Design: The Beginning

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The Design Team is the second team of the EPICS Urban Farming Group. The Design Team deals with the construction and production of food derived from the aquaponics systems. They have constructed two separate prototypes within the project's current lifespan. The first prototype was a metal framed structure that housed two planting units. The second prototype was built out of a wood frame. The second prototype was then moved to the Purdue Aquaculture Research Lab. The most recent prototype has two plant trays, two pumps, and a 200-gallon tank. The 200-gallon tank is home to nine small bluegill sunfish that provide nutrients to the plants.

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Plans and Future Goals

 

This semester, we have been focused on two facets of our detailed design process: delivery of the final design and programming/fixing sensors for real-time monitoring of data when the final design setup is constructed in Gary, IN. The team is focusing on installation processes in the building, collecting resources and materials for installation, and lastly verifying the functionality of sensors for dissolved oxygen, pH, flow rate, and temperature.  The design team has also created a new team; the Education Team. This team is working with our project partner to create lesson plans and a structure for community education programs on the location of the final design in Gary, IN.