Intro
As the first project of my high school engineering career, the cornhole board was a project in which groups of 3 designed and constructed an interactive cornhole board to be sold at our annual school fall festival. This project was a great introduction as it not only introduced us to some primary tools used in engineering such as drills and also programming basics such as lights but also the design and art-minded side of the field, primarily the use of the elements and principles of design.
Wood Working
After splitting into teams and being briefed on the project, we began a general assembly of our corn hole board. Using four 2x4s and one 3/4 inch wood sheet, we assembled our corn hole board's general shapes. To make the hole of the board, we used a 6in hole saw bit. To make the board's legs, we used spare 2x4s and attached them with a basic truss bolt/combo. After the general woodworking of the corn hole board, we moved on to the painting of the board.
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Elements and Principles of Design
Over the first couple of months in the class, we were introduced to elements and principles of design seen below. While we have learned how to construct what we design, we have also learned how to give life to our design with art. These elements and principles were actively practiced on our first project. We used a repeating semi-eclipse pattern in the sun's rays, curvy lines in the waves, and constraining color with a white background and the blues and yellows.
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Wiring and Programming
After we completed the design, our team moved on to our board's electrical and programming work. This step was an integral step because it elevated our corn hole board from a game to an interactive(giving outputs based on inputs) game. To do this, our group decided to make it so that if the user tossed a beanbag into the hole successfully, the sun's rim would illuminate green. However, if a miss occurred, the perimeter of the board would shine red lights. This task took the use of wiring, soldering, and programming, as seen in the pictures. After this task was complete, we were able to sell our board at the local fall festival.
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