Our goals for this week were: finalize mounts so we can user test (intuitiveness of the slides), shell design finalization, & shell design prototyping.
We started out by finalizing the mounting system for our rooftop tent. After experimenting with and considering a number of options we settled on a cable operated system. This cable mount (below) will allow us to have adjustability when mounting to different kinds of racks. So, if a consumer has a square bar or round bar it will still work.
The next step was to grind the welds to remove the extra material. The images above and below show this transformation.
Grinding welds
Andre in all the shop gear
The next stage for the project was the creation of the shell. We decided on a trapezoidal profile for both aesthetic and function reasons. It will be more low profile and aerodynamic than a pure rectangular top like many existing rooftop tents.
Base and shell together
Landis showing how the shell will pop up with the extended base
Our next steps will be to finish the shell (add insulation and struts) and conducting user testing once we have the mounts installed. We are on track according to our project management timeline.
Lessons learned were similar to the base welding: taking a lot of care with measurements, keeping everything square, and ensuring parts are level at all stages.