Thursday, October 1, 2009

Labeling stuff

I'm working with 3 or 4 Mindstorms NXT kits at a time, so the parts can get mixed around occasionally.

Because the NXT sensor/motor cables are all black, they're somewhat difficult to tell apart, and it's important at the end of the day for each kit to have the right assortment of cables: 2 of the 50cm cables, 4 of the 35cm cables, and 1 of the 20cm cable.

The way I can tell what goes where is to make two labels for each cable: one with the kit ID and another with the cable length on it.  So each cable is labeled "TPO1" and "50cm", for example.  Both labels are at the same end, for ease in sorting them. 


I used Brother TZ tape, 3/4 inches wide, red on white, with large lettering.  This tape wraps around the wire and sticks very well to itself.

A similar scheme will work to keep the USB cables from straying.  It might be useful to label the sensors and motors as well.

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