First Aid Vending Machine

Have you ever scraped your knee at a park and had no access to medical supplies? We want to help and provide fast access to people who are in need of first-aid. When someone is injured, we want to make sure they don’t have to waste time searching for the nearest store for first-aid items. When we first got introduced to our cornerstone project, we were given the task to come up with a solution to an everyday problem we felt was important. So, we narrowed it down to one overall problem that we could all relate to; a lack of access to medical supplies in outdoor spaces. Our product will be placed in specific places like public parks and will be in close range for people who have injured themselves. This is an important issue we decided to focus on because we want to be able to make sure people of all ages are safe in even the most fun places. Some ways our product is different is that it will be weatherproof for the outdoors and will be solar based. Another component we added was the way in how our products will be dispensed. We designed capsules that will include basic first-aid products inside.

Step 1: Materials and Tools Section

Materials Needed

PVC Pipe- https://www.homedepot.com/p/Formufit-2-in-x-5-ft-Furniture-Grade-Sch-40-PVC-Pipe-in-White-P002FGP-WH-5/205171547

Wood Pieces- https://www.homedepot.com/p/15-32-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-BC-Sanded-Pine-Plywood-166030/100012720

Solar Panel- https://www.amazon.com/NewPowa-efficiency-Solar-Module-Marine/dp/B00L60Y6Y4/ref=sr_1_13?crid=2IRNWW0HH4COP&keywords=solar+panel+newpowa&qid=1556801609&s=gateway&sprefix=solar+panel+new%2Caps%2C259&sr=8-13

Battery- https://www.amazon.com/ExpertPower-EXP1270-Rechargeable-Lead-Battery/dp/B003S1RQ2S/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2VUSRUMFPM4DC&keywords=expertpower+battery+12v&qid=1556801735&s=gateway&sprefix=expert+power+battery%2Caps%2C289&sr=8-2

Redboard Arduino (Sparkfun)- https://www.amazon.com/Karlsson-Robotics-SparkFun-Inventors-Kit/dp/B077BS2CTJ/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=sparkfun+red+board&qid=1556801882&s=gateway&sr=8-2

Solar Charge Controller- https://www.amazon.com/Controller-Back-Light-Display-Regulator-Charger/dp/B076FRS5C8/ref=sr_1_15?keywords=solar+charge+controller&qid=1556802043&s=gateway&sr=8-15

Acrylic Sheet- https://www.homedepot.com/p/LEXAN-12-in-x-24-in-x-093-in-Clear-Polycarbonate-Sheet-GE-33/202038063

Step 2: Step by Step Instructions

Coding process

Start off by searching up what coding functions you will occupy in your vending machine. In our case, we needed the coding of an LCD screen and the working of buttons. The reason we needed the coding to an LCD screen was to be able to program the way options will pop up for customers to choose their choice of the subject and along goes the working of the buttons to be able and select your choice of thing. The program we used in our coding process was Sparks Fun. For our LCD screen, we used this link... (https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/sik-experimen... ) For our button, we used... (https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/sik-experimen... )

Box Buiding process

The box included pieces of layered plywood, we measured everything to the size we needed. After that we then cut the pieces of wood. We cut the big overall pieces for the overall box. We then made small cuts for the inner parts of the box. Gluing took time, we glued the things and used clamps to keep the wood pieces together.

Mechanical Process

When we were given this task, there were constraints we had to include in our project. Our vending machine had to have mechanical, structural, electrical, and programming components. For our mechanical component, we used a motor that would help drop the first-aid capsules when using the vending machine. We had to make sure they were positioned correctly and that they would fully turn to where we wanted them too. For our structural component, we built an actual vending machine. Limited to resources, we decided on building it out of wood. For our electrical component, we decided it would be a great opportunity to use solar panels for our vending machine seeing that they will be located outdoors and will be exposed to the sunlight. Lastly, for our programming component, we assembled an LCD using Arduino. This LCD is used to display the options when a specific button is pressed on the vending machine.

Step 3: The Last Step

Throughout the entire process of building our vending machine, we experienced setbacks and triumphs from brainstorming to writing this Instructable. The brainstorming phase went smoothly, we quickly agreed on an idea and went to work sketching. While getting feedback we During the initial coding phase there were some minor setbacks when getting the LCD screen to work. After researching the situation further and consulting other teams we were able to correctly code the screen. We had some trouble finding wood for our structure, but once we did the vending machine came together very quickly. We also found the perfect piece of plexiglass for the front of our vending machine.

During the overall process, it was a challenge. We had to do things we had thought about in life but never really made. Like the coding at first wasn't easy, we didn't succeed in putting both the LCD codding with the button coding together but for our aftermath working time we can succeed on completing the coding to work successfully. The overall box building process was a success. We were able to finish the building but we only needed the front part but our plan is to complete it for our after time. We want to by the end be able to have at least a full working vending machine that could work and make it's waterproof and paint. Because we've been working on this project for a while now I think being able to include a more organized structure with a simple piece of work.