Computer-Aided Engineering and Design Commons^™

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 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 …

Balsa Wood Bridge, Anndie Watterson

All Undergraduate Projects

A model for a strong bridge that could span a set distance and rise up to allow for passage underneath was requested, and specifications for the design were given. The model bridge was designed out of balsa wood to meet all the requirements. Using structural and material analysis and simple mechanical designs, a bridge was designed and constructed out of balsa wood, wood glue, and metal components used for articulation that met all of the criteria set by the assigner. The bridge was tested to ensure all specifications were met. The resulting bridge can hold 20kg of weight suspended from …

A Molecular Dynamic Study On The Piezoelectric Properties Of Bulk Zns And Nanobelts, Rui Xie

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In this thesis we proved the feasibility of using classical atomic simulations, namely molecular dynamics and molecular statics, to study the piezoelectric properties of bulk and nanobelts ZnS structures, by utilizing the core-shell atomic potential model. Based on the verification of bulk and nanobelts ZnO piezoelectric constants, utilizing LAMMPS scripts and the Nyberg et al. core-shell potential, we reported the bulk ZnS piezoelectric constants calculated using three different classical interatomic core-shell ZnS potentials; the Wright and Jackson (1995) potential, the Wright and Gale (2004) potential, and the Namsani et al. (2015) potential. The simulation results showed that the Wright and …

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 …

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 …

Asme Rc Baja Car Drivetrain, Gizan G. Gando

All Undergraduate Projects

The purpose of the RC Baja Car is to compete in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) competition, a series of events to prove the functionality of the vehicle. This series of events includes the Slalom, Drag, and Baja race. The Slalom is a test in the steering capability of the car. The Drag is a test in the acceleration of the car in a straight line. Lastly, the Baja puts all factors together in a race to test every component of the car. This project is about building an RC car that can function under these conditions and …

Agv Design, Vincent Orzel, Zachary Woodrum

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This report details the design and calculation work done towards creating an autonomous guided vehicle (AGV) for use in the steel and metal related industries. Steel Equipment Specialists (SES) is a major manufacturer of coil transportation vehicles for these industries. SES believes the future of coil transportation within the mills includes AGVs in some circumstances. The team was tasked with exploring the design and cost of a base model for use in future designs, since SES has not yet modeled or manufactured an AGV. This design was successful under the stress from the application in calculations, and the cost of …

Gamification Of Icebreaking Activities For Mechanical Engineering Students Embarking On A Problem Based Learning Module, Kevin Delaney, Gerard Nagle, Mingzhu Chen

Conference papers

When they enter the workforce engineering graduates must be able to engage collaboratively with others to find solutions to complex engineering challenges. This involves a great deal more than simply solving technical problems traditionally taught in engineering school. The Mechanical Engineering Discipline in Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) has helped students develop real-world engineering skills through a team based Problem Based Learning (PBL) module since 2005. This module, involving third year students, can be particularly challenging since participants can join the third year of the program from other programs or universities and many will not have known each other prior …

Automated Control System For The Remote-Controlled Torch Positioner, Christopher Ferguson, Anna Abate, Kyle Cramer, Alex Sabitsch, Jacob Stefanko

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this project is to design and implement a controls system for Dr. Morscher’s burner rig. The rig serves to simulate jet turbine conditions and test how materials, specifically ceramic matrix composites, react under high temperatures and stresses. Currently, the location of the torch relies solely on manual adjustments and has no automated control system. The improved design will automatically adjust the torch position based on the desired temperature of the sample being tested, therefore maintaining a steady environment for the sample. The current method of manual adjustments for regulating temperature is a crude solution that does not …

Viscoelasticity Of Ptfe-Based Face Seals, Bo Tan

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

PTFE-based materials are widely used in areas of tribology, particularly in seal and bearing applications because of their outstanding self-lubricating properties. Often in dynamic seal applications there is a need for ultra-low mechanical friction loss between the sealing surfaces. Due to its extremely low friction coefficient, there is interest in employing Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) materials in such applications. One challenging aspect of employing PTFE is that these materials are viscoelastic and plastic. This dissertation concentrates on the modeling of viscoelastic material response when used as mechanical face seals with a focus on PTFE-based materials. First, the viscoelastic characteristics are measured through …

Structural Optimization Of Space Transit Vehicle Concept, Hercules, James Philip Rogers

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

STRUCTURAL OPTIMIZATION OF SPACE TRANSIT VEHICLE CONCEPT, HERCULES:

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF STRUCTURAL OPTIONS

Hercules is a vehicle concept developed by NASA Langley's Vehicle Analysis Branch to satisfy the need for sustainable transit between Earth, the moon, and Mars. Hercules features unprecedented abort capabilities and mission flexibility to aid in NASA's Mars campaign. By utilizing modern software to perform structural analysis and optimization for a large selection of stiffened panel concepts, beam concepts, and materials trends in the structural optimization emerge. These trends will be invaluable for the design of future spacecraft needed to fulfill similar roles.

The structural optimization …

Signals As Symbols: Applying Normalization Of Deviance To Improve User-Centered Design, Amy Vanschaik

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Mistakes can happen in the process of designing and developing interactive digital projects. Sometimes these mistakes negatively impact users' perception and trust of digital interfaces. This research applies the concept of normalization of deviance to identify potential missed opportunities in user-centered design data within the context of a website redesign. By doing this I explore how through observing accidental deviant behaviors or processes we can identify ways to improve the usability and user experience of digital environments. I review the concepts of normalized deviant behavior as addressed by Diane Vaughan in the field of engineering and identify a process for …

Marangoni Propulsion Of Active Particles, Saeed Jafari Kang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

We study the surfing motion of active particles located at a flat liquid-gas interface. The particles create and maintain a surface tension gradient by asymmetrically discharging a surface tension-reducing agent. We employ theory and numerical simulation to investigate the Marangoni propulsion of these active surfers. First, we use the reciprocal theorem to establish a relationship between the propulsion speed and the release of the active chemical. This theoretical relation is utilized to examine the effect of wall confinement and geometry on the Marangoni-driven motion of active particle when the inertial effects are negligible and when the transports of the released …

Development Of A Heavy-Duty Aluminum Rail Hole Punch Manufacturing Fixture, Reese Hawthorne

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This report details the development and testing of an improved replacement for a worn manufacturing fixture which was used to position the location of four drilled holes on the outside of a heavy-duty aluminum rail. Commissioned by JohnDow Industries, the new process improves upon the old one by implementing an electro-hydraulic punch and new locating fixture. The new design produced higher quality slots, decreased cycle time by 15%, and aimed to improve the ergonomics of the process for the employees. All these factors contributed to making the aluminum rails a high-quality end product for JohnDow’s customers. Further iteration of the …

Design For Additive Manufacturing (3d Printing), Michael O'Donnell, Michael J. Levy

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this project is to study the performance of a 3D printed mechanical part subjected to topology optimization. A part that is somewhat complex in its load bearing and geometry will be selected. That part will then be designed, finite element analysis will be performed on it to optimize its topology, and then it will be 3D printed and tested. The goal of topology optimization is to either save material cost and/or part weight due to the ability of 3D printing to manufacture parts with complex and obscure geometry.

Foldibot The Autonomous Clothes Folder, Jacob Kittinger, Braden Glasgow, Steven Shimko

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

As society becomes more technologically advanced, so does the demand for innovative products that save time; products like the Roomba have revolutionized household chores. Our teams’ vision was to develop a solution for another time-consuming household chore: folding laundry. The goal of this project was to conceptually design a marketable “robot” capable of autonomously folding clothes and explore a potential design by prototyping and testing it. Our team utilized our culmination of knowledge acquired over five years of engineering studies to turn a “pen and paper” sketch into a functioning prototype; this project used engineering tools such as a Weighted …

Door Barricade, Alex Cerino

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

My senior capstone project will be a door barricade. The main idea for the use of the door barricade is for schools in the case of an intruder. The barricade that I will be designing is a solution to the inefficient barricades that I saw at my high school. It could also be used at businesses and homes. My design would be easy to use and have a fail-safe option. The two areas of mechanical engineering technology that my capstone project will focus on are stress analysis and electronics. Every part for my door barricade is drawn in SolidWorks. All …

Additive Manufactured Formula Sae Brake Caliper, Auston Obringer, Robert Kucera, Steven Massarelli, Jared John, Michael Finer

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

In a world where innovation has become the new norm, automobiles can often be found at the forefront of that movement. Each and every year there are new innovations and concepts that push modern day technology to the edge of what is physically possible. This can be seen from every aspect of these automobiles ranging from the conceptual stage all the way to production.

Most of these advancements have been made possible with the new technology that has become available on the manufacturing side of the designs. Instead of being constrained by what is possible on your average 3 to …

Design And Analysis Of One-Piece 10” Carbon Fiber Wheels For Zips Racing Zr20 Formula Sae Racecar, Patrick Kruse, Henry J. Wathen, Jordan J. Hyde, Nicholas D. Dobben, Jordan D. Blake

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Reducing the weight of a vehicle in racing can substantially improve the vehicle dynamics and general performance capabilities. More specifically, the reduction of the unsprung corner weight can provide noticeable performance gains in handling and responsiveness, leading to a quicker, more agile car due to a lower yawing moment of inertia. Unsprung weight reduction also improves the car’s ability to maintain contact between the tires and the road surface for a more consistent grip. In this project we identified the loads that act on the wheel rims according to the data collected from the sensors in the car’s suspension, and …

Development Of An Online Wind Tunnel Support And Physocal Controls, David Tutunzhiu

Summer Community of Scholars Posters (RCEU and HCR Combined Programs)

No abstract provided.

Hydraulic Vehicle Challenge, Jacob Steiner, David Kotovets, Evan Blitz, Luke Fetherston, Alex Colucy

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The target goal of this project is for a team of students to design a vehicle which is based on human power as the primary mover of the system and achieves vehicle propulsion through the required use of hydraulics and pneumatics. In summary, the rider will power a pump that will generate pressure in order to move the fluid that drives the motor. This will result in the powered rotation of the wheels. As there are many possible designs, naturally, this means that the final design for the vehicle will have specific limitations such as weight and the required use …

Entertainment 721, Mark Hendricks, Noah John, Jadon Vanyo, Chelsea Payne

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this project was to design a luxury, aesthetically pleasing entertainment system with a TV lift mechanism that could be remote controlled. The design would also include a cooling cabinet for gaming systems, a remote locking system, and additional storage. Using a morphological chart and weighted decision matrix for each subsystem key features were determined to be included in the design. Several performance benchmarks were determined to accomplish the team’s design. Almost every benchmark was successful in the build of the first prototype. Several heat calculations and FEA analyses were performed on the system to ensure the success …

Formula Sae Design Validation Through Lap Time Simulation, Noah Gresser, Akos Jasper, Michael Metropoulos, Paul Buczynski, James Volcansek

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Lap time simulation is capable of advancing Zips Racing into a new, modern era for future vehicle designs. Through the use of VI-grade simulation software, Zips Racing was able to validate its current combustion and electric vehicle designs in spite of the challenges brought on to the team as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout this project, the design team gained an enhanced understanding of suspension designs and optimizations through the usage of computer simulations. As a result, the teams have a better understanding of the fundamental changes that need to occur to enhance the race team’s final race …

4040c Universal Tester Backup, Devan Keeling, John Bowen, Cameron Bosner, Jacob Lenart

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The 40 Series valve is one of Swagelok's highest volume part families of which 60,000 parts per year shipped are multi-ported. The multiport configuration requires a unique tester to ensure proper assembly and quality of upstream processes.

Due to the multiport configuration of these valves no alternate testing option exists, resulting in a high rate of customer disappointments per day should the equipment fail.

In addition to the tester's criticality, it has also been ranked as one of Swagelok's most unhealthy assets and is probable to experience extended downtime in the future.

This project proposes to design and build a …

Studying The Effects Of Initial Crack Angle On The Crack Propagation In Graphene Nano-Ribbon Through Molecular Dynamics Simulations, Vijay Kumar Pathak

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

In this research, we have worked on the brittle fracture of graphene nano-ribbon to explore the behavior of crack propagation at different crack angles. We have performed classical Molecular Dynamics simulations using LAMMPS at ten different crack angles between 0 degrees and 45 degrees, in an increment of 5 degrees to observe the parameters that dominate the crack path. The graphene nanoribbon is loaded in the zigzag direction by pulling it in the armchair direction with a pre-existing crack in the center. We have used OVITO for the visualization of the simulation. AIREBO potential is employed in this work because …

Thermomechanical Mechanisms That Cause Adhesion Of Aluminum High Pressure Die Castings To The Die, Alex Monroe

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

In high pressure die casting (HPDC) of aluminum, cast material adhering to die is a significant defect. Adhesion occurs in two primary ways. The casting may stick preventing its removal from the die. Aluminum can also adhere to the die and buildup in local areas on the die surface with additional casting cycles. This second form of adhesion is called soldering. Lubricant is the best technology to control all forms of adhesion, but it comes at the cost of casting porosity, blisters, reduced die life, and increased die casting machine wear. New strategies to prevent adhesion are desired to eliminate …

Effect Of Feedrate, Depth Of Cut, Tool Material, And Toolpath On Dimensional Accuracy And Surface Roughness Of Milled Cfrp, Assem Hesham Almadani

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis investigates the effect of different factors on Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRP) milling, like feedrate, tool material, and cutting speed. CFRP offers excellent material properties, which led to the increase of the material in today's manufacturing industry. CFRP offers up to 2.25 times steel's modulus of elasticity at about a fifth of the weight and excellent thermal properties, which allow the use of this material in applications with high heat like automobiles. Many industries have implemented the use of CFRP in their applications, like airplanes and automobiles, which lead to a decrease in weight and increase in strength. …

Improving Real-Time Methane Monitoring In Longwall Coal Mines Through System Response Characterization Of A Multi-Nodal Methane Detection Network, Brian Philip Cappellini

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Machine automation and atmospheric monitoring are used by many industries to improve safety and productivity in the workplace. The underground Methane Watchdog System (MWS) is a multi-nodal network of sensors currently under development. The MWS aims to improve safety and productivity by introducing 10 compact sampling units designed to be easily integrated within the current roof support equipment of the mine. Each unit contains an array of sensors used to continuously monitor the environmental conditions which include methane concentration, temperature, pressure, and relative humidity. All MWS units report information back to a remote central processing hub (CPH) which collects nodal …

Phase-Field Fracture Modeling For Interlocking Micro-Architectured Materials, Shubham Sinha

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

It is fascinating to see how natural materials like teeth enamel, bone and nacre possess a very high stiffness and strength in spite of the fact that they are composed of minerals mostly. Studies have shown the reason for this aberration as the presence of weaker interfaces with intricate interlocking architectures at microscopic levels in these materials. Inspired by the architecture of these materials, micro-architectured sutures with jig-saw like geometry is being studied in this research study. The main focus of this study is to examine the effects of friction co-efficient and interlocking angles of the jig-saw tabs on pullout …