MAE

The Long Range Drone is project 12 of the Fall 2023 MAE 151A/B Mechanical Engineering design projects. In this project, the team is expected to design a fixed-wing aircraft-like drone that is capable of maximizing flight distance and/or flight duration given a limited battery capacity with the current technology. In addition to designing a drone, the team is expected to develop a launcher that is capable of providing an initial boost to help the drone reach an optimal initial height using an elastic band releasing system. Once launched, the drone will transition to a gliding phase, minimizing the usage of battery while sustaining leveled flight.

Mission Statement: Team 11B, Solar Airplane, seeks to create an RC solar airplane powered entirely from solar panels and battery power mounted on the aircraft for the purpose of demonstrating the efficacy of solar panels on extending flight duration.

In an effort to increase accessibility in the classroom, we were tasked with redesigning the tablet arm desktops in UCI’s lecture halls. These desks, currently small and non-adjustable, lack consideration for left-handed individuals and students of various sizes. Our redesign features an armrest with three levels, allowing 3.5” of height adjustment and 4” of  depth adjustment. This flexibility, along with a fold-out desktop that provides 50% more surface area than the current design, should improve the classroom experience  for students of all proportions and handedness, allowing them to focus completely on learning.

Summary

For this project, we need to design a device that develops a bottle lift and transfer system capable of automatically placing a bottle onto a platform ( the blue area in the image) at a user-specified height, ranging between 8 and 12 inches. This device aims to streamline the process by enabling the device to return to its initial position after each cycle, ready to accommodate another bottle. The primary goal is to enhance the efficiency and safety of bottle lift and transfer procedures. The device should be free-standing, low-cost, easy to manufacture, and meet all the requirements of the sponsor and advisor.

Background 

Shorbagy Mohamed’s research as a PhD student at UCI is on dynamics and controls. As our sponsor, his dream design solution is that the product can lift and transfer the bottle to the other platform and is placed exactly at the center of the blue...

The F-1 DragMaestros project group is working in conjunction with the Anteater Formula Racing Team to design, test, and integrate a drag reduction system on the rear wing of the vehicle to improve race times and overall performance. Through a detailed design process and project management, the team will determine the best method for changing the position of the rear wing airfoils to reduce the drag coefficient while balancing the lift coefficient. Actuation of the drag reduction system (DRS) will be controlled by the driver. This two-quarter project will develop a working 3-D printed scaled prototype by the end of the Winter Quarter of 2024 and plans to integrate a full-size manufactured system by the end of the Spring Quarter of 2024. 

A ureteroscope is a thin, flexible tube inserted into the ureter to access and remove kidney stones. At the moment, the surgical procedure for ureteroscopy is one that is laborious and does not remove enough kidney stones leading to repeat procedures for patients. We are remaking a ureteroscope with a larger diameter of 4.667mm with the goal of maximizing the aspiration channel, the channel where the kidney stones are suctioned out from, to achieve more stone removal. Our next goals will be to also have a non-clogging device, minimize all possible components to maximize aspiration channel even further and redesign the tip to allow the laser to access all stones more easily. 

The FUSION Engineering Project is a student-run engineering project that is managed by the club organization FUSION (Filipino Undergraduate Scientists-Engineers In an Organized Network). The year long project for the '23-24 school year is a Mobile Gesture-Controlled Robotic Arm. This mobile robot will have an attached arm that has the capability of grabbing, storing, and placing objects, as well as allowing for lateral movement. Both the robot’s movement and function of the arm are to be controlled wirelessly through hand gestures.There are 5 separate teams that are working to engineer their own individual robot that will be judged at a yearly conference hosted by FUSION (FUSIONCon). 

UAV Forge constitutes a multidisciplinary engineering design team with a specific focus on the comprehensive development cycle of autonomous aerial vehicles, encompassing design, manufacturing, programming, and rigorous testing. The paramount objective of this design endeavor is to adhere to the stipulated constraints, thereby enabling active participation in the SUAS 2024-2025 competition season.

The SUAS competition mandates that the UAV system possesses autonomous flight capabilities, proficient object avoidance capabilities pertaining to both stationary and dynamic entities, and adeptness in object detection, localization, and classification. Furthermore, the system is required to execute an airdrop delivery mechanism, ensuring the precise delivery of a payload object to a designated GPS location without incurring any damage.

While the immediate focus of this year’s team centers on achieving commendable performance within the competitive arena, the overarching goal is to provide undergraduate participants with a practical application of their engineering acumen toward a consequential real-world challenge. UAV Forge’s...

Spanning several years, UCI Cargo Plane is a well-renowned project at the University of California, Irvine. This project provides a great opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students to learn the fundamentals of aircraft design, as it brings together the foundations of aerospace engineering and combines it with hands-on manufacturing experience. In our specific case, members of the UCI Cargo Plane team will learn how to design a plane that carries metal weights. These skills will aid these members in future endeavors where they may design planes that could potentially carry more precious cargo. 

Given the formidable challenge by SAE, teams are expected to bring together unique perspectives in creating a one of a kind RC aircraft, capable of meeting all constraints. These constraints include power limiters and limited wingspan. Additionally, the Aero Design West Competition takes the common practice of RC aircraft competitions and raises the level of complexity, requiring...

Many engineering students go through college without getting proper hands-on experience in the field. Therefore, we aim to give undergraduates the knowledge and experience to design, manufacture, and test their own bicycles. The club is applying knowledge from the classroom such as materials, mechanical stress, and CAD to a real-world industry application. Students who are currently participating often find direct correlations to the classroom when talking about manufacturing techniques. This is a unique opportunity for students to develop a holistic engineering approach by researching and implementing design and manufacturing processes.

For Winter 2024, project members will build miniature bicycle frames to build TIG welding and machining skills. The quarter will also be used to design and simulate their own frame design to be produced in Spring 2024.

Check out our first frame on our IG: https://instagram.com/ucibikebuilders?igshid=YzAwZjE1ZTI0Zg==

UAV Forge constitutes a multidisciplinary engineering design team with a specific focus on the comprehensive development cycle of autonomous aerial vehicles, encompassing design, manufacturing, programming, and rigorous testing. The paramount objective of this design endeavor is to adhere to the stipulated constraints, thereby enabling active participation in the SUAS 2023-2024 competition season.

The SUAS competition mandates that the UAV system possess autonomous flight capabilities, proficient object avoidance capabilities pertaining to both stationary and dynamic entities, and adeptness in object detection, localization, and classification. Furthermore, the system is required to execute an airdrop delivery mechanism, ensuring the precise delivery of a payload object to a designated GPS location without incurring any damage.

While the immediate focus of this year’s team centers on achieving commendable performance within the competitive arena, the overarching goal is to provide undergraduate participants with a practical application of their engineering acumen toward a consequential real-world challenge. UAV...

ASME hosts an endurance race that runs for 2.5 hours with many obstacles such as tight turns, uneven terrain, and inclines. HPVC at UCI will design and manufacture a recumbent, tadpole bike with a sufficient rollover protection system to keep the driver safe in case of an accident during the endurance race. The bike consists of 5 major systems: braking system, drive system, steering system, rollover protection system, and electrical system. The team has been split into three subteams: statics which consists of the bike frame, rollover protection system and seat; dynamics which consists of steering, braking, and driving; electrical which consists of the battery, electrical box and electric motor. Overall, the team aims to produce a bike that is ergonomic, safe, and easy to handle. 

While we are a senior design project, we also make sure to recruit underclassmen so they have hands-on experience and are prepared to succeed in their engineering careers. 

The CubeSat team at UCI is a student-led undergraduate interdisciplinary research and design project with the goal of launching a 2U nanosatellite, AntSat 01, into orbit to test a UCI research payload. The satellite operates with five main engineering subsystems: Avionics, Communications, Structures, Power, and Systems. They all work to house STMS's (Spacecraft Thermal Management Systems) research payload within the 2U nanosatellite.

The research payload is a variable emissivity device (VED) that is developed by Spacecraft Thermal Management Systems (STMS). The payload will be tested as a thermal regulator, and our task is to evaluate its performance under varying levels of solar exposure and at different adjustable emissivity settings. We aim to determine if materials similar to the sample can serve as an inexpensive method for thermal management on future spacecraft.

BACKGROUND:
In recent years, the space sector has undergone a significant transformation with the emergence of privatization. This shift...

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Description: This project aims to develop a Bluetooth-enabled weather station allowing users to access real-time, localized weather data via their smartphones. The weather station will be equipped with sensors to measure temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and barometric pressure for a complete weather profile of a given location. This project not only promotes user convenience but also advances our understanding of weather patterns and trends. Additionally, users will be able to make informed decisions regarding daily activities whether its planning outdoor events, assessing the need for climate control, or simply preparing for changing weather. Our goal is to provide a user-friendly, affordable, and accurate solution to homeowners, businesses, and educators alike.

Background: Our team consists of members with different interests and areas of expertise so we chose to pursue a project that would leverage each team member's unique skills and passions. 

Goals and objectives: By the end of the...

Project Description: 

UAV Forge is a multidisciplinary engineering design team focusing on designing, manufacturing, programming, and testing autonomous aerial vehicles. The design aims to fulfill the constraints that allow the team to participate in the AUVSI SUAS 2023 competition season.

The AUVSI competition requires that the system’s UAV have autonomous flight capabilities, the ability to perform object avoidance of stationary and dynamic objects, and the ability to do object detection, localization, and classification. The system must also perform an airdrop task wherein UAV Forge will manufacture an assembly that will interface the UAV with descent and autonomous ground vehicles.

AUVSI SUAS Competition: 

The ground vehicle, once landed, will autonomously drive to its set destination to complete payload delivery. Though the emphasis for this year’s team is to perform well in the competition setting, the primary objective is to ensure the undergraduate students participating in the project apply their engineering skills...

Background: 

The Beach Cleaning Robot Project is an undergraduate student lead project that aims to design and manufacture a trash-collecting robot to support coastal cleanup efforts. The goal for this team is to produce a remote-controlled, scalable prototype that can collect trash the size of plastic water bottles and snack bags/containers. 

Goal and Objectives:

• Finalize a list of requirements and constraints for our design 

• Create a concept that meets all requirements and attributes

• Finalize CAD of concept by 05/12/2023

• Complete a functional prototype by 06/9/2023

Midterm Presentation:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1bhpozgORecW5Etl55LjynD7AwZ5MqIdC...

Final Report:

TBD

Prototype:

TBD

Team Contacts:

• Brianna Sandoval (Project Manager)- bnsando1@uci.edu
• John Patrick Ramos (Drive Train Engineer)- ramosjp1@uci.edu
• Kevin Harry (Collection Mechanism Engineer)- kjharry@uci.edu
• Nicholas Vargas (Electrical Engineer)- navarga1@uci.edu

Sponsor/Advisor:

• Shorbagy Mohamed (Sponsor) - mohamem2@uci.edu
• David Copp (Advisor)- dcopp@uci.edu

Background:

Smartphones have become increasingly more essential in the modern age since they allow us to connect with the outside world. As smartphones become more accessible comes the need for reliable and convenient methods of charging. Wall outlets and portable power banks are used to charge smartphones most of the time. However, they are not always accessible and reliable, especially in emergency situations and remote areas. Human-powered phone chargers provide an environmentally sustainable and portable solution for charging devices on-the-go. This project seeks to explore alternative solutions to charging that utilize human effort to ensure that charging is possible anywhere. The development of human-powered phone chargers is not new, as there are already existing designs and solutions on the market. However, there is a need to explore all avenues of mechanisms and human mechanical energy to improve its efficiency, portability, and affordability.

Goals and Objectives:

Our goal is to create...

An automated volleyball passing machine that will simulate the pass a libero might give, collect the setter's set into a net, then send through the passing machine again. The ideal passing component would be able to add backspin to the ball as one might see with a real pass. The person using the machine will then set the ball into a hoop with a rectangular net behind it to account for error. The volleyballs will be collected into a central location under the net and returned to the passing machine.

Welcome to our website, where we present our latest project aimed at designing, building, and testing a highly efficient solar cooker that uses only energy from the sun. Our objective is to create a cooker that works on sunny days, regardless of the angle of the sun, and that is inexpensive, compact, and lightweight. We believe that cooking with solar energy can be a sustainable and affordable solution in areas where fuel sources are limited, and that's why we focused on using easy-to-find materials and designing a cooker that is easy to assemble and disassemble. Our ultimate goal is to create a prototype that can cook something within a reasonable amount of time, making it a practical solution for people in need. We invite you to learn more about our project and follow our progress as we work towards creating a better future through sustainable cooking solutions.

Tired of walking across campus or waiting for the Starships to deliver your food? This all terrain vehicle is designed to deliver food across Aldrich Park to hungry UCI Anteaters! Since Starships are not meant to go offroad, they must travel around Aldrich Park to get to their destination. The Zot Bot team plans to achieve fast and reliable food deliveries with its vehicle's ability to drive through Aldrich Park and traverse any hills, holes, and other obstacles that it may face. Through research, design, and testing, the team looks to manufacture a Zot Bot not only rugged enough to withstand the Aldrich Park terrain, but also stable enough to preserve your food.

Description:

A fixture will be designed to withstand the ammonia atmosphere of a nitriding process in an oven of 1000℉ and must be able to support the weight of four shafts. The fixture must hold three splined shafts and one quill shaft in the oven such that minimal stress occurs in the shaft during the thermal cycle to 1000℉ that can result in permanent deflection. This will require modeling of stresses in the fixture at temperature with the strength reduction associated with >1000℉ appropriate margin.  

Technical Details:

We will be paying particular attention to the material selection of the fixture. The fixture needs to be resistant to the ammonia environment and the high temperature of the oven. Because of the harsh conditions of the nitriding process material selection is crucial in making a successful design. Stainless Steel 330 was determined to be the best choice of material for the fixture....

Background:

The pirpose of this project is to design a fully functioning solar cooker with a portable, efficient, easy-to-use option for food preparation under non-ideal conditions. In addition, we hope to understand companies' design, engineering, and manufacturing processes to sell products from this project. Finally, the knowledge obtained from this project will provide insight into how industries organize projects for engineers to complete under specific guidelines. 

Goals And Objectives:

The Solar Cooker Project Team will seek to design, manufacture, and test a solar cooker with a portable, efficient, and easy-to-use design to produce fully-cooked meals for families on outdoor adventures. Inventing a relatively compact design that ensures structural integrity, utilizes materials that provide lightness and sturdiness, and makes a fully cooked meal within half an hour are the critical milestones we must achieve throughout the quarter. Furthermore, our design must be capable of thoroughly cooking the meals inside to ensure the health and...

Background

“The SUAS competition is designed to foster interest in Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), stimulate interest in UAS technologies and careers, and to engage students in a challenging mission. The competition requires students to design, integrate, report on, and demonstrate a UAS capable of autonomous flight and navigation, remote sensing via onboard payload sensors, and execution of a specific set of tasks. The competition has been held annually since 2002.

Multiple package delivery companies have tasked Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) to deliver packages to customers. These UAS must avoid each other, map the operating area to identify hazards, avoid static obstacles like buildings, identify potential drop locations, drop the package to a safe location, and then move the package to the customer.” - SUAS 2023 Rulebook

Goal and Objectives

The team goal is to have a successful fixed-wing aircraft with respect to a mission profile that can potentially be used...

Summary

This project aims to develop a cost-efficient, user-friendly and convenient device for spreading butter-like substances using a spring mechanism to push the substance through a heating element and onto an applicator. The device will be operated by a roller and is intended to make the process of spreading butter more efficient and less messy. The use of heat pipes will provide a quick and even heating of the substance, ensuring that it can be easily applied in a controlled manner. The device will be designed to be easy to use and clean, making it an attractive option for any household. 

Role Assignment

Aldo Khiev--- Manufacturing Lead

Bridge Robinson--- Leader/Coordinator

Franciszek Czapla--- Electronics Specialist

Michael Punaro--- Solidworks Specialist

Qinyi Xu --- Operations Lead

Goal & Objectives

The objective of this project is to design a portable butter softener and applicator that meets the expectations of our project sponsor....

Background

Archytas Automation aims to create educational robot kits that could be utilized in a classroom setting for teaching as well as competition; additionally, Archytas is hoping to expand their robot arms into other commercial settings to ease the labor of various tasks. Their gripper end effector is tasked with the ability to grip and move a large range of objects with varying shapes, sizes, and payloads.  Current issues with the gripper include the housing of the motor and its wiring, its limiting functionality, and difficulty to assemble. 

Goals and Objectives

With the discontinued 320 Dynamixel motors, which are currently used to control the rotation and gripping of the end effector, the team must design a new end effector using the new model of the motor, the 330 Dynamixel motors, to perform gripping tasks as well as accomodate for different jaw attachments. The team must redesign a robot arm end effector gripper with...

Our team will design, build, and test a robot arm.

A key function of our Robot Arm design is the implementation of a proxy arm to control and program the arms motion. The goal is to create an intuitive user interface that can quickly repurpose the arm for the task at hand.

Our inspiration for this proxy arm is from a youtube video demonstrating the control and programming of a robot arm. In this video a button is pressed to begin recording the proxy arms motion. It can be controlled in real time or the motion recorded for playback. Unfortunately the video has since been made private.

Background

With the effects of climate change and cost of living for California homeowners increasing, there has been an increase in interest to obtain a green,sustainable, and affordable home. An important aspect of maintaining such a home is utilizing renewable energy. Renewable energy such as wind and solar provide an alternative to our dependence on the electric and gas. Although current solutions include pumped hydro and battery systems, solar power has gained in popularity over its advantages. Antheaters are part of a project that aims to research, design and establish a manufacturing plan for a patio heater that uses solar energy as its main source of energy, which is then stored and released as hot air. The system shall store heat during the day and release it when the consumer deems it desired to heat up a small residential patio. By taking advantage of solar energy we hope to reduce the use of fossil fuels...

Our Small Scale Wind Turbine project aims to provide a sustainable and cost-effective solution for individuals, organizations, and communities looking to generate their own electricity. In this project, we focus on designing and building a compact, lightweight, and durable small-scale wind turbine that can generate a minimum of 10 watts of electricity in low wind speed conditions,  while being able to withstand wind speeds up to 18 m/s. The wind turbine must fit into a 50cm x 50cm x 50cm box without its mounting assembly and have a total cost of less than $300. The goal is to create a wind turbine that is both efficient and accessible, providing a reliable source of energy for those in need. Through careful design and rigorous testing, our Small Scale Wind Turbine program aims to create a high-quality and cost-effective solution for renewable energy  generation.

Background 

"Robot for Executing Physics-Inspired Path Planner" is a capstone design project. The project team will design and build a self-contained and self-sufficient robot capable of tracking a preplanned collision-free path in a 2D environment containing circular obstacles with a maximum error of 10% at any point.

Unique Background of Project Team Members

Our team consists of 5 team members, 4 of which are Mechincal Engineers and the 5th being an Aerospace Engineer. There are 4 students that have previously taken the course MAE 106 at UCI, which has similar objectives to this current project. This is helpful as there has been prior experience to using Arduino and CAD modeling a robot of this caliber. With such different backgrounds as a person, this helps to come together and be able to provide new outlooks on problems to solve. 

Goal and Objectives

Develop technical skills and critical thinking to quantify the...