The weather in Houston is so erratic that some electronic devices opted for early retirement. To no surprise, the “engineers” of ENGI 210 took advantage of the machines’ most recent life decisions to better understand their inner workings in an attempt to answer a simple question: why?
From initial observation, the subject appears to be fine. Discoloration indicates it had already passed it’s mid-life crisis, yet there were no signs of physical trauma.
Subject “L”
Removal of the cover panel revealed…screws…so many screws. Enough screws to raise concerns for the disassembly team’s personal health. It was as if the creator(s) of Subject “L” foresaw repairs and regular check-ups. The unyielding curiosity of the engineers allowed them to face the challenge head on without falter. The search for answers continued with the removal of a special purpose plastic housing, which revealed the presence of a hexagonal-shaped silicon with lenses located at angles which would allow the use of a laser to “burn” the ink onto the paper. The engineers spent quite a few minutes debating wether or not the lens, mirror, and laser assembly was part of the scanner system, until the visiting professor explained how some printers apply the ink onto the paper. Quite insightful, yet not the answer the team was looking for.
An answer to a different question.
The mirror assembly was removed from the plastic housing for further disassembly. This allowed the team to inspect the mirror’s brushless motor. A dead end in the search.
Un intento fallecido en la búsqueda de respuestas.
The team knew they had to find answers soon, or time would run out. They continued their search with another approach: disassembling the sides. The side panels had a combination of screws and tabs, an easy obstacle for any engineer to defeat. This revealed an array of components that have come to represent every mechanical engineer on the planet…
A gear train!
A lovely site to behold. The gears appeared to have been made out of Nylon, which can be recycled with relative ease (an apparent design decision by the creator(s) for the subject’s final resting ground). By tracing the wires on the gear train housing, the team discovered the motherboard of the subject.
The motherboard.
The team noticed certain anomalies on the brown circuitboard. There were some holes and labels for components, yet no components to be found. Could this be, the answer to our question? Excitement grew as the case was nearing a close. Unfortunately, the connections appeared to be complete which indicates the creator’s(s’) use of a single board for different subjects.
The time remaining on the case was running out, so the team scrambled to remove the most amount of screws in the hopes of solving the mystery.
The lowest layer of the subject was now exposed, and showed some signs of corrosion on the guide-wheel rods used to feed the paper accurately and smoothly.
Some minor signs of corrosion.
The corrosion could make the paper jam more frequently and create inconsistent printing, but it did not seem enough to be an issue in this case. The time left in the lab had run out, and the team failed to identify the source of the subject’s inability to resume service. To this day, the case remains open and may never be closed since the remains of Subject “L” have been scattered in the electronics garbage bins behind the OEDK.
