Team Conclusion and Improvements

Ultimately, the team was able to achieve our objective of creating a flower-like table that can unfold to create a flat surface. The build quality of this prototype could be improved by having tighter tolerance on machined shafts to ensure symmetry and smooth motion. Loose tolerances of the machined shafts caused discrepancies in the necessary spacers needed to constrain the movement of the shafts and bushings.

Additionally, the device could be made more stable by adding supports to the linkages, or making them out of a sturdier material such as aluminum. Machining aluminum parts, rather than extruded PLA or laser cut materials would achieve a sturdier design and tighter tolerances. To provide additional stability, two points of contact on the bottom collar should be used rather than one. Additionally, using off the shelf U-joints would eliminate much of the assembly time required to create this prototype.

Finally, to continue the design of this table, the petal and hinge geometry needs to be refined to create a continuous, flat surface. The team achieved our goal of creating a functioning linkage mechanism that unfolds a tulip to create a flat surface. However, geometric tweeks will need to be made to create a functional and aesthetically pleasing table.