Hardware
A large factor for the implementation and technical side of Life Bulb is the hardware. Hardware is integral for understanding the ins and outs of our product, as well as its scalability and delivery. Through iterative hardware design, we were able to visualize and build a model that is consumer friendly, accessible, and aesthetically pleasing.
The life bulb Consumer Model
The Life Bulb consumer model was designed with three things in mind: Accessibility, Aesthetics, and Zero Electrical Power.The integration of Hardware with Wet Lab, coupled with Human Practices feedback strengthen the overall proposed Implementation for Life Bulb. A collection of expert opinions culminated in our decision to create a feasible consumer model that would be as accessible as possible. While keeping our constraints and objectives in mind, we brainstormed a plethora of varying internal mechanisms for our modular photobioreactor, including cranks, push-and-pull mechanisms, and physical shaking. We decided that the simplest option is often the most accessible: the button. The consumer Life Bulb is often described by our team as a "high stakes Tamagotchi". It requires daily care like a plant, however, all one has to do is push the button on the side of their Life Bulb daily. To read more about how to take care of Life Bulb, check out this Life Bulb instructional manual on the Communication page!
The aesthetics of the Life Bulb, of course, are also vital to the overall performance and marketing of the product. We opted for a clean, minimalistic design - this was helpful for overall aesthetics as well as functionality. It was important to ensure that the bulb was able to emit as much bioluminescence as possible. As you can see on the Implementation page, larger models of the Life Bulb are taller and wider, however, we have tried to maintain a large surface area to optimize the luminescence. On the other hand, for the consumer model, we aimed for a more ambient, soft light, with our signature mushroom shape. This was largely influenced through our work with Integrated Human Practices, who surveyed the general public on consumer acceptance of a GMO lamp.
Having zero electric power was the most challenging part of the hardware design. If we were looking to create an alternative to electrical light sources, our model had to be relatively self sufficient and not require an electrical source to run. Thus was born the idea of a "high stakes Tamagotchi". This also contributed to the model being overall carbon negative, given the photosynthetic capabilities of cyanobacteria, removing CO2 from the atmosphere and expelling O2.
The Life Bulb consumer model was designed for aesthetic purposes on SolidWorks. As shown, the bulb has a mushroom-like shape, a wide base for stability, and a button on the side.
The inner workings of the consumer bulb
While the primary focus of the hardware design was zero electrical energy, there were still a few requirements that we had to keep in mind for our model. These requirements were focused on biocontainment and keeping the cycle active in the container to ensure that our cells continue producing bioluminescence. The liquid media in the container needed to be aerated from time-to-time to ensure that cells were supplied with CO2, and ventilated to let the O2-rich air out. Another issue was cell settlement on the bottom of the container. The media needed to be mixed or shaken from time to time to prevent cells from concentrating at the bottom of the container, ensuring uniform bioluminescence.
The internal design is best explained through a series of steps, and their individual justifications:
Step 1: The button is pushed in, until the end of the air compression chamber, where it hits a stop.
The purpose of Step 1 is to provide air containing CO2 to the lamp. The button serves as a hand-operated piston, which compresses air in the container. The compressed air opens an outlet valve, which then pushes the air through an outlet tube leading to the air stone. Essentially, the air stone is a porous stone which forms bubbles out of air being fed into it. These bubbles serve to aerate the fluid in the container with CO2 rich air.
Step 2: The button is pushed in further to the next stop
Step 2 relates to the second requirement of the container, mixing the media. By pushing the button past the first stop, it activates a "push-turn mechanism". This mechanism features a ball bearing moving through a path, which will cause the successive shaft in turn to perform a 180 degree rotation.
While the pipe for the mechanism will move back and forth due to the path that the bearing is following, the shaft next to it will only rotate. This is because the two are connected by a single notch, which will also have a ball bearing on it on the mechanism's side so it can slide back and forth while causing the successive shaft to rotate.
The shaft is connected to a bevel gear, which in turn will rotate its respective piston. The piston is attached to a mixing attachment with blades, which will turn and mix the fluid in the container.
Step 3: The button is released
Step 3 is vital for the air compressor. When the button is released, the spring mechanism in the piston will cause it to return back to its original position. This will open the inlet valve, letting CO2 rich air through a dry particle filter and into the compression chamber closing the outlet valve, which blocks air going into the outlet tube.
Furthermore, the release of the button will cause the mechanism to turn an additional 180 degrees, completing a 360 degree rotation.
Materials List
| Quantity | Measurement | Material/Part | Material Justification | Part Functionality | 1 | EA | Alumnium Bevel Gear, SQ Notch | Aluminum is Recycled | Rotation of mixer blades |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | EA | Alumnium Bevel Pinion, SQ Notch | Aluminum is Recycled | Rotation of mixer blades |
| 0.03 | M | Aluminum Shaft, SQ Notch | Aluminum is Recycled | Rotation of mixer blades |
| 1 | EA | Aluminum Piston | Aluminum is Recycled | Air Compression |
| 1 | EA | Aluminum Inlet Valve | Aluminum is Recycled | Air Compression |
| 1 | EA | Aluminum Outlet Valve | Aluminum is Recycled | Air Compression |
| 0.06 | M | 1" Aluminum Pipe | Aluminum is Recycled | Air Compression |
| 0.04 | M | 1.5" Aluminum Pipe | Aluminum is Recycled | Push-turn rotation mechanisms |
| 2 | EA | 440 Grade Stainless Steel Bearing | Prevent corrosion due to moisture | Push-turn rotation mechanisms |
| 1 | EA | 440 Grade Stainless Steel Mixer | Prevent corrosion due to moisture | Mixing the liquid |
| 0.05 | M | 440 Grade Stainless Steel Pin | Prevent corrosion due to moisture | Mixing the liquid |
| 0.5 | M | Cast White Acrylic | Hard wearing, light weight, recyclable | Shell of the lamp base |
| 1 | M | Borosilicate Glass, Moulded | Durable, chemical resistance | Bulb of lamp |
| 12 | EA | #6 Bolt, Stainless Steel, 3/4" | Prevent corrosion due to moisture | Miscellaneous hardware of lamp |
| 14 | EA | Washer, Stainless Steel, 3/4" | Prevent corrosion due to moisture | Miscellaneous hardware of lamp |
| 1 | EA | Brass Automatic Air Vent | Durable | Release O2 rich air once pressure builds up in Life Bulb |
| 3 | EA | Dry Particle Filter | Filters dry particles | Filters dry particles before air enters outlet valve |
| 2 | EA | Rubber Gasket, 1" | Seals two surfaces | Ensures seal between mechanical and fluid components for mixer component |
| 2 | EA | Rubber Gasket, 1/2" | Seals two surfaces | Ensures seal between mechanical and fluid components for air inlet |
| 0.5 | M | PVC Clear Tubing | Constrained tube for compressed air | Transports air from inlet and outlet valves to air stone |
| 1 | EA | Air Stone | Porous rock | Inserts bubbles into fluid |
The Life Bulb - Architectural Model
Another way we envisioned our biological lighting system is as an ambient outdoor source of illumination in parks, boardwalks, backyards, campsites, outdoor venues in restaurants, and underpasses. It can be a warm, organic source of light for public settings. We have illustrated multiple visuals of possible lighting sources in outdoor settings, making sure to prioritize a large surface area and stable structure design.
LifePANEL
We wanted a large light source for big places. This panel will take the role of light poles by covering large areas. The panel is unique in that it contains a big volume of culture exposed to lots of sunlight. A bubbling system allows the liquid to circulate inside while letting the air out with a filter on the top.
LifeTUBE
To enable our system to work in as many areas and situations as possible, we took inspiration from tubular microalgae bioreactors. This flexible transparent tubes allow the culture to move around large distances in complex shapes while limiting the sections (covered from the public) needed for pumping. Air helps circulate the liquid while it moves around the system. This compensates for any areas with low solar light incidence and gives our system more versatility allowing it to work in any situation.
LifeCYLINDER
These devices allow for coverage of smaller areas. They act similar to a lava lamp by bubbling the content slowly keeping it from settling to the bottom. The top has a gas exchange area covered by a cap for aesthetic purposes.
Strategies for Biocontainment
Biocontainment is an integral part in hardware design. Our team explored multiple avenues for biocontainment, including a secondary container, closed system, and screw on/off mechanisms. Conclusively, our biocontainment strategy is comprised of valves, seperation of the fluid and mechanical components, and mindful material choices. The valves for inlet and outlet valves are filtered through a dry particle filter, which stops any dust or contamination from entering the system. The valve situated on the top of the life bulb is air pressure sensitive, and only releases air when the pressure increases. The fluid (top of the bulb) and mechanical (base of the bulb) components are separated by a secondary layer, which is bolted, screwed, and sealed into the sides of the fluid container. The parts intersecting both layers, which are the air input and mixing attachment, are sealed at each side to avoid leakage between containers.
Future Plans
Our future plans for hardware include a larger integration of the feedback we've recieved through our meetings with various professionals and companies, namely Nyoka and Leela Shanker. We hope to be able to develop a lighting model for the Life Bulb, which will include an illuminance distribution and visual for the Consumer Model in ambient spaces, and for the Architectural Models in outdoor, dark spaces. This will help us better forsee the applications in which our product can be used, and provide a better visualization of the luminescence to potential customers.
In order to measure the luminescence of the media, we are hoping to create a method that does not constitute a need for a luminometer, which can be highly inaccessible to many. During our meeting with Nyoka, we spoke about potential methods for measuring bioluminescence, and they brought up the idea of a black box, or black plate reader, which would create a contrast agains the source of bioluminescence. Our future plans include standarizing a black plate, as well as creating a software that is able to produce a quanitifiable number for the luminescence quanitity. The last part is vital, as most, if not all, of the literature search for our hardware model procured papers with arbitrary or relative luminescence or brightness units, which cannot be used in an illuminance distribution.
We have also considered the idea of experimenting with different promoters, namely circadian, in order to create a product that is illuminated at certain times in the day, and this is something we will potentially explore in the future.