Okay, long story short: we've been through quite a few ideas about the design of our washing machine and have picked a favorite.
Right now, when astronauts are done with their clothes in space, they throw them out the airlock and let them burn up in the atmosphere. Obviously, this isn't an ideal way of dealing with soiled clothes, so a washing machine is necessary. That's where we come in.
One man decided to wash his shorts by putting them in a bag with soap and water and massaging the bag. We thought we might take this idea to the next level.
Basically, what we want to do is take away the solid metal drum of a regular horizontal axis washing machine and replace it with a flexible tub. Clothing, water and detergant will fill the tub completely and actuator arms will be driven by a customized ring-cam mechanism to massage the tub, creating the agitation needed to get the clothes clean. At the end of the cycle, a press will be applied to the tub and large amounts of water will be reclaimed.
That's a quick look into our chosen design. We've run this idea as well as all our other ones against each specified criteria, creating a Pugh Chart or decision matrix (included in our midterm report), and it looks like this idea is our best bet.
Anyway, the showcase is only four short weeks away and we're looking forward to getting to see everyone's projects and showing ours off as well.
Thanks for your interest,
~The Lamar Launderers
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