The sign was the first big project I helped Purdue Hackers with. Originally this was only as a consulting role, making recommendations for the original design in order to reduce the chance of failure. This eventually evolved in to a full design assistance role since the leaders of the project were still learning about mechanical and electrical design, and we needed some quick revisions.

The second version of the LED control board was my first big contribution, being a complete ground-up redesign that prioritized simplicity and safety over the original design. It swapped the screw connectors for WAGO lever connectors to make assembly easier and safer. It also redid the layout of all the components to remove the complex routing of the original board which was designed with a different routing ethos that caused undersized traces and lots of VIAs.

The second version of the frame and body of the sign was redesigned to be split in to smaller, more modular parts that avoided putting a ton of stress through the plastic and focused on speed and ease of manufacture over subjective aesthetics. Originally it featured a welded pipe frame that plastic parts would bolt to in order to hold the blocks in place, but it evolved in to using a frame made of both aluminum sheets and pipe that get bolted together to form a strong construction. This version is what stands today as the final version of this project