Engineering Commons^™

Autonomous Aerial Manipulation Using A Quadrotor, Vaibhav Ghadiok

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This paper presents an implementation of autonomous indoor aerial gripping using a low-cost, custom-built quadrotor. Such research extends the typical functionality of micro air vehicles (MAV) from passive observation and sensing to dynamic interaction with the environment. To achieve this, three major challenges are overcome: precise positioning, sensing and manipulation of the object, and stabilization in the presence of disturbance due to interaction with the object. Navigation in both indoor and outdoor unstructured, Global Positioning System-denied (GPS-denied) environments is achieved using a visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithm that relies on an onboard monocular camera. A secondary camera, capable …

Document Flash Thermography, Cory A. Larsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis presents the application of ash thermography techniques to the analysis of documents. The motivation for this research is to develop the ability to non-destructively reveal covered writings in archaeological artifacts such as the Codex Selden or Egyptian car- tonnage. Current common signal processing techniques are evaluated for their effectiveness in enhancing subsurface writings found within a set of test documents. These processing techniques include: false colorization, contrast stretching, histogram equalization, median altering, Gaussian low-pass altering, layered signal reconstruction and thermal signal reconstruction (TSR), several contrast image definitions, differential absolute contrast (DAC), correlated contrast, derivative images, principal component thermography …

A Two-Dimensional Numerical Simulation Of Plasma Wake Structure Around A Cubesat, Rajendra Mitharwal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A numerical model was developed to understand the time evolution of a wake structure around a CubeSat moving in a plasma with transonic speed. A cubeSat operates in the F2 layer of ionosphere with an altitude of 300 − 600 Km. The average plasma density varies between 10⁻⁶cm⁻³ − 10⁻⁹cm⁻³ and the temperature of ions and electrons is found between 0.1−0.2 eV. The study of a wake structure can provide insights for its effects on the measurements obtained from space instruments. The CubeSat is modeled to have a metal surface, which is a realistic …

Bayesian Data-Driven Models For Irrigation Water Management, Alfonso F. Torres-Rua

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A crucial decision in the real-time management of today’s irrigation systems involves the coordination of diversions and delivery of water to croplands. Since most irrigation systems experience significant lags between when water is diverted and when it should be delivered, an important technical innovation in the next few years will involve improvements in short-term irrigation demand forecasting.

The main objective of the researches presented was the development of these critically important models: (1) potential evapotranspiration forecasting; (2) hydraulic model error correction; and (3) estimation of aggregate water demands. These tools are based on statistical machine learning or data-driven modeling. These, …

Estimating Yield Of Irrigated Potatoes Using Aerial And Satellite Remote Sensing, Saravanan Sivarajan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Multispectral aerial and satellite remote sensing plays a major role in crop yield prediction due to its ability to detect crop growth conditions on spatial and temporal scales in a cost effective manner. Many empirical relationships have been established in the past between spectral vegetation indices and leaf area index, fractional ground cover, and crop growth rates for different crops through ground sampling. Remote sensing-based vegetation index (VI) yield models using airborne and satellite data have been developed only for grain crops like barley, corn, wheat, and sorghum. So it becomes important to validate and extend the VI-based model for …

Structural Identification And Damage Identification Using Output-Only Vibration Measurements, Shutao Xing

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This dissertation studied the structural identification and damage detection of civil engineering structures. Several issues regarding structural health monitoring were addressed.

The data-driven subspace identification algorithm was investigated for modal identification of bridges using output-only data. This algorithm was tested through a numerical truss bridge with abrupt damage as well as a real concrete highway bridge with actual measurements. Stabilization diagrams were used to analyze the identified results and determine the modal characteristics. The identification results showed that this identification method is quite effective and accurate.

The influence of temperature fluctuation on the frequencies of a highway concrete bridge was …

Zeolite‐Based Algae Biofilm Rotating Photobioreactor For Algae And Biomass Production, Ashton M. Young

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Alkaline conditions induced by algae growth in wastewater stabilization ponds create deprotonated ammonium ions that result in ammonia gas (NH₃) volatilization. If algae are utilized to remediate wastewater through uptake of phosphorus, the resulting nitrogen loss will hinder this process because algae generally require a stoichiometric molar ratio of N₁₆P₁. Lower ratios of N/P due to loss of ammonia gas will limit the growth and yield of algae, and therefore will reduce phosphorus removal from the water phase into the algae phase. In order to reduce nitrogen loss through volatilization, an ammonium selective zeolite, …

Low-Thrust Assisted Angles-Only Navigation, Robert W. Gillis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Tradition spacecraft proximity operations require large and expensive on-board sensors and significant ground support. Relative angle measurements can be obtained from small, simple, and inexpensive on-board sensors, but have not traditionally been used for proximity operation because of difficulty generating rang information. In this thesis it is shown that useful relative range data can be generated provided that the spacecraft is experiencing a small continuous thrust such as would be provided by a low-thrust propulsion system. In previous work range observability was shown with impulsive maneuvers. This thesis will expand this work to low-thrust spacecraft and will show how range …

Experimental Testing Of The Accuracy Of Attitude Determination Solutions For A Spin-Stabilized Spacecraft, Keegan P. Ryan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Spin-stabilized spacecraft generally rely on sun and three-axis magnetic field sensor measurements for attitude determination. This study experimentally determines the total accuracy of attitude determination solutions using modest quality sensors. This was ac- complished by having a test spacecraft collect data during spinning motions. The data was then post-processed to find the attitude estimates, which were then compared to the experimentally measured attitude. This same approach will be used to test the accuracy of the attitude determination system of the DICE spacecraft to be built by SDL/USU.

Discharge Coefficients Of Oblique Weirs, Samuel Egnew Tingey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Oblique weirs are those weirs placed at an angle with respect to the channel centerline. They can be used in canal applications where more discharge is needed, but there is limited freeboard. The discharge coefficients were determined for 54 different weirs by measuring total head for various flows over each weir. These weirs included sharp, half round and quarter-round-crested weirs. There were 18 weirs for each crest shape with three weir heights for each angle tested. The oblique angles tested were 10°, 15°, 25°, 45°, 60°, and 90° with respect to the channel centerline, with the nominal weir heights being …

Development Of A Reconfigurable Multi-Faceted Communications Device Using Partial Dynamic Reconfiguration, Richard Dunkley

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Supporting a variety of communication protocols has typically required extensive hard- ware and Input/Output (I/O) interfaces targeting each protocol specifically. Recent designs in the past ten years have created more dynamic approaches by using Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) and embedded hardware to implement or simulate previous hardware I/O designs. With the constant increase in FPGA and embedded technologies the capabilities of dynamic implementations have expanded. This report addresses the design of an up-to-date reconfigurable multi-faceted embedded device targeting recent technological advances in FPGAs.

A 6-Degree Of Freedom Static Thrust Stand Developed For Rc-Scale Jet Engines, Spencer Sessions

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The description of a portable 6-degree of freedom static thrust stand for RC-scale jet engines is reported. The stand includes three axial and three lateral load cells measuring static thrust with six degrees of freedom. A pitot probe with single axis position control placed perpendicular to exhaust flow measures stagnation pressure along the nozzle centerline. A pitot probe open to the inside of the engine nozzle normal to the exhaust flow and near the outlet measures static pressure. A digital scale measures fuel consumption. The engine is mounted with exhaust gases exiting upward avoiding ground effects and thrust acting downward. …

Simple And Appropriate Methods For Household Water Treatment, Morris Elya Demitry

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Shortage of drinking water is the big challenge for Sudan. The cost of water treatment is the main reason for using untreated water for drinking purposes in many urban areas in Sudan. Water born‐diseases (diarrhea, typhoid, etc) are common and there are many victims in unimproved urban areas in Khartoum (Sudan) due to poor or the lack of treatment of drinking water.

In this work, a simple and appropriate method (sand filter) for household water treatment was tested and developed. The main objective of using this method is to help people in urban areas without access to treated water to …

Heat Transfer Through A Rotating Ball Bearing At Low Angular Velocities, Sarah Isert

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Bearings are commonly used in mechanical systems when there are rotating parts in the system. For bearings that run at speeds above about 1000 revolutions per minute, such as those used in aircraft turbines, machining tools, and automotive engines, it is important to take into account the heat transfer through the bearing system due to friction. Heat transfer is generally not considered for applications where the bearing is rotating at low speeds, such as clocks and bicycles. However, for certain aerospace applications, such as precision instruments or wind turbines, the heat transfer through the bearing becomes relevant. The case where …

Theoretical Approach For Error Estimation Of Temperature And Thermal Conductivity In Uranium Dioxide Fuel, Adam John Gerth

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The knowledge of in-reactor thermophysical properties of nuclear fuel rods, which are usually composed of uranium dioxide (UO2) ceramics, is important for the safe design and operation of nuclear power plants. A two thermocouple method can be utilized to determine the thermal conductivity within the fuel rods by measuring rod centerline temperature and cladding temperature. Using this technique, Halden Reactor Project (HRP) has developed a correlation for thermal conductivity of UO2 as a function of temperature and burnup. This correlation for thermal conductivity was extracted from experimental data based on a constant thermal conductivity assumption of the fuel rod. However, …

Improving Concrete Containment Structures Associated With Fixed-Cone Valves, B. Skyler Buck

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Fixed-Cone valves are often used to dissipate energy and regulate flow at the low level outlet works of dams. Fixed-Cone valves, also known as Howell-Bunger valves, create an expanding conical jet allowing the energy of the water to dissipate over a large area. However, in many applications constructing the large stilling basin necessary for these valves is either not possible or not feasible. In order to reduce the relative size of the stilling basin, hoods or concrete containment structures have been used in conjunction with Fixed-Cone valves. This paper compares two methods of energy dissipation used in conjunction with concrete …

South Davis Sewer District Pump Station Hydraulic Capacity Evaluation, James W. Dixon

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In 2010, South Davis Sewer District (SDSD) determined that possible hydraulic problems existed in their various pump stations operating within their treatment plants. A hydraulic analysis was conducted for the pump stations to diagnose the problems and provide possible alternative solutions. This analysis was conducted by using hydraulic minor loss equations to determine the amount of flow that the pumps were capable of producing and then comparing those results to the required demands in the plants. In cases where the flows were lower than needed, alternatives were designed to provide the required flows.

In the south plant the pumps were …

Assessing Phosphorus-Transport From Biosolids Land Application Sites In Utah, Mohan K. Kumar

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Phosphorus Site Index (PSI) is a phosphorus transport assessment tool used to estimate the risk of P transport from soils. Various components, such as soil erosion, P fertilizer application rate, plant available P in soil, etc. that have an influence on P transport from a site, are weighted and given ratings, and a combination of these components are expressed as PSI. This study has considered two biosolids land application sites in Utah, which received biosolids amendments over time, to develop a specialized PSI for the state of Utah.

Phosphorus from land application of biosolids has been considered a potential risk …

Pavement Management Systems On A Local Level, Cristian A. Vasquez

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Roads are one of the most valuable infrastructure assets within a community. Proper maintenance of the roadway network can promote the prosperity of a community. In recent times maintenance has become much more difficult with the price of asphalt increasing drastically and city budgets contracting due to the economic downturn. With these conditions, the proper management of an agency’s street network is necessary. The use of pavement management systems provides the help needed in the preservation of the street network. The use of pavement management systems provides significant benefits such as identification of the most cost-effective pavement treatment actions and …

Remote Control And Automation Of The Crockett Canal Head Gates, Tyler Dean Richards

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In order to improve the control of the Crockett canal an automated control system for the head gates was proposed and an analysis of design alternatives was conducted. Design alternatives were analyzed based on the criteria of reliability, operational improvement, cost and safety. After the analysis was completed recommendations as to which type of automation system to install were made. A comprehensive design of the recommended design is included. The automation of the head gates has been separated into two phases. Items to be included in phase one are: retrofit each of the existing head gates with a multi-turn gate …

The Transfer Of Agricultural Water To Municipal And Industrial Usages, Dallin Paul Stephens

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The water that is available for beneficial use in Utah is quickly approaching full appropriation; water that has been claimed is nearing the amount that is available for use. The Division of Water Resources of the State of Utah has organized a three-part plan to "Plan, Conserve, Develop and Protect Utah's Water Resources." One of these three elements has a focus to "provide comprehensive water planning." Such planning is best achieved when current and accurate data on the uses of the state's water are available.

The primary purpose of this thesis was to provide an evaluation, from data collected on …

Discharge Coefficient Performance Of Venturi, Standard Concentric Orifice Plate, V-Cone, And Wedge Flow Meters At Small Reynolds Numbers, Colter L. Hollingshead

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The relationship between the Reynolds number (Re) and discharge coefficients (C) was investigated through differential pressure flow meters. The focus of the study was directed toward very small Reynolds numbers commonly associated with pipeline transportation of viscous fluids. There is currently a relatively small amount of research that has been performed in this area for the Venturi, standard orifice plate, V-cone, and wedge flow meters. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) program FLUENT^© was used to perform the research, while GAMBIT^© was used as the preprocessing tool for the flow meter models created. Heavy oil and water were used …

Evaluation And Improvements On Row-Column Order Bias And Grid Orientation Bias Of The Progressive Morphological Filter Of Lidar Data, Kody Potter

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis reviews algorithms that have been developed for classifying lidar data and identifies a progressive morphological filter for evaluation and improvement. Two potential weaknesses evaluated include the row-column order bias and grid orientation bias.

Four different row-column orderings were developed to test for bias associated with the order choice. Moreover, a method rotating the filter grid to a series of angles was developed for testing bias associated with grid orientation. Measures of success of the improvements include Type I and II errors, where results are compared with a hand-produced "truth" dataset. Two datasets, one urban, the other rural, were …

Field-Programmable Gate Array Implementation Of A Scalable Integral Image Architecture Based On Systolic Arrays, Juan Alberto De La Cruz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The integral image representation of an image is important for a large number of modern image processing algorithms. Integral image representations can reduce computation and increase the operating speed of certain algorithms, improving real-time performance. Due to increasing demand for real-time image processing performance, an integral image architecture capable of accelerating the calculation based on the amount of available resources is presented. Use of the proposed accelerator allows for subsequent stages of a design to have data sooner and execute in parallel. It is shown here how, with some additional resources used in the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a …

Measuring The Removal Of Trichloroethylene From Phytoremediation Sites At Travis And Fairchild Air Force Bases, Heather A. Klein

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Past use of trichloroethylene (TCE) as a degreasing solvent for aircraft maintenance has resulted in widespread groundwater contamination at Air Force Bases around the world. Travis AFB in California and Fairchild AFB in Washington are evaluating phytoremediation as a treatment option, since trees have been reported to take up dissolved TCE from shallow groundwater and volatilize it to the atmosphere while enhancing the volatilization of TCE from surrounding soil. Previous studies generally focused on the identification of removal mechanisms. The emphasis of this research was to quantify total TCE removal from phytoremediation demonstration plots at Travis and Fairchild AFBs.

Tree …

Perching Using A Quadrotor With Onboard Sensing, Jeremy C. Goldin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis presents an implementation of autonomous indoor perching using only onboard sensors on a low-cost, custom-built quadrotor. The perching aggressive maneuver is representative of a class of control problems for aerobatics that requires an agile and robust control system for maneuvering accurately at high speeds. Such research extends the typical functionality of micro air vehicles (MAV) from low speed and stationary observation to dynamic aerobatic transitions for broader operational capabilities including confined landings and evasive maneuvering. To achieve this, three major challenges are overcome: precise and real-time positioning, sensing of the perch and path to the perch, and control …

Water And Energy Balance Of A Riparian And Agricultural Ecosystem Along The Lower Colorado River, Saleh Taghvaeian

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Spatially-distributed water consumption was modeled over a segment of the Lower Colorado River, which contains irrigated agricultural and Tamarisk-dominated riparian ecosystems. For the irrigation scheme, distributed evapotranspiration data were analyzed in conjunction with point measurements of precipitation and surface flow in order to close daily and annual water balance. The annual closure error was less than 1% of the total water diversion to the area. In addition, it was found that the soil water storage component of the water balance cannot be neglected if the analysis is performed over time frames shorter than annual (e.g. growing season).

Water consumption was …

Characteristics Of Combustion Flame Sprayed Nickel Aluminum Using A Coanda Assisted Spray Manipulation Collar For Off-Normal Deposits, Reid S. Archibald

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A novel flame spray collar called the Coanda Assisted Spray Manipulation collar (CSM) has been tested for use on the Sulzer Metco 5P II combustion flame spray gun. A comparison study of the stock nozzle and the CSM has been performed by evaluating the porosity, surface roughness, microhardness, tensile strength and microscopy of normal and off-normal sprayed NiAl deposits. The use of the CSM collar resulted in the need to position the sprayed coupons closer to the gun, which in turn affected the particle impact energy and particle temperatures of the NiAl powder. For the CSM, porosities had a larger …

Anisotropic Compressive Pressure-Dependent Effective Thermal Conductivity Of Granular Beds, R. Daniel Garrett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In situ planetary effective thermal conductivity measurements are typically made using a long needle-like probe, which measures effective thermal conductivity in the probe's radial (horizontal) direction. The desired effective vertical thermal conductivity for heat flow calculations is assumed to be the same as the measured effective horizontal thermal conductivity. However, it is known that effective thermal conductivity increases with increasing compressive pressure on granular beds and horizontal stress in a granular bed under gravity is related to the vertical stress through Jaky's at-rest earth pressure coefficient. No research has been performed previously on determining the anisotropic effective thermal conductivity of …

A Comparative Study Of Three Image Matching Algorithms: Sift, Surf, And Fast, Maridalia Guerrero Peña

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A new method for assessing the performance of popular image matching algorithms is presented. Specifically, the method assesses the type of images under which each of the algorithms reviewed herein perform to its maximum or highest efficiency. The efficiency is measured in terms of the number of matches founds by the algorithm and the number of type I and type II errors encountered when the algorithm is tested against a specific pair of images. Current comparative studies asses the performance of the algorithms based on the results obtained in different criteria such as speed, sensitivity, occlusion, and others. These studies …