User:Sheehampster/ENES-100/Project 1

Week0 Preferences
Model railroad Linus Maize Fido

Week1 Narrative
Over the weekend, I researched how the locomotive for HO scale trains operate. Essentially, electricity travels from the power pack to the rails, where the metal wheels or metal frame transfer it to an electric motor. The motor is connected to a gear system so that as it turns, the wheels of the train turn. Based on which rail the current travels through changes which direction the train moves.

In addition I researched how an electric motor works for both DC and AC circuits. I felt this was a necessary first step because I have no technical experience at all and need to understand this concept. The movement of the train, as well as the movement of a possible turntable to be used for organizing the trains, operate utilizing DC motors.

Week2 Narrative
This week I experimented with the slip switches to learn which combinations of activating certain switches allow for the train to move and in which direction. I also helped label the wires that need to connect across the two parts of the train track.

Week3 Narrative
This week, I focused on learning a proper solder technique. We effectively used this to connect the wires to the track on the second module. Additionally, we soldered them to screws drilled into the board. We needed to get the power box to distribute power to all of the track at once, so we made a common connection point for them using a screw and soldered all of the wires together in parallel.

Week4 Narrative
We gave presentations on how to solder the wires to the track, and updated the wiki page for the model railroads. We wrapped everything up and are awaiting the next group to take on the task.