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Spring 2018

ADDITIVE AND CUSTOMIZABLE HARDWARE

MOUNT

Jacob May, James Blaszkiewicz, Kevin Patzuk, Sara Sohmer

College of Engineering
Hammond Building
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA

Prepared for
Lockheed Martin Corporation

19 April 2018

The

Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA 16802
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ABSTRACT

Currently, mounts used for the building, maintenance, and repair of circuit boards at

Lockheed Martin are bulky, heavy, and not customizable for unique pieces of hardware. This

greatly slows the process for any kind of repair on a circuit board and building new circuit

boards. The solution to this problem is to create a hardware mount for these circuit boards

that is easier to use and therefore makes the repairing and building process faster. In order

to decide if our proposed design is truly more efficient than existing hardware mounts, we

evaluated the model with regard to the most important characteristics of the mount to a lab

technician. After exploring the tasks of a lab technician, we decided that adjustability,

mobility, sleekness, and simplicity were the most important characteristics of an efficient

hardware mount. We then created three concepts and scored them based on these qualities,

and prototyped the concept with the most highest score using additive manufacturing.

Then, we tested the design using mock circuit boards and judged whether the concept was

a feasible tool to implement at Lockheed Martin. We determined that our design can meet

the current needs for an adjustable hardware mount, but we did consider ways to improve

our design in future iterations.

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CONTENTS

1 EXISTING CONDITIONS 6
1.1 Introduction 6
1.2 Identification of Stakeholders 6
1.3 Tabulation of Stakeholders 7
1.4 Identification of the Need for Intervention 7
1.5 Summary 9

2 METHODS 9
2.1 Introduction 9
2.2 Establishing Assessment Criteria 10
2.3 Concept 01: The Router 11
2.4 Concept 02: Bibracchium 12
2.5 Concept 03: Lotus Ball and Socket 14
2.6 Scoring Table 21
2.7 Summary 22

3 DATA ANALYSIS 22
3.1 Introduction 22
3.2 Presentation of Intervention Prototype 23
3.3 Proposed Testing Plan 23
3.4 Proof of Technology 24
3.5 Predicted Results 24
3.6 Summary 24

4 CONCLUSIONS 25
4.1 Evaluation of Success 25

5 REFERENCES 27

6 APPENDIX A 28
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LIST OF FIGURES
No. Title Page

1 Current ‘helping hands’ mount 9

2 Picture of Concept 01 single armed mount 11
3 Picture of Concept 02 dual armed mount 12
4 Concept 02 in a different position 14
5 Loc Line coolant tube
15
6 Concept 03 Lotus with Ball and Socket Arm
16
7 The Lotus adjustable head 17
8 Top view of the plates of the lotus in different positions 18
9 Side view of Lotus head 19
10 Individual ball and socket 20
11 Base Plate with mounting holes and socket
21
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LIST OF TABLES
No. Title Page
1 Weighting of Stakeholders’ Needs 7
2 Specifications 10
3 Concept Scoring 22
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1 EXISTING CONDITIONS

1.1 Introduction

In this section, we will identify our stakeholders and discuss the current conditions.

Intervention is required because the current state of adjustable hardware mounts does not

meet the need of our stakeholders at Lockheed Martin.

1.2 Identification of Stakeholders

We are first year students in the Engineering Design 100 class designing a solution

to Lockheed Martin’s Additive and Customizable Hardware Mount problem shown in

Appendix A. Lockheed Martin needs a circuit board mounting mechanism that can be

additively manufactured and easily customized to fit hardware of any shape and size. Our

stakeholder is the lab technician repairing the circuit boards. The lab technician will be

operating the equipment alone. Lab technicians “specialize in a particular area of

engineering, and help engineers and scientists in the implementation of principals and

theories in their related field,” (Engineering Lab Technician…, 2010). Specifically, electrical

engineering technicians design, develop, and test equipment, evaluate and test products, as

well as adjust, test, and repair equipment.

Mobility of the hardware mount is important because the technician needs to

maneuver the circuit board into any position so that they are able to solder, reflow, apply

coating, and clean the board. Additionally, the hardware needs to be easily adjustable to

accommodate a circuit board of a non-standard size or shape. Ideally, the equipment would

mitigate vibrations in order to make the technician’s job easier. The mount should also be

simple and made of a limited number of parts so that printing time is minimized and

assembling the printed pieces is easy.

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1.3 Tabulation of Stakeholders

The stakeholder, a lab technician from Lockheed Martin, needs the hardware mount

to have certain qualities to be able to perform their specific tasks on the circuit boards. Our

group decided, after researching the tasks performed by a lab technician, that the needs are

adjustability, mobility, sleekness, and simplicity. Some of these characteristics are more

important to the lab technician than others, so we created a table, Table 01, to organize

them by weights of importance. A higher number under the characteristic signifies a larger

weight of importance to the stakeholder.

We ultimately decided that adjustability and mobility were more important than

sleekness and simplicity. This is because adjustability and mobility directly affect the ease

of use for the lab technician while working on circuit boards, while sleekness and simplicity

would more affect the installation of the hardware mount into the factory and the time it

takes to print the hardware mount. We agreed that if Lockheed Martin planned a space for

the hardware mount and allowed the printer to run after operating hours, it would be

relatively easy to overcome worse scores in sleekness and simplicity than in adjustability

and mobility.

Table 01 Weighting of Stakeholder’s Needs.

Stakeholder Adjustabilit Mobility Sleekness Simplicity Sum

y

Lab .35 .35 .15 .15 1

Technician

1.4 Identification of the Need for Intervention

Current conditions and designs at Lockheed Martin for their hardware mounts are
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not as efficient as they could be, and do not meet Lockheed Martin’s standards. Presently,

hardware mounts are not modular and are extremely bulky and heavy. These conditions

limit the amount of work Lockheed Martin’s lab technicians can do to the circuit board on

the hardware mount in a given amount of time.

Another major need for intervention is that current hardware mounts are not

additively manufactured (Qureshi, 2015). This also means that these hardware mounts are

not customizable. Since current hardware mounts are not additively manufactured or

customizable, this means that a hardware mount must be created for each kind of

hardware. Due to cost of materials and traditional manufacturing, this can quickly become

prohibitively expensive. An additively manufactured head could be designed for a unique

circuit board and printed in the lab within a few hours, costing only electricity and less than

five dollars worth of material.

The current hardware mounts take a long time to adjust relative to the potential

time it could take for a spring loaded design. This is because the current models, (Fig. 01),

require screws to be removed to loosen the arms to allow them to move (Qureshi, 2015). If

the arms were able to expand without the need to loosen and tighten screws, the time to

adjust them would be greatly decreased.

Another factor that inhibits the adjustability of current hardware mounts is that

most designs include alligator clips to hold the circuit board in place. Alligator clips do not

allow the entire face of the circuit board to be seen, and the clips might exert too much force

on a circuit board and damage it. Hardware mounts should be able to hold a circuit board

while maintaining the visibility of the entire face (Qureshi, 2015).

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Figure 01: The current available “helping hands” for working with circuit boards.

1.5 Summary

We have discussed the current state of Additive and Customizable Hardware Mounts

as seen in Appendix A and how they are inadequate to our stakeholders at Lockheed

Martin. Our stakeholders are the lab technicians repairing the circuit boards. We

determined our stakeholders’ needs in Table 01. The current mounting instruments are

bulky, heavy, expensive compared to additively manufactured hardware mounts, and not

very customizable.

2 METHODS

2.1 Introduction

After evaluating current circuit board mounts, and some generated concepts, we

individually developed several concepts. After reconvening, we narrowed down our

concepts to the three concepts listed below. With our stakeholders’ needs in mind, we made

sure that our concepts made the processes of soldering, reflow, cleaning, and coating circuit
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boards easier for our stakeholders. This is only possible if we design new mounts that are

customizable, sleeker, lighter, and optimized for additive manufacturing.

2.2 Establishing Assessment Criteria

Because the circuit mount needs to hold multiple types of circuits, the adjustability

of the mount will be observed by timing how long it takes to adjust the head of the mount

from the smallest to the largest setting. This will gauge the maximum time needed for any

adjustment made by the technician. The mobility of the arm of the hardware mount was

measured in degrees of rotation in three dimensions. The sleekness of the designs was

determined by weighing the concepts all with the same infill density, which is the amount

of filament used on the interior of a print. The simplicity of the design will be measured by

how long it takes to print and assemble each model.

Table 02: Specifications Table: Adjustability, Mobility, Sleekness, Simplicity

Need Variable Instrument Target Value

Adjustability Time to adjust from Stopwatch 90 seconds

one head to another

Mobility Degrees of rotation Plumb line 180° in three dimensions

Sleekness Massiveness Weight 250 grams (.55 pounds)

Simplicity Time to print and Stopwatch 12 hours

assemble

2.3 Concept 01: The Router

For our first concept (Fig. 02), we created a modular hardware mount with

customizable arms and heads. The entire mount was designed to be additively

manufactured, with the exception of several springs.

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Figure 02: Concept 01 “The Router” a single armed, rotating circuit board mount

The base of the mount is hollow and contains several springs. These springs are in

place to dampen possible vibrations that may occur while the lab tech is working on the

circuit board. This design feature minimizes any possible mistakes that may be caused by

vibrations. The springs can be purchased from McMaster-Carr. A pack of 12 springs that

work with this design, part number 9657K92, costs $12.24 (McMaster-Carr). The springs

are also a one time purchase for each base printed. Alternatively, given the capabilities, the

springs could also be additively manufactured. The springs are attached inside the base by

using a hook.

The mount itself is is composed of two main parts. The first arm, which is attached

to the base of the mount, is designed to rotate an entire 360°. This allows for complete

mobility. The arms are connected with pins, so the arms can easily be switched out to allow

for varying lengths of arms to fit the needs of the technician. The head is also

interchangeable. These parts can rotate up and down providing maximum mobility. Since

the heads are interchangeable, each head can be additively manufactured to fit the
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designated circuit boards. The mount can also be attached to a table by using various types

of clamps if needed.

2.4 Concept 02: Bibracchium

Our second concept (Fig. 03) was designed with two identical, adjustable arms that

protrude up from the base.

Figure 03: “Bibracchium” a two armed circuit board holder

“Bibracchium” comes from the latin “bracchium,” meaning ‘arm’, and the prefix “bi-”

meaning ‘two’. The plate on the bottom of Concept 02 is mounted to the table at a lab

technician’s workstation. This design features two arms that each have four joints of

rotation for increased mobility. This allows lab technicians to move the circuit board

up/down, left/right, and twist it 360° about the horizontal axis. By moving the arms away

from or towards each other, the technician can work on a larger or smaller circuit board,

respectively. This design does not require anything to be printed for different sized circuit
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boards; it can be adjusted to fit almost any circuit board.

Originally this design was only given one arm and was similar to Concept 01. A

second, identical arm was added for stability. As seen in Figure 03 and Figure 04, it has two

“L” shaped pieces to hold the circuit board from two opposing corners. This allows the

front and back of the circuit board to be seen completely. The two arm design holds the

board in place so that they cannot slip out and provides a sturdy grip so the lab technicians

can easily work on the circuit board.

Figure 04: “Bibracchium” showing mobility.

2.5 Concept 03: Lotus Ball and Socket

This concept (Fig. 06) for the arm was based on Loc Line coolant tubes (Fig. 05),
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which use a ball and socket joint to allow for flexibility ("Loc Line on Abrasive wheel,"

2016).

Figure 05, flexible Loc Line coolant tube on an abrasive cutting wheel

We designed the base to be small in order to occupy less space on the table, and it

has mounting holes for increased rigidity. This design is modular, because as many of the

individual ball and socket parts can be printed as needed. The ball is designed to fit into the

claw-like socket on the opposite end, and the Lotus head has a ball attached to the plate in

order to attach it to the arm (Fig. 06). The spherical nature of each joint compounds to

allow the Lotus head to be positioned in a continuous array of positions, and the sockets are

friction fit so the head will stay where it is placed.

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Figure 06: Concept 03 “The Lotus” with a Ball and Socket Arm

Additionally, the more ball and socket parts are added to the arm, the wider the

range of positions and the greater the adjustability of the arm itself. We designed the final

construction to be able to be disassembled, which allows for compact storage and

modularity. One could design a different interchangeable head for strangely shaped or sized

circuit boards, and simply snap the new head into place on an existing arm. This allows for

more reusability and shorter printing times, as opposed to printing an entirely new

construction for each unique circuit board.

The third concept features four identical plates connected to a mount by sliding onto
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a track. The plates are drawn together by a 7" x 1/16" rubber band that rests in a groove on

each of the plates. We had thought to use springs to create a force to draw the plate

together onto the PCB, printed circuit board, but incorporating a spring into the head would

make for an extremely complicated print. Hence, we decided to incorporate rubber bands

into the design, which create the same tension as springs to make the head more easily

adjustable. The Lotus (Fig. 07) is named for its resemblance to a lotus flower.

Figure 07: “The Lotus,” an adjustable head for the mount.

The Lotus is designed to be additively manufactured with two separate prints. The

four plates shown are printed on their side, stacked against each other as part of the same

print, while the base is printed separately. The plates each have a groove in the bottom

centered diagonally at 45 degrees from each of the sides of the plate. The base that holds

the plates includes a T-shaped rail which slides into a track on the plates. After printing all

of the pieces, the plates can easily be slid onto the track, which makes for a small assembly
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time. The T-shape of the tracks in the plates and the rails on the base secure the pieces onto

the base of the head, and allow for sliding into different positions (Fig. 08). This allows for

adjustability to accommodate uniquely sized circuit boards.

Figure 08: Top view of the plates of the Lotus in different positions

The four plates on the Lotus also feature a groove around the sides of each of the

plates. This groove is meant to host a 7" x 1/16" rubber band (Fig. 09). When the four

plates are attached to the base, the rubber band rests in the groove of two sides of each of

the four plates. The tension in the rubber band draws the plates toward the center of the

base.
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Figure 09: The 7" x 1/16" rubber band (white) resting in the grooves.

The ball and socket part (Fig. 10) is designed to be additively manufactured. It has

low draft angles, which are the angles from the vertical, perpendicular to the build plate.

Low draft angles remove the need for support material that would otherwise be wasted in

printing. Additionally, it has a flat base, so support is not needed on the bottom of the part.

The inner curvature of the socket matches the curvature of the ball closely to allow friction

to hold the individual joints in place when they are positioned. The upper parts of the claw

of the socket are chamfered so that assembly is easier, and this feature increases the range

of motion of each joint. The cylindrical interface between the ball and the socket distance

the socket from the top of the sphere to allow for a larger range of motion.

Figure 10: Individual Ball and Socket

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The base plate (Fig. 11) was designed to have a small footprint on the table, and has

mounting holes to allow the plate to be attached securely to a table or wall.

Figure 11: Base plate with mounting holes and socket

2.6 Scoring Table

After reviewing each of the designs, the team assigned values of ±1 or zero to each of

the designs for each category in Table 03. These values were determined by an assessment

of each concept. A focus group determined whether each concept was better (+1) the same

(0) or worse than (-1) existing conditions, using the specifications and target values shown

in Table 02. We then multiplied each of the scores by the assigned weight from Table 01 and

added the total scores under the “Sum” column. The team chose to create the model with

the highest sum, which was Concept 03.

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Table 3. Concept Scoring.

Concept Adjustability Mobility Sleekness Simplicity Sum

Score Weight Score Weight Score Weight Score Weight

01 -1 .35 +1 .35 -1 .15 +1 .15 0

02 0 .35 -1 .35 -1 .15 +1 .15 -.35

03 +1 .35 +1 .35 +1 .15 -1 .15 .70

2.7 Summary

We collaborated to design three concepts for an adjustable hardware mount that

was intended to be additively manufactured. “The Router” is a single arm design with

dampening springs in the base to mitigate vibration. “Bibracchium” is a dual-armed mount

designed to hold two corners of a PCB, of many sizes. “The Lotus” uses a rubber band to

tension four corner pieces to hold a circuit board, mounted on a ball and socket arm for

increased movability. We then scored each concept according to their adjustability,

movability, sleekness, and simplicity according to a benchmark.

3 DATA ANALYSIS

3.1 Introduction

In this section, we will discuss our decision in choosing Concept 03, how we will test

the model, the means by which we will physically produce the model, and our predicted

results.

3.2 Presentation of Intervention Prototype

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We concluded, based on the Concept Scoring Table (Table 03), that the third concept

was the best design to meet the needs of the client. It is extremely mobile, being

positionable in all three dimensions. The Lotus head allows for continuous adjustability

and the four cornered design allows for a tight grip on circuit boards of many different sizes

and shapes. The base of the arm includes four mounting holes, sized for ⅛ inch bolts, which

allow the arm to be mounted to a table or wall for increased stability.

Compared to the other concepts, Concept 03 satisfied the needs of the client the

most. It was more accommodating of unique sizes of PCB than either alternate concept, and

the head was able to be moved into more positions. It is vastly sleeker than current

alternatives on the market, barring some others that use a similar design to the ball and

socket. Concept 03 has a continuously adjustable head in conjunction with the ball and

socket arm, which is not currently available on the market. This concept is not as simple as

the other concepts, leading to a longer 3D printing time, however its modularity more than

compensates for its complexity.

3.3 Proposed Testing Plan

After concluding that Concept 03 was the most effective concept due to the results of

the scoring shown in the Concept Scoring Table (Table 03), we devised a plan to test our

concept. In order to test our concept, we asked a group of electrical engineering students to

test an additively manufactured prototype of Concept 03. We asked them to rate

adjustability of the head to fit a different shape of circuit board, how movable the head was,

and its sleekness.

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3.4 Proof of Technology

Our proposed intervention prototype was designed to be additively manufactured. It

has minimal draft angles and utilizes bridging, printing overhangs by connecting two

parallel vertical surfaces, to minimize the need for wasted support material. Additionally,

the ball end of the ball and socket part is flat at the base to provide adequate footing on the

print bed to remain standing for the entirety of the print. The individual parts of the head

can be printed on end, side by side on the same build plate all at once, which allows for a

smaller setup time compared to setting up and printing each part individually. Each part

can be printed and immediately assembled without the need for sanding, gluing, or

removing support material.

3.5 Predicted Results

After allowing the electrical engineering students to use the prototype to work on a

circuit board for about an hour, they described the prototype as, “fluid, mobile, and easy-to-

use.” While using the prototype, the students worked on soldering, reflowing electrical

components, cleaning, and applying conformal coating. These are all processes that

Lockheed Martin technicians are required to perform, as shown in the introduction section

of Appendix A.

3.6 Summary

In this section, we explained why we chose Concept 03, how we will test it, how we

will physically produce it, and our predicted results. Based on the Concept Scoring Table

(Table 03), we determined the Lotus meets the need of our clients the best. After creating a

prototype of Concept 03, we asked lab technicians to rate how easy it was to adjust the
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head to fit a different circuit board, how movable the head was, and its sleekness. Our

design was created to be easily assembled after printing. The parts do not need to be glued,

sanded, or have supporting material removed after printing.

4 CONCLUSIONS

4.1 Evaluation of Success

Our additively manufactured hardware mount was successful. Our design features

an inexpensive process to manufacture a hardware mount that is easily adjustable and

extremely mobile. Concept 03 exceeds the benchmark for the need of adjustability because

the plates on the head slide to accommodate different sized circuit boards. It also exceeds

the benchmark for mobility because the arm’s mobility is only limited by the surface it is

attached to, which means it will move at least 180 degrees in two dimensions. For the third

dimension of rotation, the head is able to rotate 360 degrees. Concept 03 fell under the

benchmark for weight, so it received a score of +1. This model did not meet the benchmark

for an 12 hour long print because the arm alone takes 8 hours to print, and the Lotus head

takes 5 hours with the settings we used for the prototype. These settings included

guidelines for layer height, density, and printing speed. Because the category that Concept

03 did not excel in had a low weight, it still scored higher than the other concepts.

Further investigations could help improve our design. A filament that is designed to

be more flexible would dampen vibrations that are commonly found in factory settings. One

example of a material with this capability is NinjaFlex, which is made from thermoplastic

polyurethane. NinjaFlex is “68% better than PLA,” a plastic that is normally used to print, at

resisting abrasion (NinjaTek, 2016). NinjaFlex is also resistant to harsh chemicals that may
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be used in coating circuit board chips. However, a notable drawback of NinjaFlex is its

pricing, as it is four times more expensive than PLA (NinjaTek, 2016).

Another way to improve our current design would be to research the possibility of

synchronizing the motion of the plates on the track so that they all move at once. With this

improvement, a lab technician could use only one hand to adjust the plates to fit a circuit

board instead of two. With the simpler method for inserting and removing circuit boards,

the time to adjust the head of the mount would be reduced.

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5 REFERENCES

Engineering Lab Technician: Job Description, Duties and Requirements. (2010, November

6). In

Study.com. Retrieved from

https://study.com/articles/Engineering_Lab_Technician_Job_

Description_Duties_and_Requirements.html

McMaster-Carr. Compression Spring: Music-Wire, Closed Ends, 2.188" Long, 0.59" OD,

0.51"

ID. In McMaster-Carr. Retrieved from

https://www.mcmaster.com/#9657k92/=1cdpijl.

NinjaTek. (2016, July 7). NINJATEK: The Market Leading Flexible Filament. In NinjaTek.

Retrieved from https://ninjatek.com/products/filaments/ninjaflex/.

Loc Line on Abrasive wheel [Photograph found in Loc Line Applications, Lockwood

Products

Inc.]. (2016, March 17). Retrieved from http://www.loc-line.com/applications/

Qureshi, Asim. (2015, October 20). 10 Best Soldering Fingers and Helping Hands. Retrieved

from http://wonderfulengineering.com/10-best-soldering-fingers-and-helping-

hands/.
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6 APPENDIX A