The Light Chassis is the modular base component of the falafel cart which provides the transportation mechanism and acts as a substrate for the customized visual skin. The idea behind this was to make an outer skin that was compelling and attracted people to the cart. The top of each panel changes color in a light changing pattern. The middle pieces are made with laser cut wood and have acrylic glued on to the top. 

Falafel is a delicious meal but it takes a long time to make and because of this, having it in a food truck, and having it run efficiently, is nearly impossible. Our solution was to make a Falafel cart that automated the tedious tasks of making falafel. There are many steps in making falafel that could be easily automated to speed the production process. We would design a food cart that would takes these repeated tasked and automate them making a fast and efficient food cart that served fresh falafel. We split up the falafel making process into smaller jobs that had to be completed. We were given the frying job and more specifically we would automate the process of balling, frying, and flipping the falafel.

We felt that we could make an amazing food cart that could make fresh falafel with less time and human involvement. We would accomplish this by automatically extruding, frying and flipping the falafel. In the end we found the actual extruding process difficult to automate and over all not necessary for our cart. So the main thing that our group focused on was the Frying and flipping. We accomplished this by designing a series of frying baskets that all sat in the same tub of oil but could move independently. This would accomplish a few things but mainly making it so each falafel sandwich would be made separately so we knew each sandwich would get the same amount of falafel and they would all be cooked the same amount. One of the main challenges of this project was the create a good design for the basket and get all the friars to move independently. Along with the design challenges, it was very difficult to work in a small team that was a part of a much bigger group. Many things we did were thrown to the side because of the lack of communication with the other groups.

We had two main iterations of our project.

The first involved an extruder and one large basket. Very early on in the project, we felt that as much of the falafel production process should be automated as possible. This meant that in the beginning our group wanted to make and extruder. The extruder would we filled with pre made dough and then pushed into our shaper. Our falafel shaper was a spinning cylinder with falafel sized disks cut into them. The idea was that when the disk circled around, the compressed falafel dough would extrude into the disk cut out, and then as it spins, it would cut the dough off and drop it into the fryer. Another part of this iteration was the fryer. The fryer was one big fryer with one flipper. The flipper was basicly a basket  that pivoted when the falafel was cooked and flipped it onto the conveyor or whatever was the next step. We liked this design because it was simple and it could make a lot of falafel really fast.

Our next and final iteration had no extruder and multiple baskets. After a lot of talking with our group and other groups, we felt that an extruder was not necessary. It was hard to make, might destroy the dough, and over all not necessary. At this point in the design, we had already decided that there were would to at least be a few people working at the cart, and it would be very easy for one of them to either ball the dough, or put pre balled dough into the fryers. Also in this iteration, we also added multiple baskets. This was done so that each falafel sandwich was made separately. We did this so that we did not have to stockpile falafel and that each sandwich would get the same amount. The challenge of this is that each basket had to pivot separately and keep track of its own time. At the end of the project, we have a working quarter scale model of our fryer. It has multiple baskets that all pivot separately and dump into our funnel that bring all the falafel into one point before being dropped onto the conveyor.

Falafel is a delicious meal but it takes a long time to make and because of this, having it in a food truck, and having it run efficiently, is nearly impossible. Our solution was to make a Falafel cart that automated the tedious tasks of making falafel. There are many steps in making falafel that could be easily automated to speed the production process. We would design a food cart that would takes these repeated tasked and automate them making a fast and efficient food cart that served fresh falafel. We split up the falafel making process into smaller jobs that had to be completed. We were given the frying job and more specifically we would automate the process of balling, frying, and flipping the falafel.

In the end we created a desing that lacked an extruder and had multiple baskets. After a lot of talking with our group and other groups, we felt that an extruder was not necessary. It was hard to make, might destroy the dough, and over all not necessary. At this point in the design, we had already decided that there were would to at least be a few people working at the cart, and it would be very easy for one of them to either ball the dough, or put pre balled dough into the fryers. Also in this iteration, we also added multiple baskets. This was done so that each falafel sandwich was made separately. We did this so that we did not have to stockpile falafel and that each sandwich would get the same amount. The challenge of this is that each basket had to pivot separately and keep track of its own time. At the end of the project, we have a working quarter scale model of our fryer. It has multiple baskets that all pivot separately and dump into our funnel that bring all the falafel into one point before being dropped onto the conveyor.

Today we tried to finish and present our final design for our walking box. Our design consists of a box that is used as a mounting platform for the legs. There is one long shaft going down the length of the box that is perpendicular to two small shafts across the box. The long shaft is rotated with a crank. There are two gears of the long shaft that mess with 4 perpendicular gears. Those four gears have hole in them that are off center and house a pivot point for the leg. The legs work when the gears is spun and the off center pivot causes the leg to move up and down as the gear turn. At the end of the given time we had a box that looks good and appeared to walk but in reality could not stand up or walk very well.

      As a studio, we were tasked with building an automated falafel cart. Furthermore, our group was tasked with creating an automated folding mechanism. The mechanism had to perform three specific folds that would make the open sandwich a wrap: a left fold, a smaller back fold, and finally a right fold. Our other objective was to wrap the falafel in tin foil.  Our solution was to move the wrap back and forth across a stationary, fluted, curved ramp that would take the edge of the bread and fold it in. The wrap will move via a plate that is attached to a track that runs beneath the upper level, a.k.a. within the box. To make different folds with a stationary ramp, the plate will rotate 90 degrees using a gear attached to the rod and a few teeth attached to the underside of the upper level. This mechanism will serve two purposes; not only will it fold the falafel, but it will also fold the wrap in paper by running it through the machine again.

         Even though folding by hand would be more efficient, we are not aiming for efficiency in this machine. We want to make an automated system for folding that looks interesting, and can serve as an attraction for the cart. After all, this is the final step of the semi-automated falafel process, so we wanted to end the show with something mechanically compelling. Our folding machine works by using a plate to drag the edge of a lavash bread up a curved, sloped ramp, so that the edge of the ramp gradually brings the edge of the lavash to the ⅔ mark. Then, a gear fixed to the rod is turned 90 degrees by a strip of teeth on the end of the track. Because the track is ovular, the lavash is now folded 5 cm shallower. It then turns around once again to make the third fold on the other side (another ⅔ fold). To wrap the falafel in foil, this process is repeated again, but with paper underneath. A person will both operate the plate with a handle, which is attached to the rod fixed to the plate, and place the paper under the folded wrap.Compared to former projects we have worked on, this mechanism has gone through a lot of changes. Over the course of the folder’s development, we have fundamentally changed its design several times, and have talked about fundamentally changing it many more. We listed three iterations, but in reality, those versions are just major turning points in a vast network of small iterations. The track that guides the plate has redesigned many times. The rod has been held by all sorts of sockets with bearings, and our final design does not include a socket. Everything from the turning gear to the size of the box has been changed at one point. The only thing that still remains from the original design is the ramps, and even they have had their shape changed twice. Even though making all those changes was stressful, (especially the changes made a day before the deadline) I believe we had a great process. Every change we made led to a deeper understanding of our mechanism and our vision for the mechanism, and a deep understanding of those things is essential, especially in a mechanically intensive project like this.

If we were to continue working on this project, our next step would be to use a bristle like material to make it easier for the plate to rotate and turn, hopefully eliminating the need for gears. We would imagine the bristle materials would help prevent crumbs and falafel remnants from falling down into the box. We would also look to use materials such as stainless steel instead of wood as we need a material that is “food safe”. Finally, we might look to create an even quicker folding mechanism that does not need to go around the track twice.

       As a studio, we were tasked with building an automated falafel cart. When we split into smaller groups, our group was tasked with creating an automated folding mechanism. The mechanism had to perform three specific folds that would make the open sandwich a wrap: a left fold, a smaller back fold, and finally a right fold. Then we had to wrap the sandwich in paper or foil in a way that did not get tangled with the fold of the bread. Finally, this step would be the last one on the cart, so we wanted the machine to serve as well. Our solution was to move the wrap back and forth across a stationary, fluted, curved ramp that would take the edge of the bread and fold it to the other side. The wrap would move via a plate that is attached to a track that runs beneath the upper level, a.k.a. within the box. To make different folds, we would turn the plate 90 degrees using a gear attached to the rod and a few teeth attached to the underside of the upper level. This mechanism will serve two purposes: folding the falafel, and also wrapping the sandwich in paper. The process for wrapping is exactly the same as folding; all you have to do is place paper underneath the completed sandwich and run it through the machine again.

       Even though folding by hand would be more efficient, we are not aiming for efficiency in this machine. We want to make an automated system for folding that looks interesting, and can serve as an attraction for the cart. After all, this is the final step of the semi-automated falafel process, so we wanted to end the show with something mechanically compelling. Our folding machine works by using a plate to drag the edge of a lavash bread up a curved, sloped ramp, so that the edge of the ramp gradually brings the edge of the lavash to the ⅔ mark. Then, a gear fixed to the rod is turned 90 degrees by a strip of teeth on the end of the track. Because the track is ovular, the lavash is now folded 5 cm shallower. It then turns around once again to make the third fold on the other side (another ⅔ fold). To wrap the falafel in foil, this process is repeated again, but with paper underneath. A person will both operate the plate with a handle, which is attached to the rod fixed to the plate, and place the paper under the folded wrap.Compared to former projects we have worked on, this mechanism has gone through a lot of changes. Over the course of the folder’s development, we have fundamentally changed its design several times, and have talked about fundamentally changing it many more. We listed three iterations, but in reality, those versions are just major turning points in a vast network of small iterations. The track that guides the plate has redesigned many times. The rod has been held by all sorts of sockets with bearings, and our final design does not include a socket. Everything from the turning gear to the size of the box has been changed at one point. The only thing that still remains from the original design is the ramps, and even they have had their shape changed twice. Even though making all those changes was stressful, (especially the changes made a day before the deadline) I believe we had a great process. Every change we made led to a deeper understanding of our mechanism and our vision for the mechanism, and a deep understanding of those things is essential, especially in a mechanically intensive project like this.

      If we were to continue working on this project, our next step would be to use a bristle like material to make it easier for the plate to rotate and turn, hopefully eliminating the need for gears. We would imagine the bristle materials would help prevent crumbs and falafel remnants from falling down into the box. We would also look to use materials such as stainless steel instead of wood as we need a material that is “food safe”. Finally, we might look to create an even quicker folding mechanism that does not need to go around the track twice.

As a studio, we were tasked with building an automated falafel cart. Furthermore, our group was tasked with creating an automated folding mechanism. The mechanism had to perform three specific folds that would make the open sandwich a wrap: a left fold, a smaller back fold, and finally a right fold. Our other objective was to wrap the falafel in tin foil.  Our solution was to move the wrap back and forth across a stationary, fluted, curved ramp that would take the edge of the bread and fold it in. The wrap will move via a plate that is attached to a track that runs beneath the upper level, a.k.a. within the box. To make different folds with a stationary ramp, the plate will rotate 90 degrees using a gear attached to the rod and a few teeth attached to the underside of the upper level. This mechanism will serve two purposes; not only will it fold the falafel, but it will also fold the wrap in paper by running it through the machine again.

         Even though folding by hand would be more efficient, we are not aiming for efficiency in this machine. We want to make an automated system for folding that looks interesting, and can serve as an attraction for the cart. After all, this is the final step of the semi-automated falafel process, so we wanted to end the show with something mechanically compelling. Our folding machine works by using a plate to drag the edge of a lavash bread up a curved, sloped ramp, so that the edge of the ramp gradually brings the edge of the lavash to the ⅔ mark. Then, a gear fixed to the rod is turned 90 degrees by a strip of teeth on the end of the track. Because the track is ovular, the lavash is now folded 5 cm shallower. It then turns around once again to make the third fold on the other side (another ⅔ fold). To wrap the falafel in foil, this process is repeated again, but with paper underneath. A person will both operate the plate with a handle, which is attached to the rod fixed to the plate, and place the paper under the folded wrap.Compared to former projects we have worked on, this mechanism has gone through a lot of changes. Over the course of the folder’s development, we have fundamentally changed its design several times, and have talked about fundamentally changing it many more. We listed three iterations, but in reality, those versions are just major turning points in a vast network of small iterations. The track that guides the plate has redesigned many times. The rod has been held by all sorts of sockets with bearings, and our final design does not include a socket. Everything from the turning gear to the size of the box has been changed at one point. The only thing that still remains from the original design is the ramps, and even they have had their shape changed twice. Even though making all those changes was stressful, (especially the changes made a day before the deadline) I believe we had a great process. Every change we made led to a deeper understanding of our mechanism and our vision for the mechanism, and a deep understanding of those things is essential, especially in a mechanically intensive project like this.

If we were to continue working on this project, our next step would be to use a bristle like material to make it easier for the plate to rotate and turn, hopefully eliminating the need for gears. We would imagine the bristle materials would help prevent crumbs and falafel remnants from falling down into the box. We would also look to use materials such as stainless steel instead of wood as we need a material that is “food safe”. Finally, we might look to create an even quicker folding mechanism that does not need to go around the track twice.

We were tasked with creating the tomato dicing mechanism for our falafel cart. The general idea was to create a mechanism that could chop tomatoes (and potentially other vegetables) into cubes with either the push of a button or the pull of a lever. We decided to go the route of using a lever, as a button would have involved more automation of our task than we had the time or resources for. We ended up using a system with two perpendicular grates, one of which moved along the axis of a handle and one of which was fixed to the bottom of the dicer. We also had a press that was parallel to the bottom grate and could press the tomatoes down once they had been sliced in one direction. This mechanism requires only two movements of the handle, one left to right and one down.

As a studio, we were tasked with building an automated falafel cart. When we split into smaller groups, our group was tasked with creating an automated folding mechanism. The mechanism had to perform three specific folds that would make the open sandwich a wrap: a left fold, a smaller back fold, and finally a right fold. Then we had to wrap the sandwich in paper or foil in a way that did not get tangled with the fold of the bread. Finally, this step would be the last one on the cart, so we wanted the machine to serve as well. Our solution was to move the wrap back and forth across a stationary, fluted, curved ramp that would take the edge of the bread and fold it to the other side. The wrap would move via a plate that is attached to a track that runs beneath the upper level, a.k.a. within the box. To make different folds, we would turn the plate 90 degrees using a gear attached to the rod and a few teeth attached to the underside of the upper level. This mechanism will serve two purposes: folding the falafel, and also wrapping the sandwich in paper. The process for wrapping is exactly the same as folding; all you have to do is place paper underneath the completed sandwich and run it through the machine again.

Even though folding by hand would be more efficient, we are not aiming for efficiency in this machine. We want to make an automated system for folding that looks interesting, and can serve as an attraction for the cart. After all, this is the final step of the semi-automated falafel process, so we wanted to end the show with something mechanically compelling. Our folding machine works by using a plate to drag the edge of a lavash bread up a curved, sloped ramp, so that the edge of the ramp gradually brings the edge of the lavash to the ⅔ mark. Then, a gear fixed to the rod is turned 90 degrees by a strip of teeth on the end of the track. Because the track is ovular, the lavash is now folded 5 cm shallower. It then turns around once again to make the third fold on the other side (another ⅔ fold). To wrap the falafel in foil, this process is repeated again, but with paper underneath. A person will both operate the plate with a handle, which is attached to the rod fixed to the plate, and place the paper under the folded wrap.Compared to former projects we have worked on, this mechanism has gone through a lot of changes. Over the course of the folder’s development, we have fundamentally changed its design several times, and have talked about fundamentally changing it many more. We listed three iterations, but in reality, those versions are just major turning points in a vast network of small iterations. The track that guides the plate has redesigned many times. The rod has been held by all sorts of sockets with bearings, and our final design does not include a socket. Everything from the turning gear to the size of the box has been changed at one point. The only thing that still remains from the original design is the ramps, and even they have had their shape changed twice. Even though making all those changes was stressful, (especially the changes made a day before the deadline) I believe we had a great process. Every change we made led to a deeper understanding of our mechanism and our vision for the mechanism, and a deep understanding of those things is essential, especially in a mechanically intensive project like this.

If we were to continue working on this project, our next step would be to use a bristle like material to make it easier for the plate to rotate and turn, hopefully eliminating the need for gears. We would imagine the bristle materials would help prevent crumbs and falafel remnants from falling down into the box. We would also look to use materials such as stainless steel instead of wood as we need a material that is “food safe”. Finally, we might look to create an even quicker folding mechanism that does not need to go around the track twice.

Our goal was to create a conveyor belt that is meant to move large pieces of lavash bread from one side of a falafel cart to the other, while allowing falafel and condiments to be dropped onto the bread. We wanted the belt to be large enough fit the lavash bread, but also small enough that it would fit into the cart. We decided to make a basic conveyor belt that carries light objects while still being small and easy to use.

The first iteration of our conveyor belt was built during the brainstorming process when we were still deciding what our conveyor belt was going to be.  We decided to make a device that would rotate all the way around the cart, similar to an airport luggage carousel.  We quickly designed and cut a conveyor belt out of cardboard with three main pieces connected with pins.  This model turned out well, and it resembled a snake toy.  Since this model worked well, we decided to make a second version out of wood, but with three changes; it was made of wood, it was more stable because we added an extra layer in every connection, and we put electrical tape on the ends to add friction for holding the plates.  This model was great, but after a meeting with the full team, we decided that a design more similar to a treadmill or a conveyor belt in a checkout aisle would work better in our cart, because we no longer needed it to turn.

The second iteration of the conveyor belt was a cardboard model for the twenty-five percent scale model of the falafel cart. It uses paper for the belt, and wood for the rollers. In this iteration, the rollers had to be moved manually since there was no motor, and the belt did not grip onto the rollers well enough to move. There were also five missing rollers and there was no tension so the paper was loose. In the cardboard model the sides were too long, and the system was too tall. Because of this the sides had to be cut down so they were not very clean looking. In the final iteration we hoped to make the sides out of wood, as well as get the belt to move using a motor. We also wanted to make a more durable belt and smaller laser cut rollers to fit in the scaled down model. The third iteration allowed us to see what the system would look like, but it was just a visual representation of what we would make.

The final iteration of our conveyor belt is made of wood. There is a spring mechanism to automatically adjust tension on the belt, and rubber grips that are meant to allow for the rollers to move the belt easily. This iteration is powered by a motor that has a foot pedal to control when the belt moves, allowing it to stop at different intervals so that cooks can add condiments to the falafel. The final iteration is still twenty-five percent scale, but that allows it to easily fit into the full model of the falafel cart, Because of scaling issue certain parts of the conveyor belt are very large and do not leave enough room for the belt.  This means the belt is not wide enough to carry a twenty-five percent scale piece of lavash bread. That then means that the belt is not completely to scale, and it does not move by itself. If we had more time we would have made a full scale version of the conveyor system to get rid of scaling issues as well as gotten the belt moving, but for now this belt is great for showing the concept of our design.