Pedal Box Jig

This year, we’ll be having different test cases that are necessary before we move on to finalizing and manufacturing pedal box designs. The test cases we want to validate/test are the ones listed below:

• Pedal Travel

• Pressure in brake lines

• Brake light Plan (Hall Effect Sensor)?

• Accel Pedal Plans (Hall Effect Sensor)

I started by looking at the design we used last year and noting down the important dimensions. Mainly the spacing between tabs and the pedal thickness. The current design is just for the brake pedal. We will design another similar jig for the acceleration pedal to validate the hall effect sensor we plan on using. My first time designing this jig I assumed we would be making it out of aluminum like the real pedal box from Daybreak. After the initial design review, we decided it would be more beneficial to 3D print this jig so we could quickly make changes to the design and reprint.

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I added fillets to increase the contact area between the tabs and the base, hopefully increasing the load the tabs can take before failure without making them unreasonably thick. For Daybreak, we used bolts for the pedal and master cylinders to hinge around. In this design, we decided that using an axle with retaining rings was better. This is mainly because we can control the exact length of a part we make easier than buying a specific length bolt.

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With this jig we plan to test pedal travel, pressure in the brake lines, and our brake light plan. We want to ensure that the pressure transducer we are using is able to record the pressure in the brake lines when the pedal isn't being pressed and when it is being pressed down fully. If it is accurate enough we could use this to actuate the brake lights, but if not we will use a pressure on/off switch. We will also print multiple pedals with the balance bar being mounted at different heights to test a 6:1, 5:1, and 4:1 pedal ratio.

Links to retaining rings:

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr

Assignee: @Jack Moyer