Day 17: MIT Make in India

Day 17: MIT Make in India

This morning we woke up with somewhat renewed motivation and a goal in mind. Except for the fact that I did not get off the bed until 9:30... Getting up is becoming harder and harder now...yet the bed isn't any more comfortable. 

After breakfast, I went over to the fablab and began doing some ideation and research on the trash can for kids to teach them how to not litter. [full notes on Evernote]

• There is a lot of trash around everywhere. This generation cannot be fixed, but if we convince the children in the schools to throw trash where it is supposed to go, we can slowly solve the problem as well as keep public areas (like schools and playgrounds) clean for our children. 
• trash can that munches on trash (like dinosaur)
• incinerate trash as trash can is a fire breathing dragon
• talking trash can or making a throwing away trash game
• actually bites down, makes chomping noise (belching as per Sharon)
• using a sensor (ultrasonic or IR) to sense motion of trash being thrown
• microphone to play the recorded sounds
• servo to move up and down the jaw to imitate chewing

I got people to join me on this venture as well: Aishwarya, Forest, and Deepika. Because who doesn't wanna make this beautiful trash can. 

I am completely invested in making a fire breathing dragon trash can.

We did some ideation on the trash like what animal, which material we could use, and how would the jaw move. With Aishwarya's mechanical background, Deepika's electronics knowledge, and Forest's knack and desire to make trash cans pretty (I currently don't have any skills but I can make people work), I feel like we can make a pretty decent prototype for a trash can. After that thinking session we decided to go to lunch.

We ate lunch and had planned to visit the beach, but that idea had unfortunately been shot down. Instead we decided to walk around the village a bit, led by the two youngest people and the Americans ("Let us show you around India"): Justin and me. It was a nice break and I got some mango juice--my favorite. 

After the walk, we were supposed to get a design together, but Deepika and Forest sucked me into their addiction of carrom. I sucked so bad, but can confidently say I am about the same level as Swapnil. 

After that I realized I had wasted quite a lot of time I went over to the fablab to continue working, and Aishwarya began on the design for the lid attachment for the trash can (we decided instead of making the entire trash can, we would make a smaller prototype lid). Then Aarooran called me for one of his "experiments" or exercises along with Swapnil. We didn't exactly know what was happening, but Aarooran took a packaged soap that the soap team was making and told us he planned to sell it on the streets, to a store or people. 

We walked to a medical store and Aarooran with his broken Malayalam skill spoke with the shopowner. He tried to sell the soap, and then Swapnil and I realized (after Aarooran translated of course) what was the point of this experiment. To sell the soap, no matter how organic (or not) it was and despite the fact that it was made by local ladies and we were students, without multiple licenses and actually companies, we simply cannot get the soap out to the market. The only market we have is going house to house because households don't need a list of the ingredients or all the license numbers or permit to sell in the area. After the medical store, Aarooran successfully sold the bar of soap he took to a lady in her home for 50 rupees. His point was proven. And he was quite happy he sold the first soap! He wanted feedback on it. 

My curiosity was that taking Swapnil made sense, but why me? I was a shower washer. According to him, I needed to see this and that I see reality very well and something special. I don't really understand it and I may never, but ok. Ok. 

I realized I was again wasting time and that half my team had left to play carrom once again... I went to go force them to come back and finally got my team back together and almost about to work...then it was dinner time. We ate dinner while brainstorming a bit and then actually went back and worked seriously on the design and implementation of the mechanical and electrical aspects. Forest worked on the design, Aishwarya the SolidWorks MechE part (going to 3D print), and Deepika the sensors. I kinda just stood around...I didn't really have skills. But now I knew where everything was in the stock! After some decent progress and an interesting talk with Jaspreet, we decided to call it a day. 

...until they sucked me into carrom again.