Engineering Commons^™

Solar Tracking Using A Parallel Manipulator Mechanism To Achieve Two-Axis Position Tracking, Joseph Otto Hubach

Graduate Theses - Mechanical Engineering

A novel solar tracker is presented that uses a parallel manipulator for the tracking mechanism instead of a traditional serial manipulator. The motivation is to create a solar tracker that displays the advantages of two-axis tracking systems (e.g., increased exposure to incident radiation, and enabling the use of efficient concentrating solar cells) while addressing some of the disadvantages of current two-axis tracking systems (e.g., the difficulties associated with having actuators mounted to moving elements within the mechanism). The mobility of the proposed parallel manipulator is examined using Grübler’s Criterion to establish that the manipulator displays the required two degrees of …

Design And Implementation Of A Controller For A Beaglebone Quadcopter, Peter Olejnik

Graduate Theses - Mechanical Engineering

Unmanned aerial vehicles are quickly becoming a significant and permanent feature in today's world of aviation. Amongst the various types of UAVs, a popular type is the quadcopter. Also referred to as a quadrotor, this rotor craft's defining feature is that it has four propellers. While its use is common in the hobbyist community, this aircraft's use within industry is blooming.

Presented are the efforts to design and implement a controller for a BeagleBone based quadcopter. As part of this effort, characteristics of the quadcopter were experimentally determined. These characteristics consist of physical properties of the quadcopter, such as the …

Implementation Of Space-Time Finite Element Formulation In Elastodynamics, Sidharth Ramesh

Graduate Theses - Mechanical Engineering

Elastodynamics is an academic field that is involved in solving problems related to the field of wave propagation in continuous solid medium. Finite element methods have long been an accepted way of solving elastodynamics problems in the spatial dimension. Considerable thought has been given to ways of implementing finite element discretization in the temporal dimension as well. A particular method of finite element solving called space-time finite element formulation is explored in this thesis, which is a relatively recent technique for discretization in spatial and temporal dimensions. The present thesis explores the implementation of the Space-Time finite element formulation in …

The Development Of Advanced Control Laboratories, Matthew Randall Winter

Graduate Theses - Mechanical Engineering

In this thesis, a series of advanced control labs have been developed for use in the senior/graduate-level advanced controls course. Advanced controls laboratories are non-existent at many institutions, and since hands on laboratories are such an integral part of engineering education it was decided to develop a few. The goal of these laboratories is to reinforce some of the more advanced topics in control theory. Topics of the laboratories include Parameter Identification, Eigenstructure Assignment, Linear Optimal Regulators and Linear Quadratic Gaussian Control with Loop Transfer Recovery. These laboratories are carried out on the Educational Control Products Model 210 Rectilinear Control …

Workspace Analysis Of A Linear Delta Robot: Calculating The Inscribed Radius, Michael Louis Pauly

Graduate Theses - Mechanical Engineering

One of the most important traits of a robotic manipulator is its work envelope, the space in which the robot can position its end effector. Parallel manipulators, while generally faster, are restricted by smaller work envelopes [1]. As such, understanding the parameters defining a physical robot’s work envelope is essential to the optimal design, selection, and use of robotic parallel manipulators. A Linear Delta Robot (LDR) is a type of parallel manipulator in which three prismatic joints move separate arms which connect to a single triangular end plate [2]. In this study, general inverse kinematics were derived for a linear …