggested by Wimpy we have an application on the assembly of the stand which requires welding and grinding as practice and training was needed for our P1.

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The challenges met while researching cost was mostly was companies with very bad service, taking a very long time to respond to give you prices of items, also driving around using a lot of petrol for research. We also came to problems we wanted to solve but various companies struggled to advise us on solving the problem. We also ordered a counter from Bolt and Nut but the shop struggled to communicate with us, letting us know that the company we ordered the counter from, don’t manufacture the products anymore, also failing into referring us to other company that sells the similar products. Most counters were found online but from companies not from our country, and ordering items outside our country will clash with our deadlines. The counter would have made the use of the wires easier, as it counts the length that is pulled from the roller. But the problem was solved by assembling a ruler of 1m on the side of the profiles.

We came to a conclusion that the tube that will hold the bubble wrap must be modified. We bought 43mm diameter round tubes with a length of 6m. We had it cut in 1.5m’s of length with a grinder.

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We then bought 34x10mm washers and M10 nuts, the washers was welded concentric to the nuts and after the washers outside diameter was weld concentric to the outside diameter of the tube. The weld was then grinded smoothly for appearance and was tested for strength test.

Our biggest challenges was welding the nuts on the washers, because when we do the strength test the weld would break of as it does not make proper contact to the washers, we then tried to grind the surface of the washers and the nuts so they can make proper contact. Even after that the welding broke of the washer. We then welded a sample and reported to William and he advised that we should investigate the setting of the MIG welder. We checked it and concluded that the gas released from the nozzle was not sufficient. Still the problem was not solved. The attachment was stronger but not yet strong enough, because the amount of usage would be limited. We finally came to a conclusion that the nozzle used on the welder was not for gaseous usage, as gas did not travel safely to help the contact of the two metals. It was then tested for the last time and it was successfully attached on together. We learned that working with galvanized steel it is best welding with gaseous application as the penetration is deeper. Also one of the problems we encountered is that the washers have a small area and welding in spots is best as the washer gets so hot it melts and deforms, making the washer useless. Also the heat causes the threads in the nut to deform so we came to a conclusion of using a countersink M10 screw to hold the washer and nut together. But also with this method its best to spot weld first because I experienced that if welding completely around the nut, you encounter difficulty in removing the countersink screw from the nut as the heat created by welding creates a metallic assembly between the treads. So spot welding gives the metal enough time to cool down and after spot welding I removed the countersink screw and then fully weld around the nut, but still taking brakes so that the metal can cool down before it deforms. Another experience I have encountered is to never use water to cool down the material because the sudden heat exchange creates cracks within the welding and making the welding weaker. But letting the metal cool down in room temperature and in that manner no cracks will occur within the welding.

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The challenge encountered with grinding of the welds on the edges of the tube was the instability of the grinder as the tube would be pushed by the forces induced by the grinder. We used clamps to and a table vice to hold the tube and with a small grinder grinding the edges of the tube very smoothly. A difficult part in grinding the tube neatly was to check not to grind too much of the weld as the washer would break of the tube.

We also had to drill holes in the aluminium tectra profile and to do so we used a table power drill and the power drill had a problem in inducing torque to run the drilling tool and we came to a

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conclusion that the power connection within the wires was connected wrong and the wire cable was connected wrong in the wall plug were the live was connected to the neutral port. But it was fixed and the drill was working. The drilling process had cooling liquid for it to drill the tectra profiles to reduce the heat also making cutting much easier, from experience if the drill is fed to quickly to the aluminium profile a squeaking sounds occur, damaging the drill bit, also the drill bit gets loose from the chuck not turning and drilling the whole but getting stuck in the profile. And most important before running the drill it is important to make sure the profile is properly tightened on the vice of the table drill and to get the measurements and co-ordinates of were the drilling is going to be before running the machine. The power drill also has a safety switch and it works the same as a milling machine but it doesn’t have the features of a milling machine. Its vice has limited degrees of freedom while the milling machines can drill in different angles. Also the torque induced by a power drill is less than a turning machine but has more power than a normal hand drill, and the power drill is more accurate than a normal drill. It also has a big chuck that can hold very big drill beats. And can also drill deep holes and can drill through very hard material without being damaged.

After we finished drilling the holes into the tectra profiles we assembled the whole stand with the bubble wrap and the erolite on the round tubes for quality check and also to check if all connectors can hold the profiles linking together. We encountered holes drilled not perfect as it makes it a little difficult to connect the connectors but after deburring the holes with a round file the connectors worked properly. After the quality check the round tubes were removed and got send for powder coating at a company by the name Twilight powder coating. We got the tube powder coated with two layers, paint and a plastic protective layer and after four days we fetched the tubes.

We assembled the tubes to the stand to check if they didn’t get damaged at the powder coating company. We also had to come up with a sliding cutting blade that is going to travel in the grove channels of the tectra profiles, cutting both bubble wrap and erolite. We researched sliding guillotines but the sliding blades come with a stand which is more applicable for cutting paper. We went to look at shops like bolt and nut and we did not get exactly the sliding guillotines but round blades. We also visited the shop that provides us with the bubble wrap but even they couldn’t help us. We then decided build our own sliding cutting device. I looked around the workshop on material I can use to make this sliding blade and I had to make sure it is easy to use, and it is safe to use and it is easy to maintain. I managed to find a plastic box we use for our safety switches and made it a cover and main frame of the cutting mechanism. I then customized it with a tool called a dretmill grinder. This small grinder is a very small grinder that is used on very small items, cutting

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accurately. While cutting with the dretmill, I realized that the heat produced from the dretmill melts the plastic box and making a very messy job which requires a lot of deburring job after working with it. The dretmill can be set to rotate at different speed but if set to slower rotation the heat is reduce and the plastic box doesn’t melt but your accuracy is compromised. After cutting the plastic box I then created mounts for the cutting blade and also with plastic sliders that can run freely in the grove channel of the tectra profile, also the cutting blade came in a cover and I cut the cover to be assembled with the blade to protect anyone from cutting themselves. The cutting mechanism was tested and it managed to cut both erolite and bubble wrap but the only problem is that the cutting blade does not rotate while cutting. While investigating the cutting mechanism I came upon that the nuts that balances the blade also prevents it from turning, but also if loosened the blade can break and it becomes unstable. I then asked for advice from Elvis and he suggested that i use a bearing for the cutting mechanism so it can rotate although the cut and screw compromised the turning ability of the blade. The cutting mechanism was then assembled on the stand to test and it can cut both erolite and bubble wrap. It cuts the erolite easier because it is denser than the bubble wrap. The bubble wrap is filled with air and using the cutting mechanism also requires patience and to know how to use the cutting mechanism unless the plastic jams within the mechanism.


For this project we were given a month to complete the whole project. The necessary drawings from solid works along with the bill of material and the gaunt chart will be added to the assignment as prove of assignment.

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8. Project 7- Cable making.


In this chapter I will group al the cables I have made for the company even though they were not made at the same period. The cables I have made are:

Instructor desk safety switch Power cables 6 DOF diagnostic cables 3 DOF power cables Pc interface cable


Cable length measuring. Multi-meter current testing Drilling Soldering Crimping of wires


The cables mentioned above as logic as it may sounds requires electrical knowledge and also slightest of hand tool skills was taught during the cable making. For each cable a circuit diagram was provided to make the cable. I will explain the knowledge I have learned per cable made, starting with:

Instructor desk safety switch: this switch is used by the person nearest to the instructor desk in case of emergencies and malfunction of the motion base cutting of all possible power before the driver on the console can be injured. The cable consists of:

150mm diameter cable with a green (earth) and brown (live) wire inside. A black cover case. A twist and pull 2position switch, A 16pin female amp connector Female amps Striping tool.

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Firstly I started with the mechanical application finding the center of the plastic cases using a veneer to measure 10 cases. I then had to hold the case on a table vice and using a drill with a hole-saw that can drill holes of 20cm. the hole is then deburred with a round file and then assembling the switch to the case. While we cut the required length wire also learned to always add minimum 30cm to the required length in case mistakes are made. Then the brown and green wires are connected inside the case with green as earth and brown live. The wire is firstle striped by the striping tool, removing the protective sleeve of the end of the wire so you can make contact with necessary pins and switches. The back cover is also filed by a round file with the file diameter of10cm so that the case can close without damaging the cable connected to the switch. The case is then closed and testing the mechanism of the switch, making sure it was not damaged. The other end of the wire is crimped with female amp pins with a crimping tool, so that the pins are connected in the amp connector. The amp connector gets a cover that is hold together by screws. The switch is then tested for quality check.

The challenges I have come across while making the instructor safety switch was; crimping the amp pins on the wire as the pin would slip of because the wire was not properly displaced in the pin. But with practise it becomes easier. Also when connecting the amp pins in the wrong port, it is difficult to remove it and it is impossible to remove without the amp pin removing tool. It is best to make sure in which port you plug in the pin.

Power cable: This cable is a familiar cable that we use every day in our homes, the difference in this cable is the plugs, as the plugs are not the universal 3pin or 2pin plugs, but computer power supply plugs. The power cable works mostly like a power extension cable. The cables we make are usually long, looking at lengths from 6 – 12meters. They are mainly used to power up the projectors, the instructor desk screen and LCD screens if required (mostly for the hexagon). The necessary items needed for this cable is:

A female and male power plug. 15cm diameter power cable Stripping tool Flat screw driver Standing knife.

Starting with the power cable I learned to first open the plug with the screw driver to check how much of the protective sleeve to remove because if too much is removed, it can create loose connection in the neck of the plug, and it is also unattractive and is considered as untidy work. So opening the plugs can guide you to determine how much sleeve to remove. The first sleeve is removed with a standing knife, a very sharp blade so it must be taken in notice not to cut to deep but to slightly slide it around the wire until you see the three wires inside the sleeve. The black sleeve is removed and after you find three wires; a blue, green and brown wire. The wires now can be stripped with a stripping tool removing the sleeves of each wire. Inside the plug if you look closely there are usually three letters; L, N and E standing for; LIVE, NEUTRAL, EARTH. The live symbol is for the brown wire, the neutral for blue and earth for green. This colour coding is used worldwide even in the power cables used in our own home. The instructions are used for both male and female plugs and both require the flat screw driver to attached the wires in its right place. After that you double check if the wires are connected to the right position the covers of the plugs are to be closed and the wire to be tested.

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On the power cable making there aren’t much challenges, because it is straight forward, but it is best to double check the connection unless it will trip the power if connection is made wrong. Also it is best to work in a clean area; preferably a desk as the pins of the plugs comes loose when opening the plug and can get lost very easily. If not measuring the amount of sleeve to remove might cause you to cut the wire and if a slack was not given to the wire the cable will end up shorter than the required length. It also gets exhausting when making this cables as you will never just make one cable as only one system can require 6 cables and I was making the cables for 10 systems (ERA project) and extra hands will be required if you want to meet the deadlines.

6DOF diagnostic cable: This cables are the is the most difficult cable I had to make and this cables can take a great 45minutes to make one cable depending on the length of the cable. These are used on the low profile motionbase to connect the motionbase box to the actuators. These cables are fragile and it is best to pay attention while making them, because the slightest mistake you make can take a lot of effort to fix and investigate the problem. To make the cables it requires:

6 DB9 female ports 6 low current wires with length of 6-12m depending on the requirements Stripping tool Female amp pins Female amp connector

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Heat gun Heat shrink sleeve Amp pin crimping tool Multi-meter Standing knife Cable ties Black tape DB9 covers Circuit diagram 12mm diameter plastic sleeve Soldering machine Solder wire.

Before anything else I learned to always keep working neat to not confuse you and to lose anything. Firstly I started to get six wires cut to the required length and giving them slag of 30cm. the cut wires are then taped together so that when you start putting then wire in the sleeve the cables can stay together, also to keep in mind that the sleeve should end 1m before the other end of the cables. The sleeve keeps the six wires together acting as one cable. After putting on the sleeve you tighten the ends with cable ties so the sleeve doesn’t move around. Then the end with 1m none sleeve must have its own individual sleeve removed with the standing knife. In each of the six wires you will find four wires, blue, yellow, green and red. Only the green, yellow and blue wires are used and the red one can be ignored but was taught to cut it so it doesn’t make contact with the other wires by mistake. The three used wires a stripped on the ends by the stripping tool. After stripping the wires you cover the heat shrink sleeve at the neck of the wire still on the colour sleeve and using black tape to keep them from falling out. According to the circuit diagram the blue and yellow wires are to be soldered by the soldering machine to port 1 and 2 on the DB9 connector and the green on port 5. Soldering the wires to the required ports isn’t easy, because the wires are thin and was taught to first apply solder on the wire and let it dry, then placing it to the port to connect to and with the soldering iron to slightly melt the solder while the port and wire is in contact and after the melting of the solder let it cool of and then the wire will be connected to the port. The black tape holding the heat shrink is then removed to slide to the section where the connection of the wire and connector is made. The heat gun is then used to blow hot air to the heat shrink sleeve to shrink the sleeve so it tightens around the connection, protecting it. This process is done for six wires and six DB-9 connectors and wen completed I assemble the DB-9 connectors in the DB-9 covers for neatness and protecting the connections. The n the other end of the diagnostic cable the sleeves of the 6 wires will also be removed with a standing knife and also the three coloured (blue, green and yellow) sleeves will be removed with the stripping tool. And with the help of the multi-meter you can test both ends of the cable and helping you label the wires in numbers before crimping them. After the testing the ends of each coloured wire would be crimped with a crimping tool and some of them crimped together according to the circuit diagram and the plugged in the amp female connecter. After they are connected a cover is assembled to the 16pin Amp connector with screws.

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The challenges encountered in this cable making is gathering the tools needed, because a lot of items are used to make the cables and also to work in a neat space helps, being organized and tidy. Also putting the six wires through the sleeve hurts your hand as the sleeve stretches when sliding it on the cables, it is hard and the length of the wires are long and your forearm hurts after a period of time. The sleeve should be tight around the six cables but not too tight. I also struggled with soldering the wires because you have very little gripping space and it burns your fingers while soldering. Also if you make a mistake like forgetting to slide on the heat shrink will cause you to remove the solder of the wire and connecter and to then slide the heat shrink. The heat shrink must not be forgotten, it is important to prevent the wires stripped to make contact. Also something to take in notice is when using the heat gun not to use it too long, because it can get hot enough to melt the solder and then the connection becomes loose. Another thing I learned is to make sure of the connection on the 16pin amp connector as some of the wires must be crimped together and must work delicately and to make sure all wires are connected properly. We then do a quality check on the cable with a device compiled by Alfred, one of the interns who have made it for his design project.

3 DOF diagnostic cable: This cable is the same as the 6 DOF diagnostics cable but instead of having six wires it has three. Application of the cables is the same as well. And to make the cables requires the items which is:

3 DB9 female ports

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3 low current wires with length of 6-12m depending on the requirements Stripping tool Female amp pins Female amp connector Heat gun Heat shrink sleeve Amp pin crimping tool Multi-meter Standing knife Cable ties Black tape DB9 covers Circuit diagram 12mm diameter plastic sleeve Soldering Solder wire.

The procedures of making the cables are also the same as making the 6DOF diagnostics cables so it is not necessary to be repeated but the advantage here is that it is faster although the connection to the 16pin amp connecter is different and also the circuit diagram is also different.

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The problems and challenges are also the same just less as I started making the 6DOF diagnostic cables before I made the 3DOF diagnostic cables, so that was proper training of making 10 6DOF diagnostic cables.

Pc interface cable: The Pc interface cable is the same as the 3DOF diagnostics cables, it also consist of three wires and making the cables requires the same items;

3 DB9 female ports 3 low current wires with length of 6-12m depending on the requirements Stripping tool Female amp pins Female amp connector Heat gun Heat shrink sleeve Amp pin crimping tool Multi-meter Standing knife Cable ties Black tape DB9 covers Circuit diagram 12mm diameter plastic sleeve Soldering Solder wire.

The procedures are also the same as the 3DOF diagnostics cables but the connection to the 16pin amp connecter is different and also the circuit diagram is also different.

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The challenges are also the same with less time required to make the cable and also with a less complicated circuit diagram.


The time taken to make this cables was not done in the same period but counting the days it was a month’s training on making cables.

9. Project 8- Low profile motionbase.


On this project it was required to build a low profile motionbase for the Thorncliff project. The low profile motionbase looks the same as the high DOF motionbase just that the displacement of the actuators are different, also the actuators are a lot smaller but has similar torques and the high DOF actuators actuates in the y-axis pivoting to the x-axis, but the low DOF actuators actuates in the z-axis (rotary action) inducing a rotation motion to a vertical beam, changing the direction to the x-axis and y-axis. The base of the Low DOF motionbase has the same size as the high DOF motionbase but it is heavier, because the actuators are displaced horizontally, taking more space and increasing the area of the sheet metal the motionbase frame is made of. The low DOF motionbase consist of:

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Bottom base 3 actuators Metal frames M6x25 screws 25x 40cm spring Stainless steel bars Connecters Top frame


Gathering of parts Gathering of tools Grouping of motionbase parts Assembling the motionbase Quality check and testing Packing in crate or used in AUMS container


During the assembly of the Low DOF motionbase I improved my assembling skills also the use of sheet metal work, building square profiles and rectangular profiles. And also bench working was applicable on this project and measuring techniques. With the help of the drawing provided to us we managed to gather all the parts required to build the motionbase and with training and experience we then know what kind of tools to gather before starting the assembly, unless you will waste time

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looking and searching around for tools. According to the drawings given to use, the motionbase is broken down to three assembling groups. At that moment we had limited people tto work with and we split in two were the one group builds the motionbase box and my group builts the motionbase. We started to mount the actuators on the bottom frame using screws and small metal frames that holds the actuators stationary to the motion base bottom. Lock tight is used on the screws so it becomes a permanent assembly. After the actuators are assembled the stainless steel beams was assembled with connectors on the power screw with 13 size spanner and Ellen-keys. Out of the thick sheet metal plates, we had to assemble a small cube which is open on the top and bottom with M6 screws and also assembled on the center of the motionbase bottom frame. We then had to build a smaller cube from the same material but it must have to have sliders on each flat surface of the cube. The spring is then placed in the cube which is assembled on the bottom motionbase frame. The cube with the sliders was assembled on the big cube compressing the spring slightly having motion in the y-axis direction. The last part was to assemble the top frame to the stainless steel beams and the cube in the center of the motionbase.

The challenges of this project was; not all instructions are displayed on the drawings and with the motionbase that was already assembled in the workshop was of great help direction of the actuator’s assembly was not clear and if you rush to assemble them and the stainless steel bars doesn’t fit, it requires a lot of work to remove the actuator and placed in the right direction. I also learned to properly analyse parts before assembling anything. This occurred when assembling the sliders on the cube. Greasing the sliders was very helpful, because working with hard, heavy and brittle material makes movement very difficult and with grease it helped to work with the sliders. Working in a team helps a lot on the motion base. And a person must pay attention when tightening

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screws and to always apply lock tight and to make sure the screws you are using are right and they are at the right place.

The motionbase was tested by our supervisor Armando and so far no faculties occurred after the whole motionbase was assembled.


The time taken to assemble the low DOF motionbase was at the most two days as we shorted some parts to complete the motionbase.

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10. Project 9- Milling and turning at Beltsazar engineering:


For this project we were send to a company; Beltsazar engineering in centurion. We were transferred for training for a week to work on manual milling and turning machine training under the owner Johan. The training was based on different projects and a training plan and they are as follow:

Tool training Measuring training Turning training Milling training


Operating turning machine Operating milling machine Measuring using edge finder Deburring of metal blocks


The training at Beltsazar was indeed great as I have learned a lot just in one week. We were working with only four people and its six people including us. The company is small and it has only two milling machine a big one and a smaller version for smaller application, so it is applicable for the turning machine. All of the machines are manually operated. I will now my training and experience according the training plan.

Tool training: When we got at the company the manager took us on a tour around the workshop showing us all the milling and turning machine and as we were going from machine to machine he was showing us the necessary tools that works on the machine. The first machine we were trained on was the turning machine and I learned from manufacturing engineering as well that on a turning the object that requires to be cut is rotating at high speed and the tool is fed to the rotating object to get the specific geometry. The first tool I learned about is the chuck tool that tightens the rotating vice of the turning machine. It is

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mostly a T-form tool where the long side enters the vice and a torque is induced by the arms to close the vice.

I was told also the vice itself is a tool as the vices are not the same, you get a big vice to hold very large object and a small vice that holds smaller objects. I learned some vices a different in terms of how they are tightened. The difference is that the single grip vice; the center of the clamping is not constant and it requires measuring skills to center the object that must be worked on. Usually this vice is used to hold working object with uneven geometries like a trapezium block. As the ends are displaced unevenly it is better to use the singe grip vice as you tighten the vice on four sides and the side you tighten, the gripping tool will move alone and the rest of the grips are stationary. In this case because the gripping device moves alone, it will be possible to get the midpoint of the object. The opposing vice is a vice that grips simultaneously as you tighten the chuck. It is mostly used on objects with even sides like round tubes and perfect cubes, because finding the midpoint of the object those not really require a measuring tool.

The gripping tools on the vice can also be replaced and they come in various sizes and forms. The I learned that the vices are also centred and they are cleaned by the cutting tool, cutting less than 0,5mm of and I also learned that it gets fed in different depths and diameter so they can hold various sizes of objects.

After we learned about the vices we went to learn on the cutting tool, the cutting tool is a very small tool that is assembled on a cutting tool vice. The tool vice is then assembled on the turning machine which has levers that can move the tool in x-axis, y-axis and z-axis. The tool has four sides to feed on but can only be fed one side at the time. When the one side has reached its limit, the tool is removed and turned to feed on a fresh side. Mostly the tools that have these features are cutting tools. I learned that you get a diamond form and trapezium shaped, the trapezium shape cutting tool is used for big amount of feeding area, meaning it can cut of a lot from the working object. The process with this cutting tool is faster but it has a rough finishing. The diamond form tool is more applicable for surface finishing and the work is neat.

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I learned various tools that can be used; I also got exposed to a tool that can chamfer the working object also a tool that can add threads on the outside of your work object. This above mentioned tools are cutting tools that are fed perpendicular the work object. We also get tools that are fed parallel to the work object. I got exposed to a stationary drill bit, where the tool is fed in the x-axis to the rotating object; drilling a hole in the object. Also to obtain threads inside holes the tapping tool is also fed in the x-axis.

We were told that we will learn more tools on the turning machine as more complicated cutting skills are required. The next machine we moved to was a more complicated machine; a milling machine. We were told that on the milling machine there is a lot more tools designed for a milling machine. On the milling machine the working object is stationary but the cutting tool rotates. The vice for a milling machine looks different; it is a lot smaller and it requires a rotary lock lever to be tightened the vice. The chuck is a long flat metal bar with the end in a circular feature that makes it look like a spanner.

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The vice I got to know where two different type; a permanent assemble vice, where the cutting tool is permanently attached to the vice. And the other vice consists of three parts; the upper end vice that is assembled inside the milling machine, the tool grip that comes in various diameter that goes in the upper end vice and it grips the tool as the diameter enlarges and tightens when tighten by the chuck and the last part is a lid that holds the gripping device and the lid gets screwed on the upper end parts and it has groves on the outside, where the chuck slides before tightening the vice in a rotary motion in the y-axis.

Some of the tools I got to learn are the regular drill bit we use every time we use regular drills. But on the milling machine before drilling machine we get a center point tool that looks a lot like a drill bit but it has a shaper point and edges but it only cuts with the front part but the upper shaft is solid and its used to chamfer holes before they get drilled. Then we got to also use a rotary feeding cutting tool which comes permanently assembled on a vice and it uses the same trapezius cutting tool and it consist with numerous tools depending on the diameter, and the one we got to see consists six cutting tools and it is fed in the y-axis and mostly x-axis. It can cut big areas so it is used for fast cutting and for big jobs. We then got to learn about the rotary cutting tool that looks like a drill bit and it is used to cut jobs into two separate pieces and also the feed is less and is fed only in the x-axis and z-axis. We also got to use a saw circular blade that can cut in a rotary movement, the blade looks like a saw on a table saw and it is used to cut brittle and very big parts and it can also cut in the y-axis and x-axis. Some of the cutting tools that are used on the turning machines are applicable on the milling machine like; threads tapping tool, drill bit chamber bit. The same was said on the milling machine that more tools will be shown when we mill complicated features.

Measuring training: Before operating both milling and turning machine, it is very important to know as many as possible measuring techniques, because working on this machines requires a lot of accurate measurements. We started with the turning machine the turning

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machine mounting the job on a single grip vice, and trying to center the job requires a lot of measuring and we had a rectangular bar with uneven sides. To center the job before you cut, a hole was made into job feeding a drill tap in the x-axis. A magnetic measuring tool was mounted on the x-axis base as it has a pin that travels in the circular groove determining if the center of the machine. The measuring device is fragile and it has a rotary scale and if the job is of center while rotating the vice manually with your hands, means that your job is of center. And with the chuck you can tighten the required grip until you obtain the center.

A veneer is also one measuring instrument that is used and I got to learn that veneer comes in different sizes and also learned to properly use a veneer and to constantly clean the vice before using it. On the turning machines there are scales on the x-axis and z-axis that are always important, because it will help you measure how deep you cut in the job and to learn how to measure, you must operate the machine and it will be explained under the category of turning training. Similar features exist on the milling machine but with the milling machine it is computer operated and the scales are displayed on a screen. On the milling machine you can measure in the x-axis, y-axis and z-axis. Another method I learned of measuring was with an edge finder that can only be used on a milling machine and it is a spring acting tool that rotates when running in the milling machine and is fed to the job when trying to find the size of the job when it is already on the table vice and you have no other way to measure the size and with the edge finder the size will be displayed on the screen of the milling machine. The edge finder is a very fragile measuring tool and can brake easily when not working with delicacy. I also learned to use a tool that can measure angles and uneven surfaces as the measuring device can measure rotations of 270 degrees. This measuring instrument can help getting the job flat and square.

Turning training: The turning training was a very interesting training and we had the opportunity to each operate the turning machine. The company was working on a project to make parts for machines that manufacture plastic bags for checkers and pick & pay. They send in drawings and a tube with the outside diameter of 12cm and thickness of 1cm and the length of 1.65m and also send a solid circular bar with a diameter of 12cm. we had to create lids for the circular tubes. We first started with the lid and it was the first item to modify on the turning machine. PPE was handed out for the machine operators and people around the machine. Then the solid bar was mounted on the simultaneous gripping vice and with the help of the tool training I knew which tool to use first. The bar was not fully circled so with the

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measuring skills, I managed to get the center of the bar. I then attached the cutting tool with the trapezius cutting blade. Before starting the cutting I was taught how to operate the speed of the turning machines and that the machine has an automatic feeding option where the machine cuts the job at a constant speed and if working in long or deep jobs it is best working with automatic feeding to get a more accurate job. Before cutting I learned that, cutting hard and brittle objects to work with medium revs speed. The lid was supposed to have a piece with the length 0,5cm going in the inner diameter of the tube. The machine has a stepping switch and that turns of the machine and the deeper you step the switch it breaks the rotary movement. Before cutting the part it is important to reset the x-axis scale and the z-axis scale.

And I learned the method to that is to switch on the machine and rotating the job while the cutting tool has clearance from the job. And for each axis there is a rotary lever that moves the tool to the job. Now with the use of the steering lever you move the cutting tool to the edge of the job and let it slightly touch the job and then switch off the machine and stopping it from rotating. In the position the cutting tool is you reset the scales to 0. And with the measuring scale on both x-axis and y-axis you can determine how deep and how long you cut the job. Because the inner diameter of the tube was 8cm and the outside diameter of the circular bar is also 12cm, I knew I had to cut 4cm of the tool. I was advised to cut 0.5cm deep in repeating it eight times to get to the 4cm that was needed to be cut off. After cutting the 1cm in the x-axis and 4cm in the z-axis I had to reset the scale from the beginning area where the job was not done. Similar steps were followed to reset the scale and I had the cut 2cm deep in the z-axis and length 4cm in the x-axis. The next step was to chamfer the edges of the bar by 0.5 cm so it can be easy to slide in the tube. The tool had to be changed to a chamfering tool. This tool looks like a drill bill but only using the top end to cut the job as the rest of its area is a solid bar. I also learned that after the change of the cutting tool to always check if the tool is in line with the center of the job. After that to always reset the scales before cutting, and then cut the chamfer of 0.5cm of depth. When chamfering we learned that to only move on steering lever and to keep one stationary and you can choose to feed it in the x-axis or z-axis. But using the z-axis the scale on its measuring scale has a ratio of 2:1 and when chamfering to double the amount of the z-axis scale if you want the required size. The very end of the job was chamfered along with the

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neck created by the diameter difference of 2cm. the job then needed to be at the position where the surface cutting ended and to cut that the tool had to be changed. The tool used was a thin plate that had a thin cutting blade on the end of the tool. The same procedure was followed after changing the cutting tool. The tool was in line with the center of the job and the scales were reset at the point where the cutting should occur. I then locked the x-axis with a lever switch locks all movement in the x-axis. And the tool would be fed in the z-axis and for this operation I used the automatic feeding as the depth was a lot and it didn’t require a specific depth to be cut.

I also learned how to set the automatic feeding speed on the machine and I also learned that before the automatic feeding reaches its checkpoint to always change it to manual feeding for safety reason as some material can shoot of when working with this high torques. After cutting of the job I had to deburr the edges with a flat file to make the work tidy and safe to work with. The same procedure was followed with the remaining material in the vice to have two lids for each side of the tube. The two lids needed to be chamfered on the other edge of the 10cm diameter area and I mounted the lids in the simultaneous grip vice and I was told to always make sure the job is flat and not skew unless it will fall off or worse shoot of from the torque from rotating harming people around machine. The chamfering tool was mounted the scales were reset and 1cm was chamfered in the job. This was done with both the lids.

The second job that needed to be done was to remove 2cm of the round tube and first the 1.65m tube had to be mounted on the machine and in this case two vices had to used hold the job. The turning machine has two vices and the x-axis has that is used to cut in the x-axis can be used to also be a vice when the right tool is used the lids was assembled on the tube and mounted on the machine using the simultaneous grip vice and a center rotary vice. The tool was also changed to the trapezius form cutting tool and for this job the speed of the rotary job was reduce because of the weight of the job. The tool was moved to the end of the job and the scales were reset. After that it had to remove 2cm of the tube but only 1cm was fed. The z-axis was fed in by 0.25cm and then locked so the depth is constant and the feeding for the x-axis the be set to automatic feeding so the accuracy can be met and also because of the slow feed rate to completely remove 0.25cm from the tube is a job that can take 45minutes. After cutting the 1cm of the tube the tube was removed from the machine and then welded with arc welding where the lids are on so they can be permanently

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assembled on the tube. After the tube was cooled down the tube was mounted again to the machine in the same procedure that it was mounted. Before removing the remaining 1cm we had to remove the welding to make it look like welding never occurred. The welding was removed by locking the x-axis at the welding position. The z-axis was fed manually until the welding was flushed to the tube surface diameter. After removing the welding the scale had to be reset to cut the 1cm by the same procedure of cutting 0.25cm each cycle. To get the job smooth the manager used a grinder on the turning job and finishing it with a sand-paper.

The challenges met during using the turning machine was remembering to change the machine speed as it broke the cutting blade if the wrong speed was used. Also the most difficult part was to get the center of the job when using the single grip vice. To set up a job can take 30minutes. Also a problem we encounter is when we figured out that the tube was not fully round; even the inner radius was not constant so the lid was a struggle to assemble it to the tube. Because it was not fully round and obtaining the center on the job was important. Another big problem was; when cutting the 0.25cm from the tube the cutting tool would rich its limited while the job is not done, scratching the job and creating a ugly finish. Also changing the cutting tool means the co-ordination of the cutting tool position will change. Another problem I encountered was cutting the lid of the tube, the cutting blade was not properly in the center and also getting it to the center is a challenge. If the blade is not properly in the center the finish of the job is rough and unattractive. Also getting the hang of the manual feeding was not easy, because the feeding is not constant, the tool can break and the surface of the job will be very rough. I learned that when cutting long lengths of brittle material. It is best to use the cutting liquid, which cools down the tool and job, and it contains oil so it creates a smooth cutting process

Milling: milling operation was one I enjoyed the most but the most difficult one. Milling as mentioned above is operation where the job is stationary and the cutting tool rotates and gets fed to the job. Two projects were done on the milling machines and the two projects are machining aluminium blocks for a hospital. The assembly to be machine consists of four aluminium blocks and the whole assembly is used in surgery, when opening the patience ribcages. The second project was cutting stainless steel pipes that are going to be assembled on another steel pipe for an air-conditioning system. The first project was the aluminium blocks machining and the aluminium blocks where not perfectly square but to the eye it looks square. And before to cut the blocks to the required size, it is important to flatten and square the sides. And to that; the job is tighten on the table vice and 0.1cm is cut of each side. After that it is best to use the edge finder to get the size of the aluminium block

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and it is used mostly measuring long width and when cutting with rotary cutting bit. It is best to cut the block on both sides. The reset technique is also used but if you used the edge finder, the co-ordinates of the job will be displayed on the screen and with that you can determine how much to cut off

. I learned that the rotary bit can cut within the z-axis and when fed in the direction of the cutting edges you will have a smooth finish. The rotary bit can cut through numerous thicknesses so it is faster to get cut material to size. The rotary bit can only be used if the vertical length is smaller than the bit itself. The first aluminium block we cut hat a smaller thickness than the length of the bit and also it required a long length to be cut off. This machine also have steering levers and locks for each axis, unfortunately the machine we used only had one direction automatic feed, which was the x-axis. The first block we cut was reduced in with to the required length using the rotary cutting bit tool.

After reducing the sides the thickness of the aluminium block had to be reduced. The block was removed from the table vice and spacers were used to lift the aluminium block so it can be machined with the six blade rotary cutting tool. With the training on tools we removed the rotary cutting bit and used the six-blade rotary cutting blade because it cuts big areas but the depths in the y-axis is limited. Since the block was removed from the vice, and we cut in the y-axis, we can’t use

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the edge finder to measure the thickness of the block and to know how much to remove. The thickness was measured by a veneer and before cutting we use the reset technique to cut the block the cutting tool was switch on and slowly fed down until it just touched the surface of the block. The y-axis is then locked and the cutting tool stopped.

The machine can be reset on the screen and brought the y-axis co- ordinates to 0. The z-axis is measured as the tool is still in the low position, touching the surface of the block, it is important to try and place the z-axis to cover as much area as possible and in the first block the broadness of the block was smaller than the cutting blade so the machine won’t need to be run through a lot to cut the surface flat and equal. I locked the z-axis as well only moving the x-axis and also positioning the block away from the cutting tool before lowering the tool in the y-axis to get the required size. The machine is then switched on and I was told to manually feed the job in the x-axis so I can get the hang of the machine and to know at what speed I should feed my job. After obtaining the desired thickness the block was removed from the vice and turned rest on its side to reduce the broadness of the block. The same tool was used and I followed the same procedure to reset the y-axis and the block was then cut to the required dimensions. For both the cutting method cutting liquid was used, because the tool and job gets very hot and also the cutting becomes smoother as the liquid contains oil.

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After completing the first aluminium block I deburred it with a flat file and the second block was smaller but the same procedures was followed; to get the block to be square and because the block is already small and required little cutting operation, the tool was not changed but the block was mounted on spacers in the vice and the same procedure to reset the co-ordinates was followed and the job was fed in the x-axis as well. After getting the small block to its required dimensions, two blocks with similar but with inverse directions need to be shorted in thickness. The tool was still not changed and the blocks was mounted on spacers and cut to the required thickness. After all the blocks were meeting their required dimensions holes needed to be drilled in all four locks in their required positions. The cutting tool was removed to mount the edge finder to get the co- ordinates of the holes. After that the sharp point hole taping tool was used to mark the co-ordinates and to prepare the surface for drilling, because this tool has a shaper end and the drill bit won’t slip on the surface of the aluminium block. After that the holes were drilled through changing the tool to a drill bit of the required hole-diameter. The two side blocks was also taped with the tapping tool but while doing that you must take not to reset the y-axis to zero when the point just touches the aluminium surface, and when changing the tool to a drill bit the co-ordinates of the y-axis will help you drill the right length in the aluminium block as the holes must not be drilled through to the other bottom end. The holes in the side aluminium blocks had to be threaded so I changed the drill bit to a tapping tool. Luckily with the tapping the machine operates in low speed and the tapping must be fed manually in the y-axis and because the holes already exist, it is not necessary measuring the depth of the threading. After the threading of the holes the blocks were deburred and handed in to the manager to hand over the next project.

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The next project was more advanced because it required an angle vice and to assemble the vice requires a lot of measuring to assemble it with clamps on the vice table. Setting up the vice took us 30minutes and the vice was locked on a 60 degrees angle from the table and the stainless steel pipe was held by the vice to be cut in a 60 degrees angle. The cutting tool was also changed to a rotary saw that cuts through brittle and hard material in low speed. I reset the y-axis and z-axis, and moved to the required co-ordinates before being fed in the x-axis. The y-axis and z-axis was locked and I used the automatic feed for the x-axis as the part is brittle and needs a slow feed rate and with the automatic feed rate the speed can be manipulated. A lot of cutting liquid was used in this operation. More than 20 steel pipes were cut with the rotary saw blade. The next step was to cut a circular radius on the steel pipe just where it got cut by the rotary saw. The vice was changed which took me another 30 minutes to position and clamp the vice applicable for the job. The tool we used to cut the radius was the six blade rotary cutting blade because it had the right radius for the job and all 25 pipes had the radius cut in them.

The challenge I most faced was using the milling machine and one of the biggest challenge as getting the clamps in the right co-ordinates because the slightest error, even by a millimetre or one degree angle can cause for a job to be skew. Also changing the vice on the table takes very long and the vice on the turning machine gets changed a lot, depending on the applications. Also a problem I faced was the first aluminium block I cut was cut 10mm to much because when I used the edge finder I forgot to add the 10mm of the edge finder diameter when getting my co-ordinates and dimensions of the block. I had to get a new aluminium block and restart the job from scratch. Also the side aluminium blocks was a problem to mount on the vice, because it had features machined by a CNC machine, which made the mounting hard as there wasn’t a flat side. After drilling the holes in the aluminium blocks, threads had to be tapped and when tapping in the threads the shavings from the cutting remained in the hole and the tapping bit would not tap the hole until it

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reached the bottom of the hole. And removing the shavings takes time and is difficult to remove. The last problem I encountered was cutting the pipes as the vice could not clamp the pipe rigidly as it kept moving and we had to use the threads on the pipe to assemble it on a metal piece and the metal piece had better grip in the clamp and the pipe remained rigid. While using the metal piece to screw in the pipe, the off-cut length of the pipe was not the same because the pipes were not screwed in to the same depth. Lastly the big problem was the finishing job after cutting the radius with the six blade rotary cutter, the job had a lot of burrs and the job would look unattractive.


This training by Beltsazar was for a week.

11. Project 10- Thorncliff


This project is for one of our contractors where two containers are ordered to be modified to be a class room and it shall have low DOF motion base and the system acting as a cube.


Grinding Rivet assembly Sheet metal assembly Hand tool usage Installing VDS


For this project we had to change two containers to be fitted classrooms. The containers were painted white and wall panels were installed to decrease heat exchange. My job was to cut off the

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front side of the container for a door frame to be installed, a big grinder and small grinder was used as I was training under the supervision of Carl. PPE was worn before the cutting the containers. The grinding was easy because of previous practice and after the door was installed it had to be riveted to the wall panels. A VDS (Visual display system) had to be installed and a lot of measuring was done. It was very challenging because the wall panels of the containers was installed skew so we were supposed to work according to the panels but it was very difficult. An air conditioning was to be installed and the roof that holds the ducts and the projector was build out of sheet metal. The sheet metal roof came in parts and they were assembled by rivets and after it is riveted to the roof panel.


We still busy on this project and so far it was a months’ worth of working days.

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12. Discussion:

With the worked I have covered working for fifth dimension technologies I cannot imagine completing my practical’s anywhere else. I did not only learn the required processes but a lot more than that. To conclude on the safety measures in the engineering industry are very important, and honestly, it cannot be practice safety enough. When working as a technician, safety must be like second nature but what is always from working at 5DT is to always prevent any danger that might occur. It is hard thinking clearly while you in a crisis so it is best to make sure that you prevent danger, as much as possible. I experience I had in danger incidence was firstly setting on fire while grinding the containers for the EXXARO project. I had a cloth on my neck to protect my neck from the sparks flying on my neck. The cloth caught fire and the grinder was switched of and fire was killed. The second incident happened when we worked for the design project while welding, where a molten metal got close to a bottle of thinners and after 20minutes of welding the thinners caught fire and the fire grew high enough to burn down the workshop. The fire was killed by a fire extinguisher and not a lot of damage occurred. With the incidents mentioned above, proves that you can never be too safe.

The work that i covered was not done in a sequence but it was done simultaneously and it was covered in projects mentioned above because of the production line and organization structure. The work was not all given the same amount of period to train on the specific processes. But the amount of work we did was enough to leave me with challenges I never faced before. I am glad that I could apply my theory knowledge on practical applications, the techniques of solving problems in practical is a lot more than theory knowledge but with the theory learned, my background on designing and solving problems are stable. After my P1, my designing skills changed of view because now with the knowledge from P1, you can solve problems and design projects knowing how to do it in the fastest way possible and getting a good quality product as well. The practical experience also taught me how to be more responsible in the safety division and also I learned to take lead and to follow when the opportunity came. In the industry a lot is about working hard and challenging yourself and to look on how to grow as an engineer.

Also working in precision and tolerances looks very easy so when designing objects, I know to always consider designing with tolerances as real physical products have faculties from the manufacturing company. The design parts can’t always come out in the desired design, but it is very rare, and while working at 5DT I learned how to solve the problem because you facing deadlines. The training at Beltsazar was also an experience you can’t obtain at any company, because the company is very small and the company is not financially stable. While training at Beltsazar I realized that the company doesn’t have all the best expensive tools but I learned techniques to solve problems with the tools they have. I also learned to always try to be as accurate as possible and if not sure about a task, to always ask before doing the job, because you can cause damage to the parts wasting money.

With the amount of assembly we did and work done at Beltsazar, it improved my skills in communicating with drawings, because some of the assemblies are very complicated and if you lack skill in reading drawings, you will struggle in the industry. One important issue is always to be organized and neat, because you working with customer’s products and no customer want to purchase untidy and dirty products. Being organized also helps to meet the deadlines, and following the basic engineering steps to approach a project always helps to meet deadlines.

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TRAINING PROVIDER: SEMESTER REPORT 1 2 STUDENT: Surname and initials

STUDENT NR:

From:

Until:

SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENTS OR TASKS THAT SHOULD

CORRELATE WITH THE WRITTEN REPORT

PERIOD DURATION MARKS ACHIEVED

SUPERVISOR’S

SIGNATURE

From Until WorkingDays

1

Poor

2

Can improve

3

Good

4

Excellent

1 Welding

2 Milling

3 Turning

4 Measuring techniques

5 Bench work

6 Grinding

7 Electricity

8 Sheet-metal work

10 Planing

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CERTIFICATION BY AUTHORIZED TRAINING PROVIDER’S REPRESENTATIVE:

I hereby certify that all information provided, has been confirmed by me as true and correct.

NAME: ............................................................................................................

SIGNATURE: ............................................................................................................ DATE: ..............................................................................................

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P.O. Box 5, Persequor Technopark, 0020, South Africa

25A De Havilland Crescent, Persequor Technopark, Pretoria, South Africa

Tel: +27 12 349 2690 Fax: +27 12 349 1404 e-mail: [email protected] web: www.5dt.com

Training Plan

Orientation

General safety, quality assurance and quality control and PPE gears for necessary use in field.

Measuring Techniques

Dimensional measuring equipment and techniques

Bench Work

Use and care of hand tools, marking off, sawing, drilling, reaming, cutting of screw thread

Grinding

Surface grinding, and filling

Basic Sheet Metal Work

Square profiles, hexagon profiles, combined profiles

Welding

MIG Welding, TIG Welding, Arc Welding

Electricity

Basics, soldering, interpretation of circuit diagrams, drawing symbols, measuring and testing instruments, electronic instruments, basic circuits, sensors, actuator working.

If some of the requirements are not met, the company

will try to assist me in providing what is needed.

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mailto:[email protected]

NAME OF TRAINING PROVIDER

(Company)

POSTAL ADDRESS

STREET ADDRESS

TELEPHONE NUMBER

FAX NUMBER

WEB ADDRESS

Full name of mentor

Cell number

E-mail address

Personnel number

Highest qualification obtained

ECSA registration number

NAME OF STUDENT

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EVALUATION:

This part must be completed before the student’s final report will be accepted!

7. The above student has SUFFICIENT / INSUFFICIENT skills to perform the tasks as set out in the syllabus.

8. I declare that the student has performed the work presented in this report and I have co-signed each page of this report.

9. The technical abilities of the student can be described as: (please encircle)

SUPERIOR / EXCELLENT = 75% +

ABOVE AVERAGE = 60 – 74%

AVERAGE = 50 – 59%

POOR = 49% and below

10. Would you write a POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL letter of reference for the student?

11. Other comments:

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SIGNATURE: MENTOR: ............................................................ Date: ...............................................

Thank you for your involvement in the training of this engineering student. This form may be included with the student’s report, or if you prefer it may be sent directly to us, if you prefer doing so:

Head: Department of Mechatronic Engineering

Tshwane University of Technology (Building 2 Room 273)

Private Bag X 680

PRETORIA

0001

Fax Number: (012) 382-5602

E-mail Address: [email protected]

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mailto:[email protected]

210129332 Benjamin Nkosi Final-report2

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