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Systems Engineering and Multidisciplinary Design Optimization

Western Michigan University

Honors Theses

Theses/Dissertations

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Land, Air, Sea, Rover (Lasr) - Unmanned Vehicle, Gabriel Prescinotti Vivan Apr 2018

Land, Air, Sea, Rover (Lasr) - Unmanned Vehicle, Gabriel Prescinotti Vivan

Honors Theses

This senior design project encompassed the optimization of a previously built quadcopter, as well as the design of new components for additional functions and increased range of operations. The previous vehicle was designed to operate as a helicopter, land rover, and submarine. Although the vehicle operates successfully in these three environments, it is not very successful on transitioning between them, i.e. cannot take off from underneath water. This year’s project goals included optimizing the current vehicle so that it could transition seamlessly between its functions and adding an additional function: to be able to rover at the bottom of a …


Cubesat Adcs Validation And Testing Apparatus, Jacob Stevens Dec 2016

Cubesat Adcs Validation And Testing Apparatus, Jacob Stevens

Honors Theses

The WALI team at Western Michigan University requested a test environment to validate their CubeSat’s de-tumbling control system and hardware. The test environment required a Helmholtz cage and spherical air bearing. The Helmholtz cage provides an adjustable magnetic field to simulate low earth orbit; the spherical air bearing simulates the friction free environment the CubeSat will experience in space. In conjunction, the two components create an adjustable system that simulates a satellite in low earth orbit.


Development Of Long Endurance Small Unmanned Aerial System, Andreas Quainoo Dec 2014

Development Of Long Endurance Small Unmanned Aerial System, Andreas Quainoo

Honors Theses

The purpose of this Senior Design Project is to design, build, and test an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). This will be used as a test platform for airborne electronics. The intended capabilities of this project include a 12-hour flight time, the ability to carry 5 lbs of payload, and the ability to recharge the batteries of electronics while in the air. With these parameters in mind, the focus of the design was on endurance, and, by extension, efficiency and durability. Upon completion, the aircraft and its onboard systems was constructed and evaluated. Secondary products of this project include an instrumented …