Protein Bar Guillotine
Automated cutting machine synchronized with a factory conveyor belt.
Mechanical/Electrical/Software DesignArduinoPre-AIC++Motion ControlStepper MotorsGUI DesignTouchscreen DisplayPneumaticsQuadrature EncoderSD Card Reader
Mechanical/Electrical/Software Design Mechanical DesignElectrical DesignSoftware DesignPre-AIMotion ControlGUI DesignPneumatics
ArduinoC++Stepper MotorsTouchscreen DisplayQuadrature EncoderSD Card Reader
May – July 2022 Ben Jacobson (Software/Electrical) · Dave Friedman (Mechanical)
Motivation
- My uncle was developing a new machine to cut continuously fed protein and nutrition bars for his food manufacturing business.
- At higher conveyor speeds, a stationary guillotine could compress or deform the product during the cut, so the blade needed to move with the conveyor while cutting.
Requirements
- Track conveyor motion in real time and synchronize the guillotine carriage with the product during each cut.
- Automatically cut bars to a specified length while supporting configurable operating modes, machine parameters, and safety features.
My role
- I was responsible for the electrical system, embedded software, motion-control logic, and touchscreen interface.
- My uncle handled the mechanical design and build.