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makqai

makqai / Roots

Engineering roots

Before AI: sensors, data acquisition, closed-loop and motion control, machine vision and safety systems, built for factories, laboratories and the field between 2003 and 2015. These are the physical-world engineering foundations I bring to Physical AI.

Alsons Auto Parts

2012–2015 · 11 projects

  • Cross-coil speedometer for two-wheelers

    Stepper motors had no room in a two-wheeler speedometer and could not survive vibration on Pakistani roads. A custom cross-coil-based motor was developed instead, highly resistant to heavy vibration.

    • Embedded
    • Motion control
    • Cross-coil motor
  • Virtual instrument cluster prototype

    A virtual instrument cluster prototype, exhibited at Pakistan Auto Show 2013, where it drew strong interest from Toyota Pakistan and Honda Atlas.

    • Embedded
  • CNG pressure sensor improvement

    A pressure sensor assembly made for Landi Renzo Pakistan was seeing high rejection. A month of joint R&D led to a machine with a Windows application for macroscopic analysis of the sensor.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Industrial automation
    • Windows application
  • Air leak testing plant (Omron)

    An air leak testing plant running at 5.0 bar for the Suzuki Bolan brake assembly, built on Omron.

    • Industrial automation
    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Omron
  • CO₂ circular welding plant

    A CO₂ circular welding plant performing 360° welding of a clutch-plate part for Suzuki Mehran and Bolan.

    • Industrial automation
    • Motion control
  • Bolt-tightening machine (Fatek PLC)

    A bolt-tightening machine with process verification for the brake assembly department, controlled by a Fatek PLC.

    • Industrial automation
    • Fatek PLC
  • Robo-Vision — Physical AI before it had a name

    2012 · Physical AI before it had a name

    An automatic meter-calibration robot that sees a printed dial and pointer through a USB camera, decides with fuzzy logic and acts by adjusting magnetic strength, in a closed loop.

    • Machine vision
    • Closed-loop control
    • Embedded
    • Computer vision
    • Industrial automation
    • C#.NET
    • C++.NET
    • USB camera
    • Image analysis
    • Fuzzy logic
    • Microcontroller
    • High-voltage driver circuitry
  • Positive-pressure clean room

    A positive-pressure clean room using a diaphragm-based pressure transducer, a filtered air blower and controlled exhaust points, running as a closed loop under PID control.

    • Closed-loop control
    • Sensing and DAQ
    • PID control
    • Pressure transducer
  • Humidity-controlled dark room

    A humidity-controlled dark room for the screen-printing department.

    • Closed-loop control
    • Sensing and DAQ
  • Gauss meter

    A gauss meter measuring magnetic field strength with a Hall sensor, a microcontroller and an LCD.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Embedded
    • Hall sensor
    • Microcontroller
  • Vertical EDM retrofit

    A retrofit of an ARD 50 A vertical electric discharge machine (EDM) with an ARM 32-bit microcontroller: X/Y/Z linear-encoder feedback, 0.5–900 µs PWM generation, periodic Z-axis motion control during discharge, electrode–specimen gap and sensitivity control, and coordinate recording on command.

    • Embedded
    • Motion control
    • Closed-loop control
    • Industrial automation
    • ARM 32-bit microcontroller
    • Linear encoders
    • PWM

Avalonsoft

2009–2012 · 6 projects

  • Zwick/Roell 1000 kN tensile machine retrofit

    A retrofit of a Zwick/Roell 1000 kN tensile testing machine, tendered by Pakistan Steel Mills. A .NET Windows application communicates over UDP with third-party DSP-based data-acquisition hardware (Vital Systems), with custom interface circuitry.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Industrial automation
    • .NET
    • UDP
    • DSP data acquisition (Vital Systems)
  • UTS 100 kN tensile machine upgrade

    An upgrade of a UTS 100 kN tensile testing machine, won through a bid at Pakistan International Airlines. Its electronics and software differ from the Zwick/Roell system.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Industrial automation
  • 5 kN tensile machine upgrade

    An upgrade of a 5 kN tensile testing machine for Hilal Confectionery.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Industrial automation
  • 1000 bar hydrostatic pressure plant

    A 1000 bar hydrostatic pressure plant, built as a joint venture with Max Industries. Avalonsoft designed the control and data-acquisition system: a closed-loop PID system for periodic pressurisation and release.

    • Closed-loop control
    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Industrial automation
    • PID control
  • Crane safety system

    A safety product for mobile cranes, with 100+ installations and commissionings across Pakistan.

    • Safety systems
    • Embedded
  • JANBAC cutting plant

    Installation and commissioning of a Siemens PLC for the JANBAC cutting plant at Dadex Eternit.

    • Industrial automation
    • Siemens PLC

Technoman

2003–2009 · 6 projects

  • Logit-Chart

    Temperature and humidity monitoring with up to 256 channels and a software replica of the Honeywell circular chart recorder. BINDER GmbH representatives praised it at Pakistan Pharmaceutical Expo 2006. Customers included GSK, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Abbott, Roche (factory, head office, warehouses), AGP, Barrett Hodgson, MSD, Searle, Sanofi Aventis, Pfizer (Wyeth), Brookes, Johnson & Johnson, Maple Pharma and Reckitt Benckiser, all in their Pakistan operations.

    • Sensing and DAQ
  • Logit-Web

    Remote web access to Logit-Chart temperature and humidity monitoring through web services.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Web services
  • Autoclave temperature recorder

    An autoclave temperature recorder for MSD Pakistan: up to 16 K-type thermocouple channels with real-time visualisation, compliant with 21 CFR Part 11.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Regulated compliance
    • K-type thermocouples
    • 21 CFR Part 11
  • Karl Fischer titrator

    A Karl Fischer titrator for moisture determination, installed at MSD Pakistan, Swiss Pharmaceuticals and Krka Pharmaceuticals. A PIC12F microcontroller controls a 0.125 µL precision dosing pump, with a Visual Basic 6 control application. Compliant with 21 CFR Part 11.

    • Embedded
    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Regulated compliance
    • PIC12F microcontroller
    • Visual Basic 6
    • 21 CFR Part 11
  • VOLCAL

    VOLCAL is a volumetric calibration system for laboratory glassware, combining a weighing device with a Visual Basic 6 application, built for MSD Pakistan.

    • Sensing and DAQ
    • Visual Basic 6
  • Zone Reader

    Zone Reader performs microbial analysis with an X/Y tray mechanism and a .NET application for image processing and statistical analysis. It was sold to Pfizer Pakistan and Bristol-Myers Squibb Pakistan.

    • Machine vision
    • Motion control
    • .NET
    • Image processing