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Articles 1 - 12 of 12
Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Pvcrov : An Experimental Platform For Multi-Robot Control Systems, Nicholas Prince, Gregory Roos, Jennifer Semones, Chase Traficanti
Pvcrov : An Experimental Platform For Multi-Robot Control Systems, Nicholas Prince, Gregory Roos, Jennifer Semones, Chase Traficanti
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
As the field of multi-robot control systems grows, the demand for flexible, robust and precise multi-robot testbeds increases. Up to this point, the testbeds that do exist for testing multi-robot controllers are often expensive, hard to deploy, and typically constrained to a single plane of motion. These constraints limit the capacity to conduct research which is why team Autonomously Controlled Electromechanical Systems (ACES) has created the PVCROV system. PVCROV is a low cost, underwater platform for testing multi-robot control systems. By utilizing an underwater environment, ACES created a testbed that is not constrained to a single plane of motion. Additionally, …
Investigation Of Thermal Properties And Latent Heat Reduction Mechanisms In Nanofluid Phase Change Materials, Aitor Zabalegui
Investigation Of Thermal Properties And Latent Heat Reduction Mechanisms In Nanofluid Phase Change Materials, Aitor Zabalegui
Mechanical Engineering Master's Theses
The thermal properties of paraffin-based nanofluids have been examined to investigate the use of enhanced phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal energy storage (TES). PCMs are promising for TES applications, but low thermal conductivity limits their rate of heat exchange with a working fluid. The nanofluid approach has been established as a method of thermal conductivity enhancement, but effects of particle addition on other thermal properties affecting TES are relatively ignored. Significant reduction in latent heat of fusion below traditional effective medium theory has been observed in nanofluids. An experimental study of paraffin nanofluids, containing various diameter multi-walled carbon nanotubes, …
Quikchill : Thermoelectric Water Cooler, Franz Louie Chua, Brandon Ohara, Rachel Reid, Bernadette Tong
Quikchill : Thermoelectric Water Cooler, Franz Louie Chua, Brandon Ohara, Rachel Reid, Bernadette Tong
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
Motivated by the increasing residential energy utilization projections and the fact that water and ice dispensers consume 20% of total refrigerator energy, a thermoelectric water chiller was designed to provide a more energy efficient alternative. Implementing the chiller under the sink provides a convenient means to source cold, filtered water, thereby eliminating the need for water and nice dispensers as well as filtering pitchers. The cooling chamber design integrates thermoelectric modules (TEMs), which operate on the Peltier effect to cool filtered water down to 14 [degrees] C. The implementation of TEMs reduced current dispenser energy consumption by 82.4%, from 91 …
Design, Fabrication, And Analysis Of A 3u Cubesat Platform, Todd Chun-Van Osdol, Charles Dorsey, Jake Hedlund, Thomas Hoye, Owen Jacobs, Kadja Klarreich-Giglio, Elliott Martin, Michael Ruiz, Michael Schlesselmann, Zachary Singh
Design, Fabrication, And Analysis Of A 3u Cubesat Platform, Todd Chun-Van Osdol, Charles Dorsey, Jake Hedlund, Thomas Hoye, Owen Jacobs, Kadja Klarreich-Giglio, Elliott Martin, Michael Ruiz, Michael Schlesselmann, Zachary Singh
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The goal of this project is to develop a 3U CubeSat nanosatellite bus capable of short duration technology verification experiments while providing compelling handson student education opportunities. This 3U CubeSat platform has been prototyped by the design team in order to demonstrate its capabilities. This spacecraft, the Unspecified Payload Active Attitude Control Nanosatellite (UPAACN), is designed to perform a 3-6 month technology verification experiment for a NASA test component and an SCU single-axis attitude control system (AACS) in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). This project builds upon the flight heritage of SCU's Robotic Systems Laboratory (RSL) and improves its satellite development …
Formula Electric : Powertrain, Mark Allison, Bryan Bidwell, Stuart Hopson, Jackson Smith, Carlos Streegan, Dominic Villa
Formula Electric : Powertrain, Mark Allison, Bryan Bidwell, Stuart Hopson, Jackson Smith, Carlos Streegan, Dominic Villa
Interdisciplinary Design Senior Theses
The Santa Clara Formula Electric team designed, and manufactured a powertrain for an electric racecar according to the rules prescribed by the SAE International Formula Electric competition. The powertrain is divided into subsystems: the battery pack, battery pack cooling system, motor controller, and the motor. The battery pack was constructed, but full electrical connection of all cells were not made. The pack was not integrated with the motor and motor controller. In addition, due to time constraints, extensive testing could not be completed.
Project Omoverhi : Low-Cost, Neonatal Incubator, Richard Fong, Guillermo Gallardo, William Jeffery, Danny Maeda, Gabriel Romero
Project Omoverhi : Low-Cost, Neonatal Incubator, Richard Fong, Guillermo Gallardo, William Jeffery, Danny Maeda, Gabriel Romero
Interdisciplinary Design Senior Theses
Project Omoverhi, since its beginning in 2010-2011, has been focused on creating an incubator that has the capability of operating completely off grid. This year the project has been focused on redesigning the original system to reduce the cost to approximately $1000. In addition to this we have designed and implemented a control system that enables the user to set a desired temperature which can be maintained to within 1 degree Celsius. Before the project is able to be completed further work must be done. The thermal storage system that was initially proposed by the original team still needs to …
Thermoelectric Cookstove, Christine Horman, Matthew Lee, Mark Wagner
Thermoelectric Cookstove, Christine Horman, Matthew Lee, Mark Wagner
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
A fuel efficient cookstove tailored to the needs of Nicaraguan small business owners that incorporated insulation and thermoelectric power generation was built and validated. There is a 4 inch layer of pumice rock insulation around the combustion chamber, which significantly reduces convective heat losses to the environment. The stove's ventilation system is powered by the electricity generated by thermoelectric generators. Preheated air is forced into the combustion chamber, which increases the combustion efficiency, reducing the fuel consumption and the harmful smoke produced. Through various testing methods, we found that the controlled airflow to the charcoal fuel allows the stove to …
The Squad : Santa Clara Quadrotor Autonomous Drone, Jacob Adams, Peter Baumgartner, Mark Johnson, Michael Mccormick
The Squad : Santa Clara Quadrotor Autonomous Drone, Jacob Adams, Peter Baumgartner, Mark Johnson, Michael Mccormick
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
We have constructed a quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that could be used to supplement emergency response personnel, including police and military, when in the field. The SQUAD focused primarily on designing and constructing a sound structure for the UAV, as well as beginning controls work, which will be continued by another team at a later date. This quadrotor UAV has a video camera to provide a live video from its point of view to the user. It carries a global positioning system (GPS) to provide information on its location, and to navigate to waypoints in the immediate area. The …
Cerberus : A Human Powered Vehicle, Colin Austin, Miles Graugnard, Max Herrmannsfeldt, Dane Kornasiewicz, Leif Kjos, Terra Oldham, Toban Platt, Theodore Schapp, Sean Smith
Cerberus : A Human Powered Vehicle, Colin Austin, Miles Graugnard, Max Herrmannsfeldt, Dane Kornasiewicz, Leif Kjos, Terra Oldham, Toban Platt, Theodore Schapp, Sean Smith
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
A recumbent trike was designed and built for the ASME Human Powered Vehicle Challenge held at San Jose State University in April of 2013. The vehicle was designed to be low cost for use by commuters and as primary transportation in developing countries. The vehicle placed 11th overall in the competition out of 29 teams, and scored 8th in the innovation event, which was its best ranking out of the 5 individual events.
Phase Change Material In Automated Window Shades, Quinlan Adler, Jake Gallau, Alexander Zatopa, Ali Nash
Phase Change Material In Automated Window Shades, Quinlan Adler, Jake Gallau, Alexander Zatopa, Ali Nash
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The purpose of this report is to detail the development process for a phase change material window shading system, which stores solar thermal energy and later releases it indoors to provide nighttime space heating. To do this, wax-filled louvers with thermally absorptive front faces were developed and outfitted with a control system, which utilized historical weather data to orient the louvers to specific solar azimuthal angles, thus maximizing the thermal absorption. The system was tested against other common window treatments in a pair of thermally comparable testing structures, and was found to provide energy savings as high as 50%.
Icarus : Aerial Recording System, Jim Cochran, Nick Xydes, Jimmy Erskine, Audrey Kocmond
Icarus : Aerial Recording System, Jim Cochran, Nick Xydes, Jimmy Erskine, Audrey Kocmond
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The goal of Project ICARUS is to create an aerial videography system that is easy to set up, inexpensive, portable, and highly adaptable to any situation. This is accomplished by using a balloon mounted camera rig that is grounded by a number of winches. This system is able to obtain a higher altitude than similar systems and is much more cost effective because the system can be applied to a number of circumstances such as sporting events, disaster relief, wildlife videography, and aerial monitoring, to name a few. The ICARUS system allows the user to control the position of an …
Navigation & Control Of An Automated Swath Surface Vessel For Bathymetric Mapping, Ketan Rasal
Navigation & Control Of An Automated Swath Surface Vessel For Bathymetric Mapping, Ketan Rasal
Mechanical Engineering Master's Theses
With the abundant amount of water on the earth, the study of underwater terrain plays an important role in the use and sustainability of marine resources. A wide variety of technical systems are used to collect such bathymetric data, and autonomous vehicles are being explored as a manner in which to make this process more cost-effective. Students in Santa Clara University's Robotic Systems Laboratory are contributing to this effort through the development of an autonomous SWATH boat that can create such maps. As part of this thesis work, the navigation and control system of this SWATH boat has been significantly …