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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Structural Health Monitoring Of Composite Parts: A Review, Jacob Pessin Jun 2019

Structural Health Monitoring Of Composite Parts: A Review, Jacob Pessin

Honors Theses

Structural health monitoring has the potential to allow composite structures to be more reliable and safer, then by using more traditional damage assessment techniques. Structural health monitoring (SHM) utilizes individual sensor units that are placed throughout the load bearing sections of a structure and gather data that is used for stress analysis and damage detection. Statistical time based algorithms are used to analyze collected data and determine both damage size and probable location from within the structure. While traditional calculations and life span analysis can be done for structures made of isotropic materials such as steel or other metals, composites …


Designing A Low-Cost Ultrasound Pulser, Andrea Huey Jun 2019

Designing A Low-Cost Ultrasound Pulser, Andrea Huey

Honors Theses

Ultrasound imaging allows for those studying living beings to see inside a subject without causing it harm. This allows for real-time images to be taken, leading to ease of observational research. However, while this technology is beneficial to those who utilize it, the devices used to create and receive ultrasound pulses can be incredibly complex, allowing for precise adjustment of the output signal and various other functions, and therefore expensive. The focus of this senior project is the design of a low-cost pulser for use with an ultrasound transducer. While it does not have all the high-level functions of the …


A Modular Data Acquisition Device And Biosignal Amplifier Design, Erin Bratu May 2019

A Modular Data Acquisition Device And Biosignal Amplifier Design, Erin Bratu

Honors Theses

The purpose of this research project is to revise a previous design of a modular data collection device and to develop a biosignal amplifier for use in EEG research. The primary goals of the device redesign were to address the challenges identified at the conclusion of the previous research and to either reaffirm or update various aspects of the implementation – primarily the main components that make up the device. The amplifier circuitry is designed to provide both amplification of the input signals and preliminary filtering of undesirable noise artifacts caused by common environmental sources. Both the collection device and …


Automated Greenhouse Watering System For Schenectady Arc, Lisa Gu May 2019

Automated Greenhouse Watering System For Schenectady Arc, Lisa Gu

Honors Theses

All people need to feel useful and able to perform productive jobs. Since 1952, the ARC has strived to provide people with developmental disabilities the resources, services, and support that enable them to advocate and participate within their communities. One way in which the ARC accomplishes this mission is by encouraging people with disabilities to develop skills and hobbies that give them independence and purpose. An integral part of their center is the greenhouse. Individuals at the Maple Ridge Center are responsible for operating the water system to irrigate the plot daily and ensuring that the proper amount of water …


Gesture-Controlled Quadcopter System, Wenhao Yang, Anthony Xu, Kendra Crawford May 2019

Gesture-Controlled Quadcopter System, Wenhao Yang, Anthony Xu, Kendra Crawford

Honors Theses

According to the statistic given by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 514 police officers casualties have been attributed to gunfire in the last decade(2008-2017). It is the leading cause of death among police officers and accounts for more than a third of the total 1511 police casualties in the past decade. In this project, we want to provide a safer solution to police officers that are surveying a building for one or multiple potential dangerous personnel. We are working to design and build a gesture-controlled quadcopter that can scout ahead of the officer and provide information about the …


Communication Debugging Platform, Husam Beitello Apr 2019

Communication Debugging Platform, Husam Beitello

Honors Theses

More and more products are becoming “connected” devices, integrating multiple communications subsystems into their design. These subsystems increase the complexity of a design, and require extensive testing and debugging before they reach an end user. The purpose of the project was to create a prototype for a peripheral device that enables bidirectional communication between a typical smartphone and another target device communicating using the infrared, Bluetooth, and/or CAN communication protocols. Such a device could then be used to debug the behavior of a product relying on these forms of communication, by running test procedures referred to as scripts from the …


Analysis And Optimization Of A Triple Notch Ultra-Wideband Antenna, Caleb D. Keathley Jan 2019

Analysis And Optimization Of A Triple Notch Ultra-Wideband Antenna, Caleb D. Keathley

Honors Theses

This paper analyzes a microstrip fed triple notch band Ultra-Wideband (UWB) antenna designed with an inverted pi slot and a Defected Microstrip Structure (DMS) Band-Stop Filter (BSF) from the design stage to the testing stage. This paper systematically steps through each phase of the antenna from simulation, to fabrication, and finally testing. The results of the simulation and testing phases are both compared to each other before comparing the entire project's results to the source paper's results. After determining the accuracy of the fabricated antenna, the paper discusses future avenues for optimization of an Ultra Wide-Band antenna.


Tracking Using Fusion Of Multiple Inertial Measurement Units, Jacob Reed Mccall Jan 2019

Tracking Using Fusion Of Multiple Inertial Measurement Units, Jacob Reed Mccall

Honors Theses

The objective of this thesis is to determine the effectiveness of fusing data from multiple inertial measurement units (IMU) to reduce bias and noise with an overall goal of achieving accurate tracking, which is the process of locating a body as it moves in a fixed environment. Every sensor is subject to noise, and each sensor has its own unique set of biases. The thesis presents a systematic overview of the sensors used in this research, which feature linear acceleration, angular acceleration, and a directional sensor, to form an inertial navigation system (INS). Sources of noise and bias that affect …


Effects Of The America Invents Act And Recent Supreme Court Decisions On Patent Law, Bridgett Roal Jan 2019

Effects Of The America Invents Act And Recent Supreme Court Decisions On Patent Law, Bridgett Roal

Honors Theses

Due to an interest in pursuing a career in patent law with an electrical engineering background, this thesis describes the 2012 America Invents Act (AIA), which made major changes to patent law in the United States including the switch from “first-to-invent” to “first-to-file” and the creation of the Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB), as well as several relevant key Supreme Court decisions, and explains the impact that these events have caused. Through interviews with attorneys and others in the patent law community, personal research and investigation, and data from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), it has …