MAE3 Pendulum Clock
MATLAB optimisation to save myself from the hole I dug myself into by being extra with the laser cutting.
| Where | MAE3, UC San Diego |
|---|---|
| When | 2025 |
| Tools | MATLAB, LaserCAMM laser cutting, 3D printing, drill press |
| Target | Two-second period |
| Result | Under 2.8% timing error |
In this class project I manufactured and analysed a pre-designed escapement-wheel pendulum clock with my own custom, irregular, monkey-shaped geometry. I laser-cut the yellow acrylic escapement wheel and pendulum, drilled and countersunk the tap and clearance holes, and wrote a MATLAB script to optimise the locations of eight adjustable weights across the pendulum body to vertically align the mass centre and preserve the necessary two-second period.
The optimised weight staging achieved under 2.8% timing error. I validated the theoretical period experimentally; the script and the testing process are both documented in the report below.