Welcome back friends! Today was another eventful day filled with multiple machine successes, CHOCOLATE, and a very special birthday! We have some guest bloggers here to talk about some of their favorite moments from today.
Sheng-Yau and Sophie: Infant Warmer
We walked into Hospital Nacional Pedro today without the faintest idea of what medical devices were in store for us. It soon became clear that there were far more devices to be examined than the four devices other members of the team had prepped for. We quickly separated into teams and worked alongside Christopher, a del Valle student, on an infant warmer. The infant warmer we worked on was able to turn on, but unfortunately was accompanied by a burning scent. After taking apart the device, we were able to determine that the problem was within the circuitry and not the heating apparatus. We found several burn marks on the circuit board and concluded that the overheating problem was due to faulty diodes and/or resistors, along with a broken off transistor. We did not have the replacement diodes, resistors, and transistor at hand to test our theory, so instead we used parts from another nonfunctional infant warmer. After mixing and matching parts, we turned on the switch and to our relief, did not smell anything burning. We performed a few more tests until we were satisfied that the device was safe and functional.
Niki and Leah: Bilirubin Lamp
Today we worked on fixing a bilirubin light to treat jaundiced babies. We partnered with Del Valle student, José, who was a wonderful asset with all of his mechatronics knowledge. The device we were remedying was somewhat functional, however some of the blue LEDs never turned on and others came in and out. After taking the device apart, we were able to replace the burned out LEDs and make better connections for the others. The box the device was built into made it difficult to access the electrical components, but we were eventually able to fix it and even more challenging get it to stay together after it was fully functional. Later, Ari was able to see the adorable, premature baby who would be treated by the light.
Today we worked on fixing a bilirubin light to treat jaundiced babies. We partnered with Del Valle student, José, who was a wonderful asset with all of his mechatronics knowledge. The device we were remedying was somewhat functional, however some of the blue LEDs never turned on and others came in and out. After taking the device apart, we were able to replace the burned out LEDs and make better connections for the others. The box the device was built into made it difficult to access the electrical components, but we were eventually able to fix it and even more challenging get it to stay together after it was fully functional. Later, Ari was able to see the adorable, premature baby who would be treated by the light.
Leah: CHOCOLATE
The Day
of Chocolate. This is one of my top five activities ever. We were able to see
how chocolate is made from the cacao starting from the original traditions the
Mayans used all the way until the modern methods that currently are used to
make chocolate. Along this tour through history, we made the traditional Mayan
drink, a Spanish drink, our own chocolates to take home, and chocolate tea. I
think I bought more chocolate in this store today than I ever have in my life—I
have one of everything to recreate this experience for my family (all while
wearing a chocolate masque)!
However, not everyone is destined for a future in artisan chocolate.......
Thanks to our devoted fans (shoutout to Dr. Russ and Dr. King). We'll be back tomorrow! Adios!
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