Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Team H&H Rc Baja: Chassis & Suspension, John Huff

All Undergraduate Projects

An RC car needed to be created to meet set requirements to compete in the annual American Society of Mechanical Engineers RC Baja Competition. Students of the Mechanical Engineering Department of Central Washington University developed an RC car that has working suspension/ chassis size to hold a all components of a working RC car with a floating rear end. This RC car needed to meet set requirements to compete in the annual American Society of Mechanical Engineers RC Baja Competition. The requirements relative to the suspension/chassis is that the RC car must not exceed a weight of 10lb, must not …

Rc Baja Drivetrain And Steering, Jacob Swift

All Undergraduate Projects

The goal of this project is to construct a small remote-control vehicle that is capable of fluid, controlled and precise movement. In order to allow the smooth movement of an RC Car through an obstacle course, the back wheels of the car must be able to receive power and the front wheels must be able to turn. This chassis and suspension that supported these assemblies was designed by project partner Sean Gordon. Design requirements were as follows:

• Drivetrain and Steering systems must weigh a combined

• Drivetrain must produce a maximum output speed >=20mph

• Turning angle of no less than 45 …

Rc Baja: Drivetrain And Steering, Mathew Morgan

All Undergraduate Projects

The RC Baja competition is a contest where undergraduate mechanical engineering students design, build, and compete against one another. The objective of this competition is to create the most efficient RC car possible. A gear train analysis was done and showed an 8:1 gear ratio would be the most efficient ratio due to the chosen motor having a higher torque output. Also, a stress analysis was done and showed that 2011 T3 aluminum passed the stress and weight criteria. These analyses ensured the RC Baja car was efficient. Most of the parts for the drivetrain and steering subassemblies were machined …

Rc Baja Suspension And Chassis, Sean A. Gordon

All Undergraduate Projects

Students at Central Washington University were challenged with constructing a RC Baja car capable of competing against other universities from around the state as a comprehensive senior project. These projects were completed in teams of 2 separated into the suspension and chassis, as well as steering and drive train. Completion of this car requires the ability to complete several tests the measure each component of the car working in unison. Testing begins with a straight-line sprint to determine the top speed of the car; this test will be followed by a slalom test to determine steering capabilities. The final test …

Jcati Crusher Drive Train, Matthew Denchel

All Undergraduate Projects

This project is sponsored by JCATI (Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation) to research and manufacture a machine to recycle strips of carbon fiber from retired aircraft wings. The drive train powering the crushing wheels was not delivering enough power into the crushing wheels to completely delaminate the strips of carbon fiber. Another issue experienced was the spur gears transferring power between crushing shafts failed.

This issue was first approached by analyzing the gear reduction ratio powering the crushing wheels. Then the next analysis was performed to find the amount of torque required to delaminate the carbon fiber. The minimum …

Rc Baja: Drivetrain, Rachel Krill

All Undergraduate Projects

Students and faculty of the mechanical engineering department of Central Washington University annually host an RC Baja challenge each spring, testing a RC car in three events: slalom, acceleration and Baja. The RC car that was tested in these events was designed, engineered and manufactured in teams of two teammates. The work was divided by choosing one teammate to work on the drivetrain and the other teammate to work on the chassis and steering. Twelve different analyses were performed to ensure the RC car was optimized and functional. These analyses used FBD’s, statics, mechanics of materials and dynamics to ensure …

Rc Baja Independent Suspension And Chassis Design And Development, Joseph Fritz

All Undergraduate Projects

The goal of this project is to develop an RC car to compete in the MET RC Baja competition. A car will be constructed to be as lightweight, durable, and fast as possible while abiding by ROAR (Remotely Operated Auto Racers) regulations. As such, suspension, steering, chassis and drivetrain systems will need to be devised to form a complete vehicle. The chassis must provide mounting points for all other components of the vehicle and provide a rigid platform in order to create a stable vehicle. The suspension must operate smoothly, allowing for at least 1 inch of ground clearance, …

Rc Baja, Cam Jamison

All Undergraduate Projects

To satisfy the Mechanical Engineering Technology program requirements a senior project was accomplished with an RC car build. An RC car was designed, manufactured, and tested to meet all requirements set forth by American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) RC Baja competition. A two-person team was assembled to build the RC Car. Teammate Paul Lervick was responsible for the suspension and chassis components and the other was responsible for the drivetrain and steering components. During the fall quarter drawings and general designs were created. Many different RC cars and motorized vehicles were referenced when initially coming up with aesthetic ideas. …

Balsa Wood Vertical Lift Bridge, Emeri Wilson

All Undergraduate Projects

How can college students demonstrate the cumulative knowledge and skills acquired during their time in the Mechanical Engineering and Technologies program at Central Washington University? Students were asked to complete a senior project to display their skills, in this case a Balsa Wood Bridge was selected to highlight the student's capabilities. The ability to design, manufacture and test the Balsa Wood Bridge draws from competency in Strength of Materials, and Statics, specifically, truss analysis. This along with experience in computer modelling programs such as Solidworks and MDsolids, and manufacturing experience in the CWU Woods lab led to the completion of …

R/C Baja: Drivetrain, Connor T. Donovan

All Undergraduate Projects

The Central Washington University Mechanical Engineering Technology Department hosts an annual R/C Baja competition in which R/C cars fabricated by student teams are put through a series of courses and tests to determine which team's vehicle is best. The goal of this project was to create a functioning drivetrain that conveys power from the battery to the wheels and provides control of the vehicle. A list of requirements for the drivetrain was created to ensure that the vehicle will not only function, but that it will actually succeed in the competition. These requirements included that the vehicle must achieve a …

Team H&H Rc Baja Drivetrain, William T. Hedlund

All Undergraduate Projects

A need for a drivetrain and steering system that could provide locomotion and directional control for the H&H RC Baja racecar was needed. The RC Baja event is a competition hosted by the CWU ASME club in which teams of engineering students compete against each other to test the effectiveness of the respective designs. The car needed to be able to compete in three events: a drag race, solemn course, and a Baja event. This was accomplished by designing and manufacturing several parts of different materials utilizing a range of manufacturing techniques to produce sub-assemblies and that made up the …

Jcati Carbon Fiber Recycler: Oven Enclosure, Margarita Romero

All Undergraduate Projects

Central Washington University partners with Boeing and is funded by the Joint Center of Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI) to develop a mechanism that takes carbon fiber wing trimmings from Boeing that are resin coated and recycles carbon fiber. This is done by crushing the wing trimmings and then putting it into a 500°C oven to melt off the resin. This project focuses on the enclosure for the oven and making sure precautions are met such as having the outside surface be less than 45c through heat transfer analysis, argon fills enclosure in 13 minutes through fluid dynamics analysis, and 99% …

Ljm Rc Baja Vehicle Project Chassis And Suspension, Paul Lervick

All Undergraduate Projects

An RC car was designed, analyzed, and manufactured to compete in the ASME RC Baja competition. The focus was to optimize the suspension and chassis components to minimize the weight while maintaining the structural strength of the components which would intern supplement the overall speed and stability of the vehicle. Other components were the responsibility of the teammate Cam Jamison. To complete this there was extensive research done on Traxxas RC cars and what went into making a high-performing vehicle that would compete well in the 3 races that comprise the competition (slalom, sprint, and obstacle course). There were then …

R/C Baja Truck Suspension, Chassis And Steering, Ryan Lafrombois

All Undergraduate Projects

The ASME RC Baja Challenge is an annual competition that the Central Washington University Mechanical Engineering and Technology (MET) department takes part in. Senior level engineers divided the work between the drivetrain and the chassis/suspension while designing and manufacturing to meet a set of requirements. Next, a device was to be developed to be able to withstand the extreme forces to be successful in the competition at the end of the year. The process would require that the students use their acquired knowledge and skills to design, manufacture, and analyze a capable device. Designing involved the completion of 12 analyses …

Rc Baja Engineering Report, Matthew Hart

All Undergraduate Projects

The ASME RC Baja is a competition that tests engineering students’ ability design, build, and test an RC car. The vehicle then competes against other engineering student’s RC cars. The objective is to manufacture the most efficient and cost-effective RC Baja car.

During the first quarter of senior project, the student’ engineering skill was applied to designing an RC car that will be able to compete in a competition at the end of spring quarter. The student was tasked with using all the information from the classes the student had taken previously at Central Washington University and design and build …

Jcati Carbon Fiber Recycler: Oven Heating System, Sean Tomkins

All Undergraduate Projects

What happens to carbon fiber from airline wing tips when their service life ends, and they get replaced? Throwing them away would be wasteful, the Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI) project can extract the carbon fiber from airline wing tips to be recycled. The JCATI project is a continuation from the work done by previous senior class engineering students and has a new set of issues to be addressed each year. This year there was a need for a new oven system for the JCATI carbon fiber recycler with this project’s focus being on designing the oven’s heating …

Carbon Fiber Recycling: Delamination System, Aaron Eastman

All Undergraduate Projects

The production of composite wings at Boeing causes carbon fiber waste and CWU Mechanical Engineering Technology students have been tasked in designing a carbon fiber recycling system. This project was brought forth and funded by the Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI). There are three subsystems that make up the carbon fiber recycling system, the delamination system, shredding system, and the oven. The purpose of this project was to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the delamination system of the carbon fiber recycling system. The old system reached approximately 30-40 percent delamination with one pass through the system, and …

R/C Baja: Suspension And Chassis, Caden Foster

All Undergraduate Projects

Students designed and manufactured an RC Baja truck to compete as a team in the annual ASME RC Baja Competition in various events and obstacles. A chassis and suspension system were required to house and secure each of the RC components to successfully compete and function as intended. The team designed a 1/10^th scale model RC truck through various analysis calculations and model mockup drawings to optimally perform and compete in a competition amongst other teams of designers. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) competition will include the straight-line dash, slalom, and Baja course time trial. This project …

Pc Rc Baja: Steering And Drivetrain, Pablo Ruelas

All Undergraduate Projects

Students participating in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) RC Baja competition are expected to work in teams of two to create an RC car from their own design to compete in a race and off-roading competition, as well as meeting the requirement of holding a top speed of at least 15mph. The students of team PC RC Baja used various methods to create the parts necessary for a functional RC car. Parts such as the gearbox and differential-box were 3D printed to incorporate their complex designs, and because they’re used as housing and not expected to withstand substantial …

Jcati Carbon Fiber Shredder 2022, Parker Sudderth

All Undergraduate Projects

This project is a potential solution to keep the carbon fiber waste from airplane manufacturing to a minimum, sponsored by the Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI). The design and assembly will be scalable for future industry application. The overall design of the whole carbon fiber recycler consists of a crusher, shredder, and oven. This report is on the caron fiber shredder module. The shredder is tasked with being able to shred the delaminated carbon fiber scrap that directly comes from the crusher. The operation must produce shreds in the proper size to be gathered and delivered to the …

Asme Rc Baja Racer, Chesna Kern

All Undergraduate Projects

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) holds a competition at their annual conference for college students to design an RC car that will compete in sprint, slalom, and obstacle course races. The RC Baja car was designed to complete every event in the competition with a focus on the obstacle course due to the anticipated impacts inflicted on the project car by jumps and other obstacles. The project was a collaborative effort. This presentation focuses on the chassis and suspension while Gizan Gando will present about the drivetrain. The drop and frontal impact test requirements guided the design process …

Jcati - Drive System, Tim Boswell

All Undergraduate Projects

Each year, Mechanical Engineering Technology students receive a grant from The Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI) to engineer a device that is capable of breaking down carbon fiber trimmings for recycling. The students who received the grant this year have redesigned portions of the existing system in an attempt to solve issues that have kept the system from working properly in the past. Though much collaboration between group members has been needed, each member has been responsible for their own portion of the project. The purpose of this portion of the project has been to address binding and …

Rc Baja-Drivetrain & Steering, Tucker Odegaard

All Undergraduate Projects

There was a need for an RC car that would turn the power of a brushless motor into torque to the wheels, in order for it to move forward and backward. The car needed to meet given requirements in order to compete in the annual American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) RC Baja competition. The team requirements were to reach a top speed of 20 mph, turn 60° in both directions, survive a three-foot drop, and spend no more than $500 total on the project. In order to meet the requirements, the device chosen was an RC Baja that had …

Pulse Decay Thermal Conductivity Device, Matthew Schrenk

All Undergraduate Projects

Currently, there are several ways in which thermal conductivity can be calculated or assessed on a given material. However, with each method of testing comes potential limitations such as size, material state, complexity, and time. The goal of this study was to develop a pulse heated thermistor that would reduce all four limitations, thus provide precise and timely results regardless of the material state and size. A thermistor is resistor which changes resistance in accordance to temperature. To achieve the design, heat transfer and electrical methods were applied. As with all resistors, heat is dissipated across the element and released …

Hydraulic Balsa Wood Rising Bridge, Kaitlyn Greenfield

All Undergraduate Projects

What is the solution to allowing tall vessels to navigate past a vehicle bridge that is less than 10 [ft] above the water? To answer this question, a balsa wood bridge was designed, constructed, and tested. The bridge needed to articulate by mechanical means, allow for travel through the bridge, and be able to withstand ample force while the main structure only being constructed of balsa wood and glue. The project was analyzed in sections. These sections include: the bridge structure and its members, the hydraulic lift, and the pins needed for the bridge and hydraulic lift to operate. The …

Rc Baja, Ryder Satak

All Undergraduate Projects

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) hosts an RC Baja competition yearly at Central Washington University where schools from around the state gather to compete. The competition is based and scored from three different events: drag race, slalom, and a Baja course. Performing well in both the competition and other various tests will deem the car successful. The differential and drive train are two important features that allow the car to function properly. Using Solidworks 3D software and a 3D printer, the engineers were able to design functional components. The differential is designed to allow the rear wheels to spin …

Articulated Balsa Wood Bridge, Isaac Chavez Ramirez

All Undergraduate Projects

The project chosen was the challenge of designing and constructing an articulating Balsa Wood Bridge that would withstand a minimum load of 18.9 kg. The first step was to find which design will best work for the requirements; a decision matrix has been used in this decision. Analyses were completed to find the geometry of each part that will support the load. The project construction was in sequences: the first sequence was the construction of each component, then the construction of 3 subassemblies, and finally was the construction of the entire project. The last part of the project was programming …

Jcati Base Plate, Jacob Atamian

All Undergraduate Projects

Students of the Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program at Central Washington University have contributed to an ongoing Carbon Fiber Recycler project funded by the Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI). The goal of this project was to modify the existing recycling system to produce a higher success rate of recycled carbon composite material. This report focuses on increasing the rigidity of the crushing gears so that the deflection occurring among the components during operation was below 0.005 inches to ensure proper operating conditions. The operating speed of the crushing gears was 2.5 rpm with a crushing load of 10,500 …

Mini Rc Baja Car, Jason Schindler

All Undergraduate Projects

Incorporating each aspect of engineering incorporated into a senior project is difficult. That is why an RC Baja car is a great senior project for Mechanical Engineering students. The approach that students must take to design, construct, and test the car is to set parameters, and to make overall goals that can be easily measured. These goals include, but not limited to things like a $700 budget and the ability to withstand a 1-foot drop to a flat surface on all four wheels simultaneously. First, the design must meet the specifications and rules that are set previously. This ensures that …

R/C Baja Chassis And Suspension, Donovan Dueber

All Undergraduate Projects

A team made up of two students have developed a unique design of a RC Baja Car to optimize functionality and performance. A Baja car is a remote controlled 1/10 scale car that is used for recreation or competition, usually meant for competing in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Baja car competition against various teams. The objective for the project was to create a unique suspension different from previous individual’s projects by creating a two-type suspension. This was completed by having a coil suspension in the front which allows more travel in the suspension of the car and …