Estimating Joint Configuration for Soft Robots

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Jacob Olson and Dr. Marc Killpack, Mechanical Engineering Department Introduction: Soft robotics are still a relatively new technology. As seen in Figure 1, they are made entirely from compliant materials that use pressurized fluid for both structure and actuation. These robots have great potential in the world of robotics. Soft robots can excel in many […]

Refining Statistical Magnesium Models via Machine Learning

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Andrew Orme and Dr. David Fullwood, Mechanical Engineering Department Introduction Magnesium is a potential replacement for steels and aluminum in strength applications. Despite desirable strength and weight properties, magnesium is costly to manufacture. To reduce manufacturing costs, extensive research has been done on is a phenomenon called twinning, where a large group of magnesium atoms […]

Rigidly Foldable Origami Flashers Based on Curved-Fold Model

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Jacob Badger and Dr. Larry Howell, Mechanical Engineering Department Introduction The purpose of my research was to explore the application of curved folding in designing rigid-foldable deployable mechanisms. In recent years, origami fold patterns known as “flashers” have been investigated for their ability to efficiently pack deployable surfaces. While many patterns have been investigated, none […]

Gas Detection System for Biomass Cookstove Emissions

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Cyra Bishop, Jeffery Smith, and Dr. Matthew Jones, Mechanical Engineering Department Project Purpose The purpose of this research project is to explore Peruvian social and cultural behaviors that typically prevent successful improved cookstove adoption in resource-limited settings as well as suggest ways to educate locals about the benefits of improved cookstoves. This will be done […]

Above Knee Prosthetic Socket for Developing Countries

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Colton Graham and Dr. Mark Colton, Mechanical Engineering Department Motivation Due to a civil war in Sierra Leone many have been left with amputated limbs. In order to provide the required prosthetic limbs for victims who have above the knee amputations they need a quality custom fit socket. Custom fit sockets are very expensive so […]

Carbon Nanotube Filtration Device: Separating Oil from Fracking Waste

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Phillip Ng and Dr. Anton Bowden Mechanical Engineering Department INTRODUCTION Pyrolytic Carbon Infiltration Carbon Nanotubes (CI-CNTs) can isolate water and oil molecules due to its superhydrophobic and oleophilic properties, unique cylindrical nanostructure, and functional groups1. Because the waste produced from fracking is nonreusable due to the molecular oil droplets contained in it, the waste is […]

A Handy Underwater Solution

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Benjamin Murdoch, Matt Ricks, Ales Ball, Jacob Olson, Ethan Durrant, Connor Monson, Lars Watts, and Mark Killpack, Department of Mechanical Engineering Hod Lipson once asked an audience at TED, “Where are the robots?” We’ve been waiting for them a long time now and modern robotics still hasn’t caught up with our hopes and dreams. Through […]

Autonomous Identification and Classification of Targets using an Unmanned Aerial System

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Taylor McDonnell and Tim McLain, Department of Mechanical Engineering Introduction: Commercial applications of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are expected to grow significantly in the coming years [1]. Applications of unmanned aerial vehicles in the commercial market include agricultural and infrastructure monitoring, aerial photography, package delivery, fire monitoring, wildlife tracking, and search and rescue operations. One […]

CRISPR-Cas9 Directed PDGF-β Transcriptional Activation in Fibroblast Cell

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Lia Gale and Brian Jensen, Department of Mechanical Engineering Introduction Chronic wounds, particularly in the lower limb, represent a huge physical, financial, and social burden to 50 million people worldwide. In 2014, Americans paid an estimated $25 billion for simple wound care for patients. Despite these efforts, traditional methods of trying to heal wounds from […]

Large Body Influence in Internal Wave Generation

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Austin Maxwell and Julie Crockett, Department of Mechanical Engineering Introduction Internal waves are three dimensional waves that propagate within a stratified fluid. They are able to propagate in all directions within our atmosphere and the oceans which are both stratified fluids of continuously changing densities. Internal waves are much larger than surface waves, having wavelengths […]