My Portfolio



System Design

c) the ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, sustainability.

     
  • toggle How I Define Design
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      Design is a process by which decisions are made. As an engineer, I have been trained in numerous methods of making scientifically based decisions, both quantitative and qualitative.



  • toggle Example: eBoat 1.0, 2.0
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      I have led Elizabethtown's solar-electric boat team for 2 years now. The idea behind Etown's solar-electric boat is to try to design a commercially viable solar-electric alternative to gas powered boats. Our hopes are that the product of our work will be competed in Solar Splash (an international solar boat competition) every other year. The next competition is this May.

      With a new commercial boat partner we have been given an opportunity to develop an electric version of the current Zego Sports Boat (www.zego.biz), we hope to pave the way to future commercial versions of an electric Zego (dubbed the "Z-lectric").

      To meet this goal we were determined to match gas-powered performance. Staying true to the commercially vaible theme, we teamed up with an Advanced Brushless Motor company, eCycle (www.eCycle.com), to compete the development of a powerful lightweight, dual prop outboard.

      Pertaining to the design, I wrote the bulk of a Technical Paper required for the competition that can be seen here. This project stands out for me as one of the more rewarding. Not only do we get to use our problem solving skills, we also get to compete this May at Solar Splash.

      Check out: eBoat 1.0 and soon eBoat 2.0.



  • toggle Example: Lightshow Generator
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      This was a project I did for my Signals and Systems course with Dr. McBride. During this project I utilized LabVIEW, Matlab, a data acquisition board, and a mess of LEDs. I designed and built an array of individually controlled LEDs that were automatically "directed" by any wave format sound file. Meaning, I designed a virtual instrument in LabVIEW that read the sound file, filtered and interpreted that information to orchestrate a Lightshow. This project was inspired by this popular Youtube hit:



      This project was a lot of fun. It helped me understand that not every engineering project can be quantitatively judged. For example, I had built a filtering system that could discern multiple frequencies and I used this information to trigger certain lights. It worked perfectly, except it was not intuitive! It was nearly impossible to discern a correlation between the music and the lightshow. I found, that even though a system may work theoretically perfect, the human element is the biggest key to design for many applications.

      Check out the detailes and the video: Lightshow Generator



  • toggle Example: Personal Transportation Unit
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      As a result of the PTU’s three-wheeled design, its projected areal footprint will be about 60% smaller than an average mid-sized sedan. Additionally, the PTU is expected to be approximately 1/6th the weight of the same sedan. By implementing a two front, one rear wheel layout, the PTU will experience increased stability during braking. In addition to reducing overall size, the elimination of an entire wheel, suspension, and braking assembly allows the PTU to take advantage of the significant economical and manufacturing benefits resulting from a significant reduction in weight and complexity. The drive train will be composed of two hub motors which enable us to save valuable space, lower the center of gravity (adds to stability), and simplify the design. As far as the interior of the PTU, it will offer a cab similar in size and style to that of the driver’s seat in a common car. Lastly, passenger experience was made a priority during the design of the PTU and accordingly, sitting in the driver’s seat will mimic, or possibly improve upon the experiences enjoyed by modern day automobile drivers. By designing on an open, modifiable platform, the PTU can serve a number of possibilities. The design process, final design, and prototype will serve as a joint senor project for Justin Hypnarowski and Dan Lappin. Wherein the goals are to effectively exhibit engineering proficiently according to ABET criteria and departmental course outcomes listed in the syllabi.



  • toggle Example: "Outta-here" Solar Rigging
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      In 2007 the solar rigging design was left as an afterthought to the rest of the boat design. This led to poor craftsmanship and needless increases in overall boat weight. As effort has not been necessary for hull construction this year, we have brought solar rigging design to the forefront of the overall design.

      The solar rig’s job is to secure the solar panels to the boat hull in such a way that allows the panels to collect as much sunlight as possible. Again we have additional criteria due to the uniqueness of our project goals (i.e. commercial viability). The main problem with the addition of a solar array is that the panels nullify a good portion of the deck’s utility if left stationary at the bow of the boat, as seen in the Figure below (from the Technical Report). This is highly undesirable as one of the main leisure functions of the Zego is to serve as a fishing boat utilizing the front deck for gear and the fisherman. To solve this we set out to build a solar rigging system that preformed the task of securely attaching the panels to the hull, but also had the capability of being displaced off the deck to free space for recreation.

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      This project is currently on going. Design alternatives are discussed here: Technical Report.