Engineering Commons^™

Design, Development And Evaluation Of The Ruggedized Edge Computing Node (Recon), Sahil Girin Patel

Theses and Dissertations

The increased quality and quantity of sensors provide an ever-increasing capability to collect large quantities of high-quality data in the field. Research devoted to translating that data is progressing rapidly; however, translating field data into usable information can require high performance computing capabilities. While high performance computing (HPC) resources are available in centralized facilities, bandwidth, latency, security and other limitations inherent to edge location in field sensor applications may prevent HPC resources from being used in a timely fashion necessary for potential United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) field applications. To address these limitations, the design requirements for RECON …

Molecular Dynamics Of High Temperature Hydrogen Attack, Mike Travis Bodden Connor

Theses and Dissertations

High temperature hydrogen attack (HTHA) is a damage mechanism that only affects carbon steel and low alloy material. Most of the data regarding HTHA are experimental-driven. Even though this approach has been successful, there are still much more things that the oil and gas industry does not understand about HTHA. The regions that were considered safe (below the Nelson curves) have experienced catastrophic failure. Our research consists of performing Molecular Dynamics (MD) and the Nudge Elastic Band (NEB) calculation of HTHA to better understand the atomistic behavior of this damage mechanism.

Novel Hitch Cargo Cart, Cesilio Sanchez Ramirez, Lance Haidet, Richard Lontoc, Tyler Selinka

Mechanical Engineering

This document presents the engineering design process used to develop, manufacture, and test a new and improved iteration of a hitch cart prototype. This process was performed by a team of four mechanical engineering seniors as part of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo’s senior design pathway. The goal of this project was to develop a sturdy and reliable iteration of our sponsor’s hitch cart prototype, that integrated the functionality of a vehicle hitch cargo platform and that of a height adjustable cargo cart into a single streamlined and easy to use product. This design could be used by …

Baby Soothing Device, Grace Kalene Mekrut, Matteo Gozzini, Miles Angel Ibarra, Christian Joel Roberts

Mechanical Engineering

This document is the official final design review for the Baby Soothing Device. This product is intended to help families sleep throughout the night by allowing a baby to be soothed back to sleep without constant and direct parental interaction. It is maintained by Mechanical Engineering students at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo for Dustin Yoder, the project sponsor. The purpose of this document is to present the design process from ideation to finished design in great enough detail that its manufacturing procedure may be replicated if desired. This document further explains all the research, testing, and benchmarks …

Novelty Ice Cream Assembly Prototype, Mason Sylvester, Logan Williamson, Alvaro Martinez, Adin Gilman-Cohen

Mechanical Engineering

Cool Beans USA is a novelty ice cream startup company founded by Keith Zachow. In the winter of 2022, our team began working with Mr. Zachow to develop a machine to automate parts of the production process for his product. This product consists of two hemispherical ice-cream cone shell halves filled with soft serve ice cream and pressed together. The assembled pods are around the size and shape of a small walnut and are intended to be sold in stores as a frozen finger food. At the time of project inception, this product was in its early stages and was …

Callaway Measurement Device, Andre S. Fisher, Roman Hays, Blake Sousa, Grant Gabrielson

Mechanical Engineering

The purpose of this document is to illustrate the Callaway Measurement Device senior project from start to finish. The challenge given to the team was to update and improve a gauge used by Callaway employees to measure the loft, lie, and face angle of their full spectrum of golf clubs. Once the team understood how the pre-existing gauge operates, the team conducted background research into other technologies that could improve the gauge. The team decided to digitalize the device amongst other tweaks to reduce error. Because the CAD files were not available for the pre-existing device, the team began reverse …

Modeling, Control And Estimation Of Reconfigurable Cable Driven Parallel Robots, Adhiti Raman Thothathri

All Dissertations

The motivation for this thesis was to develop a cable-driven parallel robot (CDPR) as part of a two-part robotic device for concrete 3D printing. This research addresses specific research questions in this domain, chiefly, to present advantages offered by the addition of kinematic redundancies to CDPRs. Due to the natural actuation redundancy present in a fully constrained CDPR, the addition of internal mobility offers complex challenges in modeling and control that are not often encountered in literature.

This work presents a systematic analysis of modeling such kinematic redundancies through the application of reciprocal screw theory (RST) and Lie algebra while …

Image Based Processing For Weld Defect Detection, Shems-Eddine Belhout

Masters Theses

There is a growing need for automation in the welding industry due to a growing shortage in skilled welders. TIG [Tungsten Inert Gas] welding, a method of welding that uses an electrode shielded by gas and is fed externally by a wire, is incredibly advantageous for its precise heat control. TIG welding is considered the standard for nuclear application which requires highly precise welds to be performed. Robotic welding can address this issue, and one major problem that occurs during welding is welding defects. Typical weld defect detection requires a highly knowledgeable welder or destructive and nondestructive evaluation. Destructive evaluation …

Utilizing Systematic Design And Shape Memory Alloys To Enhance Actuation Of Modular High-Frequency Origami Robots, Jessica M. Den Haese

All Theses

Shape memory alloys (SMAs) describe a group of smart metallic materials that can be deformed by external magnetic, thermal, or mechanical influence and then returned to a predetermined shape through the cycling of temperature or stress. They have several advantages, such as having excellent mechanical properties, being low cost, and being easily manufactured, while also providing a compact size, completely silent operation, high work density, and requiring less maintenance over time. SMAs can undergo sold-to-solid phase transformations, and it is because of these phase transformations that they can experience shape memory effect (SME); or the ability to recover from a …

An Application Of Optimized Bistable Laminates As A Low Velocity, Low Impact Mechanical Deterrent, Graham Lancaster

All Theses

This research considers the problem of using bistable laminates as a mechanical deterrent to the impending impact of a particle. The structure will be controlled through an algorithm that will utilize piezoelectric devices to activate them in unison with the bistable laminate to successfully deter. A novel experimental setup will be constructed to ensure that the bistable laminate stays fixed when acting as a mechanical deterrent. Piezoelectricity is the main driving force of the bistable laminate to morph and this study will use a Macro Fiber Composite (MFC) actuator that contains piezoelectric ceramic rods in a patch to transfer electrical …

Mechanics Modeling Of Non-Rigid Origami: From Qualitative To Quantitative Accuracy, Jiayue Tao

All Dissertations

Origami, the ancient art of paper folding, has recently evolved into a design and fabrication framework for various engineering systems at vastly different scales: from large-scale deployable airframes to mesoscale biomedical devices to small-scale DNA machines. The increasingly diverse applications of origami require a better understanding of the fundamental mechanics and dynamics induced by folding. Therefore, formulating a high-fidelity simulation model for origami is crucial, especially when large amplitude deformation/rotation exists during folding.

The currently available origami simulation models can be categorized into three branches: rigid-facet models, bar-hinge models, and finite element models. The first branch of models assumes that …

Improvements To The Automatic Calibration Of Digital Focusing Color Schlieren Systems, Robert C. Frazee

LSU Master's Theses

As a diagnostic method, Schlieren imaging offers the unique ability to visualize flows with a completely non-intrusive method. By visualizing small changes in the refractive index of a fluid, Schlieren imaging is able to visualize changes in temperature, pressure, and composition. While historic Schlieren methods have been limited to providing largely qualitative information, modern Schlieren methods are able to extract quantitative information from flow phenomena. This is possible through either Background Oriented Schlieren (BOS) or Digital Focusing Color Schlieren (DFCS) methods. While BOS is relatively flexible, it requires a large amount of computational effort to process each frame of captured …

Effect Of Passive Clean Air Injection Into The Wake Region Of A Moving Ground Vehicle, Angelos Kaminis

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The wake region on a moving ground vehicle is responsible for 70% of the aerodynamic drag when the speed of 90km/h is achieved. The topic of wake region manipulation has been revisited multiple times and with varying techniques. When manipulating the flow utilizing a fully passive method, pressure drag can be reduced, increasing the overall performance of the vehicle. To ensure high velocity fluid injection, a venturi shaped roof was implemented with an inlet size of 352mm x 12.7mm, and 2 outlets of size 88.011mm x 25.4mm resulting in an area of 4,470.959 for both inlet and outlet to maintain …

Tunable Filtration Of Particles During Dip-Coating, Connor Copeland

All Theses

When a solid substrate is withdrawn from a liquid bath a thin coating is deposited whose thickness is given by the Landau-Levich-Derjaguin (LLD) law. We perform an experimental study of dip coating of particle suspensions showing that particles of a given size can become entrained in the meniscus by the competition between viscous and surface tension forces. This is called capillary filtration and can be used as a tunable dynamic filter. For single particle suspensions, filtration can be in terms of either clumps or single particles, with the relevant entrainment points depending upon the rheology of the working fluid, either …

Aerodynamics And Vibrations Of A Helicopter Rotor Blade, Mohammad Khairul Habib Pulok

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The nature of the aerodynamic environment surrounding a helicopter causes a significant amount of vibration to its whole body. Among different sources of vibrations, the aerodynamic loading on the main rotor blade is the major contributor. Therefore, analyzing a rotor blade's vibration characteristics and aerodynamic behavior becomes essential. The vortex characteristics and the wake surrounding a helicopter rotor blade play an important role because they affect the aerodynamic behavior of the rotor blade. An advanced mathematical and computational model of rotor wake and blade vortex gives a better understanding of the helicopter rotor dynamics. This study develops computational models of …

Creep Behavior Of A Ti-Based Multi-Principal Element Alloy, Benjamin Elbrecht

All Theses

Abstract

The understanding of microstructural damage mechanisms is the foundation of better understanding existing materials and future material development. There are significant challenges to measuring these damage mechanisms in-situ as continuous observation of the state of the microstructure is difficult or impossible for many experimental setups. This thesis presents a method for measuring grain boundary sliding (GBS) and local strain concentrations in-situ via a Heaviside function based algorithm. GBS is the shearing of two grains along their shared grain boundary and is a common damage mechanism in creep which presents as a discontinuity that can be measured with a Heaviside …

Mechanizing The Removal Of Soil Between Peach Trees Planted On Berms, Coleman Scroggs

All Theses

Armillaria root rot (ARR), primarily caused by the soilborne fungus Desarmillaria tabescens, has become the number one cause for peach tree decline in the Southeastern United States. Research has shown that planting peach trees on shallow berms and excavating the soil around the root collar two years after planting lessens the effects of ARR. However, berms make orchard operations such as pruning, thinning, and harvesting more cumbersome and cause cultural concerns as channels of water at their base can lead to erosion and the slope of the berms leads to herbicide and fertilizer runoff. The objective of this research was …

Experimental Evaluation Of Heat Leak From Anti-Sweat Components Into Fresh Food And Freezer Compartments Of A Household Refrigerator., Delva Felissaint

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Condensation beads forming on outside surfaces around a refrigerator is an undesirable byproduct driven by the cold temperature exhibited throughout the unit. To combat this issue, anti-sweat components usually in the form of electrical heaters or tubes carrying hot refrigerant, bring heat to the cold surfaces to ensure their temperatures do not drop below the dew point. Some heat produced by the anti-sweat components may transfer to the interior refrigerated compartment. The purpose of this study is to quantify how much heat from the anti-sweat components are entering the fresh food and freezer compartments and what impact that has on …

Evaluating The Effects Of Granulated Rubber And Glass Fibers In Polymer Concrete As A Structural Material For Wafer Grinding Machines, Kevin Gabriel Kuehn, Philip Randall Streeter

Materials Engineering

Polymer concrete is a composite material used to replace cast iron and steel in wafer grinding machines for vibration damping. During the grinding and lapping processes of manufacturing silicon wafers, excessive vibrations may cause subsurface damage which requires additional polishing and reduces yield. Nine compositions containing various levels of granulated rubber and glass fibers were manufactured. CRM WRF-10 granulated rubber was examined at 0%, 5%, and 10% and Corning Cem-Fil glass fibers were added at 0%, 0.5%, and 1% by weight. Smooth-On EpoxAcast 690 epoxy resin was held constant at 16% for each composition. Crushed granite aggregate from Martin Marietta, …

Shallow-Water Wind Turbine Foundation, Andrew Walker, Nico Nani, James Cusanelli, Zachary Dunkelberger

Mechanical Engineering

Over the 2021-2022 academic year, we, the Shallow Water Wind Turbine Foundation senior project team, designed, manufactured, and tested a fixed bottom, sand mounted turbine foundation for the Cal Poly Wind Power Club’s Collegiate Wind Competition turbine. The foundation was restricted to certain material, installation, and geometric constraints outlined in this report, and needed to support the turbine under operating conditions including 22 m/s wind speeds. The design was analyzed using primarily a bearing capacity geotechnical analysis to determine final geometry and weight. The foundation was then manufactured using welded, custom carbon steel parts.

The foundation was inspected for geometric …

Mono Ski Trainer, Alexander Scott Hinerman, Shayla Anne Schoensee, Carson Rinkenberger, Barrett L. Osborne

Mechanical Engineering

The intent of this Final Design Report document is to provide the final design of a mechanical engineering senior project to our client and user Ethan Scott. The aforementioned project is a mono ski at-home trainer carried out by a group of students attending California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo over one academic year. This document contains the previously shared reports Statement of Work (SOW), Preliminary Design Review (PDR), and Critical Design Review (CDR) that provide background and details of our team’s design process to reach our final design. The as-built design and evaluation is described in the Final …

Bongoties Tying Machine Design, Zachary Stednitz, Tori Bornino, Jackson Mclaughlin, Shea Charkowsky

Mechanical Engineering

BongoTies are a reusable tool for cable management or general fastening, consisting of a strong rubber band attached to a bamboo pin. BongoTies is a company founded by our sponsor Tim Petros that sells its product on a variety of popular shopping sites, such as Amazon and eBay. Currently, the assembly process is to hand-tie the rubber band to the pin for every BongoTie. This is too slow to keep up with demand, requires a skilled worker with good dexterity, and can cause pain or injury if the rubber band snaps back onto the worker’s fingers. In this senior project …

Tholos - Eva Sample Location Calibration Device, James Verheyden, Kat Gipson, Julia Rios, Ben Trust

Mechanical Engineering

To support NASA’s upcoming Artemis missions, an extravehicular activity (EVA) photometric calibration scale was developed to replace the Apollo-era Gnomon device. The Gnomon was a gimbaled stadia rod mounted on a tripod which provided color and reflectivity photo calibration, vertical orientation, and solar shadow direction, to include in photos of lunar geologic samples and features. With over 50 years of innovation since the first Gnomon deployment on Apollo 11, this redesign of the photometric calibration scale will support NASA’s missions in the modern day. The Tholos™, named after the ancient Greek repository of standardized measures, consists of a quadrupedal design …

Galilean Cannon, Mariah Kirkham, Marcus Beloney, Jonas Honeyman, Joshua Pratt

Mechanical Engineering

This comprehensive report details our team’s senior capstone design project, which involved the design, construction, and installation of a Galilean Cannon exhibit—a linear momentum experiment involving rebounding balls—for the San Luis Obispo Children’s Museum.

This report is split into four parts, as follows. Part One describes the needs of our sponsor and target market, as well as background research on the concept. Part Two details the ideation, decision making, and proofing process leading to our Preliminary Design concept. Part Three discusses the preliminary analysis and plans for the final prototype. Part Four describes construction and testing of the operational exhibit …

Interactive Lego Girl Scout Arm, Chris Suzuki, Emi Okuyama, Bryson Shores, Karina Sandoval

Mechanical Engineering

This Senior Project Report document outlines the senior design project for Girl Scouts of California’s Central Coast (GSCCC) led by a team of four Mechanical Engineering students at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. The project encompasses the researching, designing, prototyping, and testing of a LEGO robotic arm for the Girl Scouts to learn more about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and provide support to each Girl Scouts cookie sales in their stores. Their goal was to build a LEGO robotic arm that will interact with customers at the Girl Scout stores and promote the girl scouts' interest …

Demonstration Triple Spool Turbine And Controls, Synnovea Alaina Wood, Marco Eston Salguero, Michael Bruce Megna, Wyatt Scott Conner

Mechanical Engineering

The demonstration triple-spool turbine and controls project consisted of the conceptualization, design, analysis, build, and test of a demonstration model of three concentric driveshafts, such as those used in conventional turbofan (or power generation turbine) engines. Specifically, our team focused on building a basic, portable, mechanical model of such a driveshaft assembly, while also developing the backend firmware/control and user interface software used to control it. This model was developed with the initial intent of use in the Cal Poly engines lab with a goal of remotely controlling the motors driving the driveshaft model by means of a USB cable …

Challenges And Signal Processing Of High Strain Rate Mechanical Testing, Barae Lamdini

Theses and Dissertations

Dynamic testing provides valuable insight into the behavior of materials undergoing fast deformation. During Split-Hopkinson Pressure Bar testing, stress waves are measured using strain gauges as voltage variations that are usually very small. Therefore, an amplifier is required to amplify the data and analyze it. One of the few available amplifiers designed for this purpose is provided by Vishay Micro-Measurements which limits the user’s options when it comes to research or industry. Among the challenges of implementing the Hopkinson technology in the industry are the size and cost of the amplifier. In this work, we propose a novel design of …

Assessment Of Mechanical Engineering Skills: A Synthesis Of Industry And Academic Graduate Level Curriculum Requirements, Francie Baker

Theses and Dissertations

Students who graduate with an advanced degree in mechanical engineering are a diverse group in their path to post-baccalaureate degree attainment. Some students choose to obtain their master’s or Ph.D. post bachelors, but before they enter the workplace. Others enter the workforce and return as full-time students or progress on their advanced degrees while maintaining part- or full-time employment. Current accreditation standards for undergraduate degree programs are part of a changing landscape of standards and professional requirements that have adapted and continue to adapt as programs prepare students to work in professional engineering fields. Advanced degrees do not have the …

Design, Construction, And Characterization Of A Test Stand Used To Test Filter Media, Adam W. Parsons

Theses and Dissertations

Air filters are routinely used to remove various aerosols ranging from radioactive particles to airborne viruses. The overall performance of a filter may be simplified to consider only two main performance characteristics: 1) the efficiency at which particles are removed by the filter, and 2) the filter’s resistance to air flow. Per the DOE Nuclear Air Cleaning Handbook, HEPA filters require a minimum filter efficiency of 99.97% for particles 0.3 micrometers in diameter. Understanding how filters will perform with respect to time and mass loading is essential towards building more robust filters that operate more efficiently and safely. Analyzing the …

Cal Poly Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge 2022, Sangmin Sung, Eddy Rodriguez, Travis Welch, Jeremy Baechler, Kevin Pauls

Mechanical Engineering

In this report, the Featherweight Cycles design team puts forth the scope and overview of their design project, discusses background research and competitor analysis, and presents the project’s final design and manufacturing plans. The overall goal of this project is to fabricate and compete in the Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge, hosted by the National Fluid Power Association. To better define the design process, the team researched previous year’s designs from Cal Poly, as well as winning designs from the last two years to form a baseline of knowledge about competing schools’ designs. After researching multiple design paths, Featherweight Cycles chose …