Entry 28: Testing of Improved Aquaponics System

16 August 2012

Today, we completed the construction of the trays and assembly of the entire invention.

Here is how it looks overall:

Invention fully assembled!

Similar to the last time we ran the previous prototype, there were similar problems faced.

First, the most serious problem we faced was the lack of time. In a duration of only 4 hours, we had to complete the construction of all the trays, assemble the entire set up of the invention and test it, at the same time eradicating any possible faults that might occur. 4 hours was simply, not enough time for a single person to handle everything at the same time, but fortunately, two of us worked together to accomplish all the targets set, hence, we were barely able to complete our planned actions for the day, albeit a few faults left due to time constraint.

Next, we faced the problem of leakage. Even though the new washers on the trays were anti-leak and allowed the tubes to fit in better, because of the lack of water pressure in the tube leading from the tray at the smallest elevation to the fish tank, some trays flooded during the testing, hence making our invention wet, especially the newly made "StairFLOW" system. Fortunately, we managed to clean up the mess in the nick of time. We realised that the faulty tube require a greater elevation, which we would improve on if we had more time. However, we managed to get the majority of the systems working, making the accomplishment of our goals a success.

Finally, the last problem we faced was evident when doing the video shoots in preparation for the Finals tomorrow. When doing the video shoot for certain sections, since we were quite inexperienced in recorded presentations, we felt nervous and made several mistakes along the way. Fortunately, the staff helping us in the Science Research Centre was patient and supported us, giving us the confidence to pull through. Hence, we are extremely grateful to the staff for his patience and encouragement.

Now, all that is left is the Finals Presentation tomorrow! We will put it our utmost effort to be the best we can tomorrow!

Entry 27: Extension System Construction Completed

12 August 2012

By Keven Loo

As Frankie was too busy to be able to help us with the construction of the extension system, we instead turned to my father to help us construct. Unfortunately, he was not as skilled or experienced, hence the workmanship was not as good as if it was done by an expert or a factory. Still, it was more than sufficient to bear the weight of the plant trays (when filled with water).

In the original blueprint, the extension required considerably many materials: 14 wood planks, screws and full-length metal brackets. As a result, this made the construction process tedious and extremely time-consuming. For example, accurate measurements must be made on the areas where the wood planks need to be connected to allow the screw to fasten them together. The fact that I, or none of my other group members, lacked technical skills required for such tasks meant that our help in construction was extremely limited to simpler tasks such as carrying and holding the planks together or rarely, helping to screw the nails into the wood.

We started off building with the smallest stair, and we used the least number of wood screws since the platform was not far off the ground.  The number of wood screws used increased as the height increased, to stabilise the entire structure. We had decided to leave the installation of the metal brackets to the end, since we had a insufficient number of them. In the end, after 3 hours of visiting DIY shops and metalwork shops around our area, we were unable to find any shop selling metal brackets. Thankfully for us, all three of the stairs were able to stand and support weights of up to 5kg each (during our testing), and thus we left out the metal brackets.

However, one problem we had encountered during the construction was the fact that some of the wood would start to splinter or disintegrate into dust as holes were being drilled. Therefore, this posed a danger to us when we tried to shift the wood around as we risked being cut by the splinters. Furthermore, the wood dust was very light and was easily spread around by the wind.

Fortunately, most of the processes went relatively well and we managed to construct the extension set.

The new extension looks like this:

Even though Frankie was unable to help us, we are grateful to Frankie for helping us in our time of need once again (sending wood supplies and ordering them to cut it for us, which was a hassle if we were to do it by ourselves) , even though he was extremely busy. I would also like to give credit to my father as he willingly helped us to construct the extension without hesitation. Hence, we strive to make this project an even bigger success to ensure that the efforts of those who have supported us will not be wasted.

Entry 26: Plans for Extension System

8 August 2012

By Kai Xiang

After going through some rounds of evaluation, I have finalised the designs for the extension which allows for more plants to be grown using the current prototype. 

The name of this structure is StairFLOW.

The design is based on staircases and has 2 main functions:

1. To facilitate the flow of water with gravity

2. To provide support and more stability to the the C-shaped prototype.

Sketches:

The materials to be used for the construction of these are plywood, screws and steel brackets. The plywood and screws are compulsory materials to be used, but the use of steel brackets is tangible, based on its availability and suitability for the extension.

First, it's three different levels of elevation serve to purposes: to provide support for more trays and thus, more plants to grow, and to allow water to flow with the aid of gravity which creates enough pressure to force water through the system and reduces the need for pumping. Water flows down the different level of elevation (through trays) until it returns back to the fish tank, creating a a cyclic process for water flow. The different levels of elevation can also easily be separated, allowing for greater effiiency in storage.

Next, there is a backing plank on one of the ends of "StairFLOW". This is supposedly able to fit into the gap in the C-shaped structure of the initial prototype, hence helping to support the plant tray on the prototype by sharing the weight. This also allows it to be attached to the C-shaped prototype, such that it is slightly more space-efficient and alligned for water flow to be conducted effectively.

We have also made plans for the trays. We have decided to make the input hole of the tray on the cover of the tray, which is the upwards surface, reducing leakages and allowing for greater use of gravity's aid.

We hope to complete the construction as soon as possible to keep up with the current busy schedules that we have.

Entry 25: Meeting with Mr Carl Baptista

24 July 2012

Today, we had a meeting with Mr Carl Baptista from Oracle. Carl provided quite a lot of advice for the progress of our project and offered many opinions which were valuable.

First, we went through our presentation slides with him. Even though we felt that we our presentation slide was supposed to be free of error, Carl managed to point out several conceptual errors and even offer suggestions of information to be added into the slides. He also criticised the design of our project and helped to guide us through improving it. Though our meeting was short, it was definitely inspirational as Carl had presented a very unique viewpoint of our project towards us.

Also, he helped to clarify the validity of a dynamo system to be included into the prototype. He explained that it was not possible to simply "draw" energy from running water as the energy is from the pump, and energy cannot be extracted from such a method. He suggested the use of solar panels, which were both useful as power sources for the prototype and in line with the environmental approach we were using. We will take this idea into consideration and may apply it based on the cost and the amount of funding we currently have.

Next, he offered the idea of using a timer in the system. As we had faced the problem that vegetables do not seem to grow properly after a period of time, we voiced it out and he helped to clarify the issue as simply that the roots occasionally required oxygen from the air in order to stay healthy. This helped to identify the issue in our set-up's tray, which was that the output hole was way too high, hence disallowing the roots to be in contact with oxygen the whole time the system is running. The timer would help as it stopped the water flow consistently per period, for example 10 minutes, to allow the water current to stop and to allow the roots gain oxygen from the surrounding air.

Finally, he suggested to change the tilapia used in our set up to guppies. The nitrate levels of the waste in the tilapia was somewhat to high for plant growth, hence the use of guppies would reduce the concentration of nitrates produce which would be sufficient for boosting plant growth.

All in all, we have learnt much from him and his generosity in sharing his knowledge has inspired us to further improve the Indoor Herb Chinampas. We hope to be able to do as much as possible to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of our prototype.

Entry 24: Meeting with Mentor (10)

23 July 2012

Fortunately for us, we managed to pass the semi-finals. Of course, this meant that there was more work to be done in order to solve the faults of the current system, such as the leakage problem, and the make the extension.

The current plans we have made for the extension are as follows:

a. To include a dynamo system in the prototype. The dynamo will be able to convert kinetic energy from the running water to electrical energy which can be used to power up other things such as the fish tank's pump. This has never been produced in commercial set-ups and we want to try it out.

b. To make an extension system that provides more support for the base. The tray base of the prototype, being supported only at one end, is unstable when handling the weight of the tray (with water), hence, an extension can help provide more support for the C-shaped prototype to make it stronger and more efficient when facilitating water flow.

c. To make another extension system to allow for more plants to be grown with the system. This will include structures that can hold more trays. The current design revolves around the "staircase" design, in which water flows down each elevation with the aid of gravity.

d. To change the position of input and output holes of the prototype. This can help resolve the problem of water leakage in the current tray system. The current plan is to position the input hole on the cover of the tray and the output hold on the bottom of the tray so water is channeled downwards vertically instead of travelling sideways.

We would like to thank our mentor, who guided us through our designs and gave us suggestions for improving our design, Frankie, who helped us greatly with the construction of our prototype and our loved ones who have provided us with emotional support throughout the ups and downs of the invention process.

We promise to do even better for the Finals!

Entry 23: Running of Prototype

4 July 2012

Today, we assembled the new prototype and tested if the aquaponics system could run well on it.

How it looks before fish tank was mounted:

Minimum Length version

1st Extension version

2nd Extension version

When we mounted on the fish tank, we faced several problems and with very little time on our hands, we had to act fast and get cracking.

The first problem we faced was that there was a leakage in the connection point between the tube from the pump to the inlet of the plant tray. As a result, the base of the Prototype got wetter and wetter. To solve this problem, the biology lab assistant and my mentor assisted me with changing the size of the tube used as well as wrapping elastic tape around the tubes to allow the tubes to attach more firmly. After an hour of trial and error, we decided to use a beaker to collect the water as the problem was not with the tube, but rather the hole drilled for the inlet was faulty. Hence, to solve this problem, we would most probably be modifying the inlet to on the cover of the tray instead of by the side to prevent leakages.

The next problem we had to face was transporting the fish tank. The fish tank, being heavy, could not be transported as even if we attempted, it was highly likely that it would break due to its weight and the amount of stress caused on our hands. Hence, to solve this problem, we substituted the original tank with a smaller tank and even it was heavy! Nevertheless, this problem was resolved quickly as it was fortunate that there was a spare tank.

Finally, we faced the problem wetting the wooden prototype with a lot of water. As there was leakages as well as spillages when the apparatus on the base were being transported around, the base got wet easily and as it was made with plywood, I was extremely worried that the wood would rot. Thus, whenever the base came into contact with water, we immediately wiped the area clean and mopped the area around it. Even though we tried our best, some water still entered the base, but as we tried our best, I am sure that there would not be much problems with that.

Finally, when the system was set up, everything was working well.

Picture of the Indoor Herb Chinampas System Running:

Entry 22: Prototype Painting

2 July 2012

Today, we have completed the painting of the prototype. Reflecting over the course of painting the prototype, we realised that painting was not as easy as we inititally thought. First of all, there was the unbearable smell from the paint whenever using it and since there was no way of avoiding it, the only way to overcome it was to bear with the stench. Next, whenever our skin had come into contact with paint, it was a hassle trying to remove it. Hence, to overcome this, we made use of plastic gloves when painting the prototype. Finally, the time in which the paint had to be allowed to dry restricted our flexibility in the time schedule. For this problem, we had no choice but to adjust our own schedules taking into account the drying time for the paint.

We have also applied a lacquer surfacer to ensure that the wood does not rot when coming into contact with water (since this is an aquaponics prototype).

This concludes the construction phase of our prototype.

Here is what the prototype looked like when drying of the paint was in progress:

Entry 21: Prototype Sanding (2)

29 June 2012

Today, we managed to completely sand the prototype. Though the process was time-consuming, we are very satisfied with the results. After the tremendous effort we have put in, the wooden parts of the stand have finally become much smoother and looks cleaner too! It seems ready to be painted, which we hope can be completed soon.

Entry 20: Prototype Sanding (1) and Tray Construction (1)

27 June 2012

Today, we sanded the expandable plank parts. Plywood was easy to sand but the process itself was time-consuming, thus we only had time and energy the expandable parts and not the C-shaped part itself. Hence, we had to leave the C-shaped part of the stand for another day.

We also constructed the tube seal onto the modified tray today. Even though the lab assistants were extremely busy today, they made the effort to help us and thus, we are thankful towards them.

The tray now looks like this:

Front View (From Output)

Top View

Entry 19: Prototype Construction Completed

23 June 2012

Our prototype has finally been completed and we collected it today. Though we did not administer the construction of our project (left it to Frankie), we planned the entire process as well as materials to be added out.

Hence, with a few new improvements, the prototype looks like this:

Without being attached to planks yet.

Attached to all 3 planks (1 usual, 2 add-ons), maximum length.

The 2 new improvements are as follows:

1. The "screw and plate" method has been slightly improved. From the pictures, the blackish, long parts at the sides of the base are actually steel clips, which "clips" into the screws on the side of the planks to ensure that the planks are fastened into position. Hence, this makes expanding the base much more convenient, though with a slightly higher charge.
2. There are additional steel reinforcements between the connection points of the C-shaped part of the prototype. This provides added help for the support plank to support the tray base and remain upright at the same time. This also adds to the cost, but makes the stand a lot stronger.

Hence, the tray will be placed on the tray base while the fish tank will be placed on the base, creating an aquaponics system (of course, with the water pump and tubes for connection). All that is required now is to be sanded, then painted and surfaced to ensure that the wood does not decay when it comes into contact with water. That being said, our first prototype is finally completed!

Entry 18: Prototype Construction Begins

20 June 2012

Today, we have sent the finalised prototype sketches to Frankie for the construction of the prototype. Fortunately for us, Frankie helped us with the sourcing of materials in the area around his industry. Though the materials were slightly more costly than we anticipated, it saved us from a lot more hassle and provided more convenience for us.

He also provided us with sources in which these materials (from his shop) could be found, of which most were in line with our research but we had a lack of time to find:

1. Plywood - Furniture Industry Area
2. Screws - Any hardware shop
3. Steel - Customized from his factory

Hence, we would once again like to thank Frankie for helping us and supporting us with the project!

Entry 17: Materials and Dimensions Planning

19 June 2012

By Kai Xiang (Destiny CKX)

Today, I had informed my father, an engineering expert, of the almost finalised design, and he decided to guide me along the prototype design. My father and I sat down and discussed seriously about the whole outlook of the prototype, I listened as he provided me with possible improvements to the prototype.

Being an expert, my father provided me with simple yet seemingly effective suggestions to improve the design of our prototype. Together, we confirmed and finalised the dimensions of the prototype, as well as thought of the materials to be used together. At last, there was an astonishing conclusion.

Despite our exhaustion, I managed to take in his suggestions and incoporate it into our prototype. Here are some changes:

The expandable base design has once again changed, but this time requires fewer materials and has a simple and firm design. Instead of using the sliding mechanism, which he said was difficult to build under the small amount of time we had, he suggested that we use a "screw and plate" method for the extension of our base.

Simply put, we would screw a hole into each of the planks (listed below are the planks), then to adjust the base to the desired length, we simply use a steel bar to secure the planks together and screw screws into the base and planks through the steel bar to ensure that the the length of the base is fixed. It was shockingly simple, yet practical and easy to create. Furthermore, it fit the theme of the expandable base well, thus we decided to go along with this design.

Here is how it looks:

If one wishes to adjust the base to the smallest length, then simply use the first (left-most) and last (right-most) plank and screw them together with the bar to fasten them.

He also suggested that to ensure the tray base can be supported by the supporting plank, steel brackets can be used to support it.

Here is how it looks:

The planks of the base will be made of plywood (economical and of decent quality) and be connected to each other via screws.

Hence, these are the small but essential changes we have made to the base.

Here are the dimensions we have set:

Finally, after many painstaking processes and meaningful experiences, we have a finalised design for the base! After reviewing all that the group has been through, it really provides a sense of elation that we have completed our objectives!

Credits:

Thanks to my father, who supported me and criticised the design, as well as suggesting improvements with his experiences in this field!

Entry 16: Sourcing for Materials@IKEA

19 June 2012

Today, we went to IKEA Tampines to source for the materials and measure the costs to build our prototype. Our objective was mainly to confirm the expendable mechanism which we are using as well as the  cost and quality of wood used.

The first things that caught our eyes were metal poles. These metal poles were made of stainless steel, which prevented rusting of the stand, and this allowed us to come up with a plan for the expendable base.

This is how it looks:

Basically, there will be squarish parts connected to both ends of the metal poles. The wood we will use is specially carved to the shape above, in which the internal part fits the squarish part on the pole but the hole on the surface of the blocks do not fit the square on the pole to prevent it from sliding out.

We named the corner blocks block 1 and 2. Basically, we would make the squarish parts of the poles in block 2 fixed, whereas the squarish parts of the poles in block 1 are confined to the space within the block but can move from one end to the other. This allows the base to be expandable. Thus, the support structure will be placed on block 1 instead of between block 1 and 2 to make the design more practical. When the base is expanded, the poles are exposed. Hence, we use block "add-ons" to be placed over the poles to cover them up as well as to act as support for larger tanks. We have planned for 2 "add-ons" to be included in our design, thus our base can now fit fish tanks of 3 different lengths.

However, there are a few problems in the design. Firstly, we have no idea who to ask on how to carve internal shape of the wooden blocks 1 and 2. Even if we had help, the expertise required for carving such intricate designs would not come cheap. Next, we had no idea where to find the squarish parts on the end of the poles and how to connect them at all. Thus, we were left with a few loopholes for this idea.

We also came up with major dimensions for the stand. We decided to confirm this only after we had found all the materials required.

We then decided to search for wooden parts for the base. However, our efforts were in vain as we realised that isolated wooden planks could not be found in IKEA and only wooden furniture (self-service packaging types) could be found. Hence, nothing much could be resolved.

Even though we tried our best today, nothing much was resolved. Hence, we hope that we are able to source for materials with greater luck and efficiency the next time.

Entry 15: Construction Planning (B)

15 June 2012

Today, we went to Frankie's factory to discuss about our new prototype design. Surprisingly, Frankie approved of the new design and praised it, albeit a few minor parts, and gave us suggestions on how to improve it again.

From our initial design, he gave 2 important suggestions.

First, he suggested that the extendable part of the tray base be removed from the tray design. This is because  the extendable tray actually has no true function on the tray base itself and would be a hassle, as well as cost high, to construct onto my tray base. Not only that, but it also limits the amount of space that we can use for a dynamo-lighted bulb which is currently an extension we are looking it. Hence, we took his advice and scrapped off this part of the design.

Second, he suggested that we use strings to make the base expandable. This is because the method is practical and cheap, though our aesthetics would be slightly, not significantly, affected by this. We took this advice into consideration but are currently unsure if we should use it. Still, it was better than the initial idea we had.

Frankie also helped us with sourcing of materials to construct this prototype. He told us that IKEA was a good place to look for cheap and reliable DIY materials. Hence, we are now planning a trip to IKEA Tampines, a warehouse of IKEA which contains a variety of furniture and creatively designed household items.

Our newest prototype design now looks like this:

Hence, today's visit to Frankie's factory was fruitful as we finally settled on a design and to make things better, Frankie told us that the cost of this new design would be much cheaper than the previous one! Now, all we have to do is source for the materials and finalise the expanding mechanism for the base of the stand.

Credits:

Once again, thanks to Frankie for helping us with our prototype design!

Entry 14: Meeting With Mentor (9)

14 June 2012

Today, our meeting was about the new prototype design.

Previously, we had formulated the basis for our idea of the prototype, which had a C-Shaped design. For today's meeting, the first draft for the new prototype design had been completed and we were discussing about the feasibility of it. 

Here is a picture of the new prototype:

Basically, the base of the stand is where the fish tank is to be placed. It is supposed to be expandable sideways to allow fish tanks of different sizes (up to a limit) to be placed onto it. Currently, the expanding technique that is being investigated is sliding with a "lock" mechanism, which locks the base when at the desired length. The reason why we would place the fish tank at the bottom of the tank is because we hope that its weight can be used to support the stand.

The support part (longest height) of the stand is intentionally curved to provide a more aesthetically pleasing and hopefully, stronger base design. However, we are still unsure if this can be made and it is not as important as the previous part (base) of the fish tank, thus we left it aside in the meeting.

Finally, the uppermost part of the fish tank, the tray base, is where the tray containing plants will be put on. We hope that the support is strong enough to support both the plants and the tray base itself. A section has been added under the base, which can be pulled out, for the battery charger to be placed if we would decide to add in the dynamo concept to our invention.

Some measurements have been taken into account for the current sketch.

Hence, our mentor and us ourselves felt that it was a better design than the previous few designs, thus we had confirmed to go along with this design for the stand. All we need to do now is consult Frankie on the possibility of this design!

Entry 13: Meeting with Mentor (8)

12 June 2012

Today, our meeting was mainly a discussion on the meeting with Frankie 2 days ago.

First, we brought up the changes in design, then discussed about the originality of our project. Even though we mentioned about the problems of the project, there was nothing much that our mentor could help us with as all of us could not brainstorm for a new idea. At that point of time, there was simply no inspiration and we were feeling quite bad about the project prototype.

However, to cheer us up, our mentor decided to bring us to the biology lab where our plants were being cultivated instead. While taking care of the newly grown plants (which were also cultivated by aquaponics but not with our invention active yet), the group suddenly came up with an idea which seemed more original as well as seeming to look better than the "table" base design.

We thought of a C-shaped base, in which the tank could be placed below and the tray of plants could be placed above. This design was not only better in appeal, but also seemed easier to construct. Hence, we decided to change our design to this with our mentor's approval, and from now we will embark on researching and developing our newly established idea.

A Design Picture of the NEW Prototype:

Entry 12: Construction Planning (A)

10 June 2012

By Kai Xiang (Destiny CKX)

After contacting Frankie, a construction expert who was helping us construct the prototype, I went down personally to his factory to discuss about the feasibility of the latest prototype.

Frankie, being an engineering expert, pointed out some of the issues of the prototype. They are as follows:

1. The legs of the display base (table) cannot be adjustable. Doing so would weaken the legs, which support the display base, thus causing it to break easily and topple over. However, he mentioned that he would see if it is possible to construct adjustable legs.

2. The display base cannot use the initial "slide" design as a sliding mechanism is

  a. too expensive

  b. tedious and difficult to construct in the time period

  c. there are better alternatives to this

Thus, the current best way would be to use an ordinary table, drill it into half, insert a board in the middle, drill holes into the sides of the table (and into the board), utilising the "Lock and Key" technique to expand the length of the table. However, this could potentially affect the stability of the table. Still, it was worth a try.

3. The custom hydroponics tray, with the input drilled lower than the output (in the widths of the tray), would cause a messy water current within the tray when water is channeled through. This would cause waste products from the aquaponics water to retain in the tray for long periods of time rather than flowing to the filter zone, hence would hinder the process of cleaning the tray, which was supposed to be rather easy. He suggested adding walls to the inner parts of the tray, which can help facilitate a constant directional water flow instead of a messy one.

He also discussed with me about extensions and he inspired me to come out with one new idea that could expand the use of our project:

Mini-turbines could be placed at the water output on the attachment of the fish tank, which would be naturally powered by kinetic energy from the continuous flow of water, thus this would create electricity which can have other functions in the aquaponics system. Frankie suggested for me to go along with this as it is easy to accomplish and a fresh new idea which is useful, thus can help boost our project overall.

The new prototype sketch after returning from the factory looks like this:

Table

Tray

Today's discussion with Frankie was fulfilling, however, Frankie had doubts on the overall "table" design. He felt that there were much cheaper and better alternatives to this. This probably means that we have to risk our creativity using the current prototype or come out with a totally fresh design in the short amount of time given. At least, I now know what opinions a member of the public would have about our prototype. I do hope that we, as a group, can be inspired either to improve heavily on this design or somehow come out with a new design.

Credits:

Thanks to Frankie for all the advice!

Entry 11: Meeting with Mentor (7)

7 June 2012

Today, we checked on our temporary set up and washed the fish tank. While doing this, my mentor realised that the leca tray we were using seemed to be quite dirty as well as that plant growth was unstable, hence with his help, we came up with the idea of integrating the "IKEA Hydroponics Kit" into the project, acting as a replacement for the present leca tray. 

Here is a picture of the Hydroponics kit:

The advantages of using the new tray are that it is much easier to handle as compared to monitoring the leca kit, as well as allows for better plant growth as there is no presence of overcrowding, which boosts plant growth. However, there are only 6 pits which hold the plants (and very few leca), thus there is a limitation to the amount of the plants that can be grown.

Of course, we did sketches of the new tray and are going to modify it by drilling 2 holes, 1 in the front and 1 in the back to allow water to be transported into and out of the tray via tubes. Therefore, the latest prototype design we have right now is the same as that from the previous post, except with the tray changed to the modified hydroponics kit.

Entry 10: Meeting with Mentor (6)

5 June 2012

Today is the first meeting with our mentor in the holidays. The sketches of the display stand of the prototype has been completed. 

Prototype Design:

The prototype's most prominent structure is the display table placed over the fish tank. The table is extendable via a sliding mechanism in the middle, which is made to fit any length of a home-sized fish tank. The legs of the display stand are extendable via lock keys which are then inserted into the holes in the legs when of the desired height (markings will be provided). There are holes on the table which are meant for hanging the terraces, which can contain a different type of plant than the tray on the display stand filled with leca. However, due to the tubing, the limitations of this is that only one terrace can be connected to tube coming from the tube. Thus, only one terrace can be used, while the holes on the edges of the other 3 sides can be used to hook items (in hook baskets) such as fish food. 

The tray on the display stand contains leca, which cultivates plant growth. A tube inlet and outlet are attached on the tray which allows a continuous cyclic flow of water throughout the system to ensure that the water from the fish tank is being transported into and away from the tray of leca (and plants).

So far, the only problem we find with the current design is possibly that this item is considered merely a table,  however, it is true that we will modify it specifically to suit the Indoor Herb Chinampas. Hence, we can consider the problem to be solved already.

We will continue to work on this prototype in the future.

Entry 9: Meeting with group members

23 May 2012

Today, the entire group sat down to meet up once again. This meeting was for us to discuss on the progress on finding for the external help as well as for us to set down our work plans for the month of June, which is extremely crucial to the project.

Regarding the progress on finding and getting an external help, Keven and Gordon has been unable to get any help as they do not have any contacts in this area. While Ching Kai Xiang is currently speaking to Frankie, to see whether he is interested in helping us out.

As for the workplan during the June they are as follow:

Details	Due by	Action by
External help found	28/05/2012	All
Confirmation of Prototype	04/05/2012	All
Creation of website	10/06/2012	Keven Loo
Sourcing of materials	11/06/2012	All
Creation of prototype	15/06/2012	All

While here are the confirmed dates for meeting with our Mentor:

Date	Time	Action by
29 May 2012	1400 - 1500 / 1500 - 1600	Ching, Keven
5 June 2012	1400 -  1500 / 1500 - 1600	Ching, Keven
7 June 2012	1400 – 1500 / 1500 - 1600	All
12 June 2012	1400 – 1500 / 1500 - 1600	All

The reason as to why we aim to complete the core of our project during the June Holidays was because it would be when most of us are free and are thus able to commit ourselves to the project as compared to when school reopens where we will have other commitments such as our academics and CCAs.

Entry 8: Meeting with Mentor (5)

8 May 2012

Today, the entire group met up within the school library to have a group meeting where we mainly discussed the idea of the "table" aquaponics set up for our invention.

As mentioned previously, there are quite a bit of advantages with regards to a "table" aquaponics set up for our invention, such as this set up being able to provide optimum support for the leca tray, reducing the storage space and allow for more customisation to the set up as compared to previous designs. However, the entire group had uncertainties as this new design could just simply be a table, with the set ups placed above and below it.

Thus we discussed about further modifications could be made, to further improve this design as well as to make it not just a table put together with that of the aquaponics system. After much discussion, we have decided that for this design, instead of just putting the tray of leca at the top and the fish tank at the bottom with the tubing for the system running all over the place, we will drill holes into the top of the table to allow the tubing to pass through, such that it seems neat and presentable. Furthermore, this also empties up the rest of the table space for things to be placed on. This thus brings another additional plus point to this design where it allows for items to be stored on it. This itself is already a modification made to the table, which value adds our prototype.

At this time, we already had a table in mind that we could use and the next step was to start searching for external help who is able to advice us further as to whether this idea was feasible.

Entry 7: Meeting with Mentor (4)

26 April 2012

Today, we had a project meeting with our mentor, where we sat down and discussed about the first prototype design that we had.

We discussed about how the stand was to be made as the remaining components for that prototype could be bought and installed easily. However, in the end we scrapped this idea as well.

This is because of the fact that the stand that was to be created would not be strong enough to support the tray of leca. Furthermore, it is extremely costly to custom make the stands such that it is thin enough to clasp onto the fish tank and strong enough to hold on to the leca tray at the same time. Next, it only allows for minimal customisation, whereby we can only change the colour of the tray, and stand. We are unable to customise the size of the prototype where the size is fixed to that of the fish tank.

Since we have decided to scrap the above ideas, we then have to come up with new ideas that would work since we already have had experience with the previous prototypes. Through this session, we brainstormed on a few ideas, but ultimately, we decided on one idea that seemed feasible and practical. It was the idea of a table aquaponics set up. It was basically an idea of installing the aquaponics system onto a table where the fish tank would be underneath the table and the leca tray above the table.

This solves the problem of support for the leca tray, reduces storage space required for the aquaponics set up, as well as allows for a lot of customisation for the table, tray and even the fish tank. This allows our aquaponics prototype to integrate into households easily.

After the meeting today, we will be having another project group meeting among the group members to discuss further on the potential of this design.

Entry 6: Meeting with Mentor (3)

4 April 2012

Today, we had another meeting with our mentor after we passed the preliminary round of the Projects Competition.

In this meeting, we discussed about how our project will progress thereafter and also the feasibility in building of the prototypes that we have designed previously. Regarding the direction of our project, we basically set a timeline up for ourselves as to when each stage of our project must be completed by.

Here is our timeline:

April (Finalising of prototype design, materials that are to be used)

May (Contacting of external help, preparation of materials) 

June (Building of prototype)

July (Semi-Finals)

Regarding the building of the prototypes that we have designed previously, our group has decided to scrap the prototype design with the "terraces" formation. Here's a picture of that design:

The reason why we chose to scrap this design was due to a few reasons. Firstly, the design was not feasible. Besides just the lica sliding along, the hook might not be able to support the weight of the lica at all resulting in the entire prototype to fail. Secondly, the time taken for the water to travel one cycle around the various terraces would take too long and also there is a chance that water will remain stagnant because water will only travel when the first terrace is full. This will also result in the lack of nutrients by the fish waste for subsequent terraces as they might already be used up by the plants in the first terrace. Furthermore, our project emphasises a lot on simplicity on the process of the creation of the prototype and this design is quite complicated. Last but not least, plastic is used for the creation of the terraces and it is hard to find the suitable type of plastic for the terraces.

After this meeting, project members have gone back home to check out the feasibility and practicality of the other prototype design.

Entry 5: Meeting with Mentor (2)

19 March 2012

Today we had a meeting with our mentor to discuss about the prototypes we have used and their effectiveness. We managed to choose the prototype ideas to work on and finalise these prototype designs with our mentor’s suggestions.

The first prototype that we chose:

Basically, the most significant design feature in the prototype would be the tray. The tray would be rectangular in shape and this allows water to flow around it equally, ensuring effective and fair plant growth. The tray is filled with leca, which are small and ball-like and unlike soil, it does not contain small harmful particles that may poison the fish tank and harm the fish. There are holes in-built into the tray which contains filter such that the filtered, clean water can re-enter the tray via gravity. The tray is supported by stilts, which are attached from the top of the fish tank to the tray and support the tray directly above the fish tank. The water is first pumped into the tray, then after flowing to the end of the tray, the water is filtered before re-entering the tank.

The second prototype that we chose:

This prototype utilizes trays placed on the exterior of the fish tank to transport water throughout the system. The trays wrap around the sides of the fish tank, which helps boost aesthetics and support. The trays are supported by hooks which cling on to the top of the fish tank, though we are still researching more efficient methods for attachment. There is also an in-built filter incorporated r to filter water before it re-enters the tank. Also, the trays, like the first prototype design, are filled with leca and in each of these trays, different types of plants/herbs can be grown. We have come up with 2 designs for the base of the tray:

First, we have the gently sloping design. This design allows water to flow down the trays quickly with the help of gravity, which saves time and energy. Furthermore, with a gentle slope, leca will not be transported with the water to one side of the tray and retain their positions.

Second, we have the “rice terrace” design.  This base design contains steps of different elevations. This allows water to flow down the trays with energy exerted from the pump as well as gravity, which also saves time. However, this type of base can retain leca more securely, with leca being retained on each step of the base due it not being directly sloped diagonally.

Water is first pumped into the tray at the highest point of the tank, in which water will flow down each of the trays and finally, upon reaching the end of the last tray, water is filtered then pumped back into the tank and as long as the pumps are switched on, the cycle is continuous.

Thus, these 2 prototype designs were our finalised prototype ideas that we would work on and modify in the future.