Reconvening after the winter break, we are now ready to start testing our prototype designs. This past week, we combed through our designs to create a bill of materials for each part. Our goal is to build crude prototypes to evaluate the overall effectiveness of each idea, allowing us to pursue the truly best design. While we wait for our parts to arrive, we will be generating thorough testing procedures for the four different mechanisms. These initial tests will reveal any design aspects we overlooked, and allow us to modify, improve, and address them in the final prototype. Since we spent no money in the fall quarter, we have a flexible budget that will enable us to meticulously build and test each concept. The BOM for the mass-rod-piston system prototype is around $110, while the BOM for the knee locking mechanism is around $90. These bills of materials include all hardware, microcontrollers, and electronics. Some of these orders will be shared across designs, to save on costs. Once the initial testing is complete and the perturbing mechanism is selected, we will revisit the design by updating the CAD and incorporating or deleting any nuances to maximize its performance, before fabricating the final prototype.