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Charlie Wilson's War
Movie poster
CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR
Both the book (and the movie by the same name http://www.charliewilsonswar.net/ ) is a remarkable true story that makes you want to go out and do something that will make a difference. Perhaps what we are working on here at AIM could be that thing, that makes a difference. To illustrate a point, on one of the tables in AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL MAGIC's Technical Library, is jig saw puzzle box containing 1,000 pieces. There is an interesting picture on the lid, but when you open the box the 1,000 pieces are just a jumble of insignificant looking pieces. From any single piece or even a handful of pieces there no more than a clue as to what the finished product would be. The puzzle is there to remind me and the other team members that the seemingly unimportant or trivial tasks we need to accomplish are actual vital parts of the AIM Team's effort to create a guidance system, the AIM Truck AutoPilot and the HorseSense software it takes to run it, for US Army supply trucks. Our mission is to demonstrate a working system, that can be reproduced economically in large numbers, to save US soldiers lives and then adapted to save US citizens lives here at home. How important is AIM's mission to you? Is it important enough to you that you would be willing to do one or more of the thousand simple tasks that need to be done as part of the AIM Team? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teamwork
THE TRAIL OF DISCOVERY
The unwritten goal of many DARPA series teams was to show off the skills of the people on the team, to attract companies that will hire the team members with a good pay and benefit package. Blazing a new engineering trail also means that new solutions to problems discovered along the way are patentable. The licensing of patents can be profitable. Also along the way new needs are discovered which suggest products that need to be produced, any one of which could make a profitable business in itself. There is also the guidance system itself which needs to be produced in large numbers, installed, supported, maintained, improved, etc. which will employ large numbers of people. There are of course possible spin offs.
Jacobsen LF 3400 diesel powered fairway mower
SPIN OFFS
AIM has been asked by Pete McCall, Superintendant of the Crown Golf Course in Traverse City, MI to look at what it would take to automate the golf course maintenance machinery and the many tasks that go into operating and maintaining golf courses. Pete would like to sell the other golf courses the AIM automated machinery that he hopes to be demonstrating soon on the Crown Golf Course. Most golf course machinery is hydraulically operated which means many hydraulic hoses, which eventually fail and damage the carefully maintained roughs, fairways, Tee's, or greens. Producing electric driven machinery that eliminates the hot, toxic hydraulic oil is and adding an AIM guidance system to it is a way to begin commercialization of our designs. For those who would like to participate in this spin off from the DARPA race series, volunteers can work for shares or shares can be purchased. The AIM Team is also looking for suppliers/sponsors that would like to participate in developing this niche market. .
Jacobsen
THE TASK
Each mower needs to precision cut acres of grass on a golf course each day. The people who mow will tell you that it is fun for about the first three hours when you first get the job and from then on, it is tedious to do every day, all day long and is difficult to stay awake with the constant roar of the engine blotting out your thoughts. Golf course mowing while maintaining straight lines is the type of dull, dirty, and dangerous task at which robots excel.
GO ROBOTS !
Paul F. Grayson - Chief Engineer
AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL MAGIC, LLC
Racing to build technology that saves soldier's lives.
390 4-Mile Rd. S.
Traverse City, MI 49686-8411
(231) 946-0187, (231) 883-4463 Cell
pgrayson@aimagic.org
AIM: http://aimagic.org
Robot Club: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/robotcluboftraversecitymi/
CE Magazine: http://www.controleng.com/blog/1180000318.html
Charlie Wilson's War
May 7, 2008
Movie poster
CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR
Both the book (and the movie by the same name http://www.charliewilsonswar.net/ ) is a remarkable true story that makes you want to go out and do something that will make a difference. Perhaps what we are working on here at AIM could be that thing, that makes a difference. To illustrate a point, on one of the tables in AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL MAGIC's Technical Library, is jig saw puzzle box containing 1,000 pieces. There is an interesting picture on the lid, but when you open the box the 1,000 pieces are just a jumble of insignificant looking pieces. From any single piece or even a handful of pieces there no more than a clue as to what the finished product would be. The puzzle is there to remind me and the other team members that the seemingly unimportant or trivial tasks we need to accomplish are actual vital parts of the AIM Team's effort to create a guidance system, the AIM Truck AutoPilot and the HorseSense software it takes to run it, for US Army supply trucks. Our mission is to demonstrate a working system, that can be reproduced economically in large numbers, to save US soldiers lives and then adapted to save US citizens lives here at home. How important is AIM's mission to you? Is it important enough to you that you would be willing to do one or more of the thousand simple tasks that need to be done as part of the AIM Team? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teamwork
THE TRAIL OF DISCOVERY
The unwritten goal of many DARPA series teams was to show off the skills of the people on the team, to attract companies that will hire the team members with a good pay and benefit package. Blazing a new engineering trail also means that new solutions to problems discovered along the way are patentable. The licensing of patents can be profitable. Also along the way new needs are discovered which suggest products that need to be produced, any one of which could make a profitable business in itself. There is also the guidance system itself which needs to be produced in large numbers, installed, supported, maintained, improved, etc. which will employ large numbers of people. There are of course possible spin offs.
Jacobsen LF 3400 diesel powered fairway mower
SPIN OFFS
AIM has been asked by Pete McCall, Superintendant of the Crown Golf Course in Traverse City, MI to look at what it would take to automate the golf course maintenance machinery and the many tasks that go into operating and maintaining golf courses. Pete would like to sell the other golf courses the AIM automated machinery that he hopes to be demonstrating soon on the Crown Golf Course. Most golf course machinery is hydraulically operated which means many hydraulic hoses, which eventually fail and damage the carefully maintained roughs, fairways, Tee's, or greens. Producing electric driven machinery that eliminates the hot, toxic hydraulic oil is and adding an AIM guidance system to it is a way to begin commercialization of our designs. For those who would like to participate in this spin off from the DARPA race series, volunteers can work for shares or shares can be purchased. The AIM Team is also looking for suppliers/sponsors that would like to participate in developing this niche market. .
Jacobsen
THE TASK
Each mower needs to precision cut acres of grass on a golf course each day. The people who mow will tell you that it is fun for about the first three hours when you first get the job and from then on, it is tedious to do every day, all day long and is difficult to stay awake with the constant roar of the engine blotting out your thoughts. Golf course mowing while maintaining straight lines is the type of dull, dirty, and dangerous task at which robots excel.
GO ROBOTS !
Paul F. Grayson - Chief Engineer
AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL MAGIC, LLC
Racing to build technology that saves soldier's lives.
390 4-Mile Rd. S.
Traverse City, MI 49686-8411
(231) 946-0187, (231) 883-4463 Cell
pgrayson@aimagic.org
AIM: http://aimagic.org
Robot Club: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/robotcluboftraversecitymi/
CE Magazine: http://www.controleng.com/blog/1180000318.html
Posted by Paul Grayson on May 7, 2008 | Comments (0)
Industries: Machine Control
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