Engineering Commons^™

Dynamic Mode Decomposition Approach For Estimating The Shape Of A Cable, Yash Manik Chavan

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This study investigates the dynamic behavior of a flexible cable with heterogeneous stiffness using a data-driven approach. The study aims to develop accurate models describing intricate structures with rigid or flexible components. To achieve this, reflective markers were attached to the cable at equal spacing, and the motion was manually excited and captured using an 8-camera setup and OptiTrack's Motive software.

The cable displacement data at the marker locations were used as initial conditions for various Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) models. The performance of the data- driven cable model is compared against the performance of the DMD modeling approach, fitting …

Off Road Autonomous Vehicle Modeling And Repeatability Using Real World Telemetry Via Simulation, Matthew Paul Spencer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

One approach to autonomous control of high mobility ground vehicle platforms operating on challenging terrain is with the use of predictive simulation. Using a simulated or virtual world, an autonomous system can optimize use of its control systems by predicting interaction between the vehicle and ground as well as the vehicle actuator state. Such a simulation allows the platform to assess multiple possible scenarios before attempting to execute a path. Physically realistic simulations covering all of these domains are currently computationally expensive, and are unable to provide fast execution times when assessing each individual scenario due to the use of …

Development Of A Method To Model An Enclosed, Coaxial Carbon Nanotube Speaker With Experimental Validation, Suraj Prabhu

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Carbon nanotube (CNT) speakers operate on heat as compared to conventional loudspeakers that operate on vibration. CNT speakers are extremely lightweight, stretchable, flexible, and have high operating temperatures. Due to these advantages, CNT speakers are being considered as a viable replacement option for conventional loudspeakers. One such application is automotive exhaust noise control. The goal of this research is to design an enclosed, coaxial CNT speaker and to develop a modeling method to model this speaker using COMSOL Multiphysics.

As part of this research, an enclosed, coaxial CNT speaker was designed and manufactured for automotive exhaust noise control. The first …

Kinesthetic Learning Experience Simulation Using An Online Intervention To Improve Hands-On Ability, David Leach

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Students enrolled in mechanical and manufacturing engineering programs employ differing levels of mechanical aptitude and practical hands-on ability. Many students lack practical experience tinkering with mechanical devices and mechanisms prior to entering their post-secondary years. Student attention spans in traditional classroom environments appear to be decreasing with the ever-increasing addiction to immediate gratification provided by electronic devices, gaming software, and social media platforms. The question is then raised whether or not modern engineering students have the ability to improve mechanical aptitude by simulating a kinesthetic or tactile learning experience through an online tutorial. This project describes the development and testing …

Computational Ultrasound Elastography: A Feasibility Study, Yu Wang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Ultrasound Elastography (UE) is an emerging set of imaging modalities used to assess the biomechanical properties of soft tissues. UE has been applied to numerous clinical applications. Particularly, results from clinical trials of UE in breast lesion differentiation and staging liver fibrosis indicated that there was a lack of confidence in UE measurements or image interpretation. Confidence on UE measurements interpretation is critically important for improving the clinical utility of UE. The primary objective of my thesis is to develop a computational simulation platform based on open-source software packages including Field II, VTK, FEBio and Tetgen. The proposed virtual simulation …

Simulation Of Human Ankle Trajectory During Stance Phase Of Gait, Leslie Castelino

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

A simulation was developed which mimics the human gait characteristics based on the input of an individual’s gait trajectory. This simulation also estimates the impedance of the human ankle based on the ground reaction forces measured by the force plate. This simulation will accept alterations of the following parameters: total body weight, weight of the shank, weight of the foot, trajectories of the shank and foot of the individual and orientation of the force plate, which would generate a new gait trajectory for the ankle during the stance phase of gait. The goal of this simulation was to validate the …

Simulation Study On Effect Of Gas Charging And Egr In A Dual-Fuel Engine, Satyavenkata Naga Sai Sharath Gorthy

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Natural gas combined with diesel as micro pilot has the capabilities of achieving lower NOx and soot emissions. Optimization of the combustion process in engines with natural gas and diesel micro-pilot is essential to achieve higher efficiencies and loads. Gas charging (intake air boosting) and EGR are two technologies which when implemented in the natural gas-diesel engines, provide the opportunity to achieve higher efficiencies and loads and low emissions. Simulation study is one of the approaches to investigate the extent and effects of gas charging and EGR on the performance of the engine. With the rapid improvements over the past …

Modeling, Simulation And Control Of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Drive While Minimizing Energy Input Requirements Using Optimized Gear Ratios, Sanjai Massey

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This project was conducted to analyze (model and simulate) and optimize an electric motor based drive system to propel a typical passenger vehicle in an urban driving environment. Although there are many HEV and EV type systems on the market today, this paper chose the Toyota Prius HEV system as a baseline using a brushless AC motor.

Although a vehicle can be driven many ways, a more standardized Urban Dynamometer Driving Schedule, UDDS, was chosen to simulate real driving conditions. This schedule is determined by the US Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, and is intended to represent the city driving conditions …

Simulation Of Scalability For Autonomous Mobile Microgrids, Nathan Beyers

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Microgrids are small-scale, decentralized systems for generation, storage, and management of electricity to provide power within a local area. By establishing these microgrids using autonomous robots, they can be made safer and more easily reconfigurable. This thesis presents a plan and outlines the infrastructure needed for scaling up previous experimental work on such systems. This work brings together a variety of tools in the form of both software and hardware to set the stage for how further development can be completed. An architecture for physical testing has been built to validate the full potential of navigation and making electrical connections …