Data log csv file transferred and plotted with Google Sheets: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Bpe7Jy5zFORFkklbXdWzqBy4G5U819bS96PCMnsdiEA/edit?ts=5cd42857#gid=0

Steps I went through this week: 

a.) MKRZero Data logging! Started logging at 04/29/19 at 3AM  – 04/30/19 2AM (almost 24 hours). It logs every 5 seconds.

Here are the CSV files: https://github.com/emilylin-itp/light/tree/master/final_co2clock/SDCARD_READINGS

Data also looks like this:

Trying to data log with the MKR 1010 wifi. After many attempts, I narrowed down the reason that it doesn’t work to either the SD card I have (32GB) is too big or I formatted the SD Card wrong. However, I formatted it to be both FAT 16 and FAT32 and both were not working.

Despite the fact that I couldn’t get the MKR 1010 to data log, I did manage to get the MKR Zero that Tom lent me to write.

Below are some photos of the gas sensor CSS811 hooked up to the MKR Zero by my windowsill. The results are pretty interesting and varied. There may be a correlation between CO2 levels and when people get off work. The data has a lot of noise, so I need to figure out how to average it out. Also, when it is late at night the CO2 is much lower.

b.) Next, was trying to at least get my 2 MKR wifis to talk. This proved to be very difficult as I know very little about networks. I tried out the example code in Arduino but was still not able to connect to the itpsandbox network and my home network. Followed along with Hayley’s helpful blogpost and was still unsuccessful: http://www.hhayley.com/2017/04/08/li-24hours-bokeh-light-lamp/

I met up with amazing resident Hayley, and we still couldn’t figure it out. After discussing my game plan with her, we decided that given the time frame it would be hard for me to both fabricate everything and learn about networks. So, we scoped down the project for the time to just have the gas sensor be local to the light fixture. I’m hoping that after finals is due next week I will be able to spend more time to get the data to send wirelessly. For now I have decided to just focus on getting it to work with the Arduino Uno.

c.) With that in mind, I began to fabricate again. I worked on trying to redesign the fixture so the magnets attached to the motor are more secure. I got a motor hub to attach to the shaft. Below are some drawings and cardboard test.

I also tried to get my other pcomp components to work, such as the stepper motor and controlling the speed with a stepper breakout board. I used the TB6612. 

 

d.) I tested out the LED lights to try and figure out the best place for it. I was afraid there would be a shadow from the motor, but I realized if I put it in the rim around the base (where the motor is) there would be no shadow.  Here is the circuit below. Followed these easy steps: https://www.instructables.com/id/ARDUINO-CONTROLLED-12v-RGB-LED-STRIP/

e.) Tried out different materials, realized that the best acrylic to get for the diffuse look I want is this opaque white one. The frosted acrylic still makes the light spotty. (Frosted on left, opaque on right).

 

f.) Made my 2nd prototype mockup with a larger diameter. I still feel like it is too tall for the width. I will increase the width to be 15″, instead of 11″ it is in this mockup.

—

So many troubleshooting notes for this week, mostly with the sd card and mkr 1010 wifi.

SD Card Formatting via Command Line

sudo diskutil eraseDisk FAT16 #name MBRFormat /dev/disk2
sudo newfs_msdos -F 16 /dev/disk2

Stumbled on some resources/ posts that I want to keep in mind:

https://forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=490219.0
http://arquivo.splat-n.com/scripts/format-a-flash-card-as-fat16-in-mac-os-x/