EE ME Presentation Schedule
EE/ME presentations take place concurrently THU • MAY 6 & FRI • MAY 7
There will be a general EE/ME Welcome on THU • MAY 6 @ 12:30 p.m.
Teams are numbered and grouped into sectors for your convenience.
Read each team's project description below, or click on the team number to jump ahead.
| THU • MAY 6 | FRI • MAY 7 |
|---|---|
| WELCOME 12:30 p.m. | No Session |
PROJECT EVALUATION AND FEEDBACK
For each of the Capstone Electrical Engineering or Mechanical Engineering projects you review, please take a moment to provide feedback on the Pre-Recorded Video Presentation, Live Q&A Session, or both. Your feedback will be incorporated in the project evaluation and shared with the student teams, who greatly appreciate hearing from you. Your input guides us as we continue to improve our ECST Capstone program.
EE ME PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM 
SYSTEMS
Development of a 3D Printer for Cementitious Materials
Client: Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Laboratory (AM2L) at Cal State LA
Advisor: Dr. Mohsen Eshraghi
Students: Jason Chien, Siggifredo Aguilar, Son Quang, Arturo Caton, Zachary Morris
TEAM 23
3D printing has been around for several years and has been improving steadily and becoming more affordable with each iteration. In recent years the advent of 3D printing has begun moving into the housing market and utilizing basic cementitious materials to build affordable and sustainable housing throughout the world. With the support of the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Laboratory at Cal State LA, as well as last year's senior design team, we have begun the design and implementation of a 3D printer capable of printing cementitious structures that are 10ft x 10ft x 10ft in width, length, and height respectively.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM 
AEROSPACE (Session 1)
Active Rocket Stabilization and Altitude Control
Client: Eagle Rocketry SEDS
Advisor: Dr. Nurullah Arslan
Students: Sean Luu, Alfonso Mares, Francisco Medrano, Moises Perez, Miguel Pichardo
TEAM 1
Eagle Rocketry Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is a student organization at Cal State LA that promotes interest in space. The team is working to compete in the Space Port America Cup competition and launch a rocket 30,000 ft in the air and deploy a payload at the max altitude. High-powered rockets have the ability to become unstable during the flight due to outside disturbances, because of this the objective of the project is to design and build an active control system that will allow the rocket to self-stabilize and achieve a targeted altitude. In order to ensure a stable flight, the team will be using actuated fins to actively control and minimize the angles of attack of the roll, pitch, and yaw of the vehicle. To reach the desired altitude air brakes are designed to slow down the ascent of the rocket to precisely be as close to 30,000ft as possible. The components will be modeled using SolidWorks while the analysis of the stability will be simulated through OpenRocket and MATLAB Simulink. There will be a thorough Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis using ANSYS Fluent and experimentally it will be tested through the use of a scaled-down model through a wind tunnel.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 1)
Space Debris Deorbiter
Client: Edgar Herrera at Aerospace Corporation
Advisor: Ted Nye
Students: James Cook, Maya Horii, Jasmine Lopez-Gutierrez, Gustavo Munoz, Victor Ramirez, Emily Silva
TEAM 10
Over the past 80 years, increasing satellite usage has led to a significant amount of debris in Low Earth Orbit (lower than 2000 km) -- both from defunct missions and on-orbit collisions. To prevent a domino effect of increasing collisions and debris, which could potentially limit future space exploration and satellites, it is critical that action is taken to reduce current debris and reduce the creation of additional debris. This project suggests a method of active debris removal using a SmallSat designed to capture and deorbit debris in twenty-five years or less from low Earth orbit.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 3)
Long-Range Endurance Platform UAV – Flight Team
Client: The Aerospace Corporation
Liaison: Dr. Allyson Yarbrough
Advisors: Dr. Michael Thorburn, Ronald Sobchik, Ray Manning
Students: Miguel Ortega, Alan Sosa, Christopher Martinez, Janice Arteaga, Jerry So, Luis Robles, Marisa Munoz, Muhammad Ghauri
TEAM 9.4
The Aerospace Corporation sought out to design a UAV platform with long flight-time capabilities. Most UAV designs are purely electric, and therefore do not have long flight capabilities. The Aerospace Corporation proposed a UAV design that has 7 propellers: a hex-copter with a central ducted fan. In addition, the proposed design includes a set of wings intended to improve the UAV’s flight time. This project was split into four senior design project teams. The flight team focused on aerodynamics and controls. The aerodynamics portion of the team isolated certain aspects of the design and analyzed them to verify whether or not they are optimal in achieving a longer flight. Some analysis includes the benefit of having a ducted fan, and how the propellers’ induced torques may be balanced considering the odd number of fans. The controls team focused on determining the sensors required to achieve stable flight along with simulating their controls. The analysis included establishing an interface in which all sensors communicated with one another. The sensors' hardware consisted of a FLIR Hadron camera, control unit, and IMU.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 3)
Long-Range Endurance Platform: Powertrain Subteam
Client: Aerospace Corporation
Liaison: Dr. Allyson Yarbrough
Advisor: Dr. Mario Medina
Students: Miguel Cervantes, Anthony Lee, Eric Leon, Alex Maxwell, Ruben Murillo, Brandon Santos
TEAM 9.3
Unmanned aircraft system surveillance, vessel emission, and various reconnaissance missions are growing fields of interest. The particular focus in these unmanned aircraft systems is centered around the power source, determining whether it should be driven by a hybrid fuel source or a pure combustion/electronic source. Hybridization of the powertrain system can reduce a UAV’s reliance on carbon-based fuels while potentially increasing its flight time. In partnership with Aerospace Corporation, the scope of this project was to design a hybrid powertrain system for a ducted hexacopter to provide extended flight times from four to twelve hours. The system was based on a power-split architecture with a rotary engine to supply all necessary functions for flight and mission demands. Fuel consumption and battery life were analyzed to ensure the sufficient flight duration for hover, while also staying within mass and volume constraints for selected components. Utilizing electric motors for propulsion, a cycle was developed to balance the battery pack discharge and recharge with the engine through an onboard generator. The methodology required constant optimization and iterative techniques derived from engineering principles to conduct design analysis, system modeling, and performance evaluations, with the help of numerical methods through MATLAB/Simulink and design software using SolidWorks.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 3)
Long-Range Endurance Platform, Structures Team
Client: The Aerospace Corporation
Advisors: Dr. Stephen Felszeghy, Ramon Garcia
Students: Eric Anthony, Ricardo Chaparro, Evelyn Cortez, Abigail Laguna, Hugo Montanez, Cristian Vera
TEAM 9.2
The project in general was to create a UAV capable of multiple hours of flight to monitor the Port of Long Beach for fuel emissions of incoming ships. The structure team of the Long-Range Endurance Platform project was responsible for managing the CAD model of the UAV as well as performing stress and thermal analysis on it. The CAD model was made with SolidWorks and includes a converging duct with an internal reservoir, which used a composite construction of a polyurethane foam core and a carbon fiber shell; a set of 4 legs that acted as landing gear; six arms that extend from a central electronics housing, each of which holds one motor for the propellers; a mounting system for the engine; and a mounting system for the LIDAR gimbal that was chosen by the Systems team.
The team analyzed the UAV’s thermal environment by performing nodal analysis using SolidWorks FEA thermal analysis simulation tool and performed CFD analysis on the drone in order to find the power distribution within the system, as well as the temperature profiles of the components. We also analyzed the Von Mises Stresses, Deflection, and Strain of the landing gear, gimbal mount, engine mount, and propeller arms through an active simulation of the CAD model made in SOLIDWORKS.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 3)
Long-Range Endurance Platform: Systems Engineering and Payload
Client: The Aerospace Corporation
Liaison: Dr. Allyson Yarbrough
Advisor: Dr. J. David Scholler
Students: Shant Havandjian, Francisco Padilla, Carolina Rosales, Briana Talamantes, Summer Tirado
TEAM 9.1
In this project, we will design and build a Telemetry, Tracking, and Communication System for a long-range endurance UAV platform commissioned by The Aerospace Corporation. The team is also responsible for developing various mission parameters for port operations at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles including infrastructure monitoring, security and surveillance, emergency services, and maritime pollution detection along with the UAV requirements that fulfill such missions. Appropriate sensors and payload configuration will be designed and constructed to satisfy the requirements established for each mission and a full analysis will be conducted on all sensor suites to determine its feasibility. The designated design will also allow the UAV to be modified and then utilized in other tasks outside of maritime and port activities.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 2)
ASME University Rover Challenge
Advisor: Dr. He Shen
Students (Team 1): Aldrin Pacquaio, Gabriel Zepeda, Luis Monterozza-Parades, Zachary Garrett, Frank Moreno
Students (Team 2): Zori Marfazelian, Victor Gonzales, Oscar Guzman, Natalie Deo, Pak Poon
TEAMS 7.1-7.2
Each year, the Mars Society hosts a Mars Rover robotics competition called the University Rover Challenge at the Mars Desert Research Station located in Hanksville, Utah. Schools from across the nation are invited to compete in a challenge that involves four different missions which test the durability and effectiveness of the rover, including in-situ scientific analysis, long-distance traversing, maintenance and operations, and autonomous navigation. The competition aims to create and explore new technologies and ideas for building rovers that will assist astronauts and space agencies on the Red Planet as the human race continues space exploration.
In collaboration with Cal State LA’s ASME organization, this project aims to design and create a rover from scratch that will perform a series of tasks given the constraints and rules of the competition; it will then be handed off to the next Cal State LA team to continue the work before the design is submitted for the formal competition. While most of the work for the first year is done via simulation and testing, the contributions outlined in this project are a framework for the future teams to base their progress on.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM 
SAE COMPETITION
Baja SAE Four Wheel Drive Integration
Client: Cal State LA Baja SAE
Advisor: Dr. John Bachman
Students: Aaron Corona, Maung Thu, Brian Torres, Britney Tran, Chris Escobar, Ezechiel Lucien, Rafael Zamarron-Brito
TEAM 32
Baja SAE is a collegiate engineering design competition where students are required to design and manufacture a single-seater off-road vehicle. For the first time in team history, Cal State LA Baja SAE will be designing a four-wheel-drive vehicle. Since the drivetrain is an essential part of the car, other systems of the car will now have to work around the drivetrain. These include the front suspension, brakes, shocks, hubs, and ergonomics of the vehicle.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
SYSTEMS
Manufacturing System Development for Bulk Metallic Glass Wires
Client: Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Laboratory (AM2L) at Cal State LA
Advisor: Dr. Mohsen Eshraghi
Student Intern: David Reyes
Graduate Student Advisor: Jason Sharkey
Students: Bardo Amaya, Wilkin Chan, Edwin Lopez, Christopher Penilla, Fabiola Sanchez, Peter Daniel Tabangin
TEAM 24
The objective of this senior design project is to create springs and wires from bulk metallic glasses (BMGs). Unlike most metallic alloys, BMGs are stronger and have a high elastic limit due to their amorphous structures. The qualities of this material make it ideal for springs and wires. However, BMGs are difficult to manufacture because they require rapid cooling rates to form amorphous crystal structures. To overcome these challenges, a new manufacturing process will be created by researching and developing a method that is reliable, cost-effective, and applicable for mass production.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM 
BIOMED
COVID-19 Reduction in Classrooms
Client: Raytheon Technologies
Liaison: Dr. John Jacobs
Advisor: Bob Dempster
Student: Adriana Barba, Paul Dorregaray, Isidro Fabian, Sebastian Cabrera
TEAM 18
The novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In March of 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic. The state of California resorted to placing the state’s major counties into lockdown to reduce the spread of infection. This included canceling all in-person schooling statewide and transitioning institutions to online learning until infection rates diminished. The purpose of this project is to research methods in order to provide a safer environment for students when they return to in-person instruction. Based on the team’s research, methods to mitigate transmission include modifying HVAC systems, portable air filtering, social distancing, improved hygiene practice, sanitation methods UV-C and/or fogging devices.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM 
ROBOTICS (Session 2)
Delivery Robot
Client: Cal State LA ECST
Advisors: Dr. Mo Zhang, Dr. Charles Liu
Students: Jaime Gonzalez, Orville Bahia, Ivan Dolores, Irvin Martinez, Francisco Tiquiram
TEAM 27
The Delivery Robot project aims at the costly last-mile delivery sector where resources are being wasted every day due to human labor and interaction with society. The goal for the delivery robot is to eliminate the need for human delivery and be able to deliver a package autonomously by maneuvering through Cal State LA campus at an optimal path while using sensors such as lidar to detect and avoid obstacles such as vehicles, buildings, and landscape. Programming languages such as Python and C++ are used to develop obstacle avoidance programs, OpenCV object detection algorithms, and robot descriptions (URDF) for simulation.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
BIOMED
3D Printed Surgical Implants
Client: Cal State LA ECST and BioTim Research Group
Liaison: Dr. Mathias Brieu
Advisor: Dr. Mathias Brieu
Students: Gustavo Medel, Abdu Kaoussarani, Carlos Casillas, Eduardo Gonzalez, Catalina Lee
TEAM 21
The objective is to design, 3D print, and test soft tissue mesh implants for patients with pelvic organ prolapse. Mesh implants have been used to reinforce weakened pelvic tissue for women that suffer from pelvic organ prolapse. Silicone is a material that was standard for soft tissue implants, but research has shown that it can lead to health complications. This project will be designing meshes that can be 3D printed from biopolymers that replicate anisotropic pelvic tissue properties. The selected biopolymer can be safely placed inside the body and will be reinforcing the tissue for a reasonable amount of time. The project involves structural testing of the 3D printed implant by simulations and with a biaxial testing machine that was designed and built by the team.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ROBOTICS (Session 2)
Fire Fighting Robot
Client: Cal State LA ECST
Liaison: Dr. Michael Thorburn
Advisor: Airs Lin
Students: Bryan Casillas, Alan Linan, Marco Lopez, Lelibeth Bryan, Christopher Pineda, Jason Negrete, Rocio Espinal, Bryan Nunez, Braulio Torres, Brayam Hernandez
TEAM 31
Firefighting is an inherently dangerous task that is carried out by well-prepared individuals who put their lives at risk in order to extinguish a fire. The nature of a fire environment is incredibly fast-paced with changes that often place firefighters at further risk. In order to aid firefighters, we present on behalf of Cal State University of Los Angeles a proposed Fire Fighting Robot design. Firefighters from the Los Angeles County and Sacramento County area provided feedback to emphasize developing a viable robot to fight structural fires. Together, the design incorporates the scope of work related to the idea of why it would be important to have a robot as part of fighting fires, especially in California. Wildfires are prevalent in California and they do not only destroy property and habitat but recovering from the aftermath is also extremely costly. The idea is to create a safer alternative for firefighters by providing a robotic solution that is capable of collecting useful data, providing effective mobility near a high-temperature environment, and suppressing an actual detected fire. The robot shall have a sensor system that warns the operator about details and potential hazards within the environment. Specific features from the sensor system include GPS, radio communication, and thermal camera capabilities. The robot shall be remotely controlled and withstand heat with flame-proof material. The robot shall be fully equipped with a bulldozer. It will also be equipped with a deck gun that will have a rotation range of 355 degrees and an elevation range of 120 degrees upwards and 45 degrees downwards. The deck will be able to pump 2000 gallons per minute. The fire robot will come with a container to help the firefighters clean up the debris and carry their equipment. The robot will also utilize a “Christie Suspension”, such as those used in tanks, to be able to traverse multiple terrains and be more maneuverable.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
SAE COMPETITION
Formula SAE – Multi-vehicle system Integration
Client: Cal State LA ECST
Advisor: Dr. Chris Bachman
Students: David Arellano, Abel Moreno, Carlos Ochoa, Erick Rojas, Francisco Calva, Hector Coronel, Frank Garcia, Patrick Cho
TEAM 33
Formula SAE is a student design competition organized by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). It is an annual competition held in North America, Europe, and Asia. Students are tasked with designing and building an open cockpit and open-wheel vehicle to compete against other colleges in dynamic and static events. The team is split into four sub-teams: suspension, driver controls, power train, and electrical to help the Formula SAE club reach the top 30 for the 2020-2021 season. The suspension team is responsible for integrating a new pushrod suspension system and improving overall vehicle stability during turns. The driver controls team is responsible for implementing an angled brake pedal system and integrating a clutch and shifting system for the new engine. The powertrain team is responsible for maximizing the horsepower that is generated by the engine through the intake and exhaust system, while simultaneously providing sufficient fuel and ensuring that the engine does not overheat. The electrical team is responsible for supplying electric power throughout the whole vehicle which includes the engine and all the sensors as well as collecting any data other subsystems could use from external sensors.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM 
VEHICLES
Hybrid Mobility Device
Client: Dr. Adel Sharif
Advisor: Dr. Adel Sharif
Students: Hussam Alzahrani, Abdullah Alshammari, Brian Castillo, Helen Cedillos, Juan Estrada, Adrian Gonzalez, Noemi Lucas, Diego Monterroso, Christopher Perez, Gavino Saenz, Cristopher Santiago
TEAM 34.1-34.2
Today's gas prices are at their highest in Los Angeles California, a Hybrid Mobility Device (HMD) can serve as a cheaper method of transportation while decreasing your carbon footprint. The goal of the HMD project is to create a clean alternative mode of city transportation with the slim design of the tadpole tricycle, electric powertrain, and renewable energy. The mechanical systems team designed and modified the roll cage performed finite element analysis on various points of the HMD and added improvements to the design. The team was also responsible for the drivetrain mechanism, designing a new steering wheel and seat. A new mechanism was designed for the drivetrain in which allows the user to pedal without having the chain interfere with the driver's seat. A rear derailleur was also added as a modification to improve pedaling and to decrease the distraught of the user. The electrical team designed the electrical powertrain of the HMD, such as designing the photovoltaic system, charging system, and motor system. The team will also perform simulations of various systems to understand the performance of our system.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 1)
Hybrid Rocket Oxidizer Tank Filling and Dynamics
Client: Eagle Rocketry SEDS
Advisor: Dr. Jeffrey Santner
Students: Orifiel Ortiz, Amy Moore, Miguel Romero, Vicente Estrada, Alex Guilbaud, Anthony Urzua
TEAM 3
This project is part of a two-year research and development effort by ERSEDS to test a hybrid rocket engine. 15 kilograms of nitrous oxide must be transferred autonomously between a commercially purchased tank and a team-designed pressure vessel—enclosed within a testing structure. A driving factor behind the team’s design is nitrous oxide’s saturated state under operational temperatures and pressures. Computational fluid simulations are conducted via Python and ANSYS—while structural simulations utilize SOLIDWORKS.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM 
ENERGY (Session 1)
Cal State LA Hydrogen Station Backup Power Systems
Client: Southern California Gas Company
Advisor: Dr. David Blekhman
Students (Teams 1): New Backup Power System
Pedro Villa, Isaiah Glenn, Saud Alreziza, Robert Quinonez, Royer Elvir
Students (Teams 2): Second Life Backup Power System
Marco Cajero, Carlos Galdamez, Francisco Melgar, Martin Almaraz
TEAMS 15.1-15.2
The hydrogen refueling station (HRS) at Cal State LA currently runs on the energy grid to function, which means in an emergency when the grid is down, the station cannot service vehicles. The purpose of this project is to develop a power system independent of the grid that utilizes the hydrogen stored at the station as its primary power source. Our emergency backup system (EBS) will use a combination of fuel cells and batteries to provide power to the HRS. The models for the EBS will be designed on Simulink to stress test it against the data we gathered from our observations of the HRS. The two teams will use different sources for the components of their EBS; the first team will create their EBS from commercially available parts meant to handle the energy load the HRS experiences during operation, while the second team will explore the possibility of creating an EBS by refurbishing a fuel cell vehicle.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
BIOMED
Inflation as a Method of Strain Evaluation of Synthetic Membranes for Biomedical Applications
Client: Dr. Mathias Brieu
Advisor: Dr. Mathias Brieu
Students: Cesar Cerda Solorio, Justin Thai, Kulvir Beinig, Danny Sanchez
TEAM 22
Due to the high failure rate of implants used to treat female genital prolapse (up to forty percent in the U.S.) and other conditions, the project team is tasked with designing a device to provide a means of evaluating synthetic membranes in cyclically loaded biomedical applications. The core concept of the design involves the application of a cyclic load uniformly across a suspended membrane. This is achieved by means of a sealed pressure chamber attached to a syringe-/stepper-motor-based pressure application system. Using digital image correlation (DIC) the deformation of the sample membrane can be measured and calculated optically using images taken by a simple DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
BIOMED
INSIGHT - Mobile App Virtual Community and Simulator
Client: BMES IRA- Biomedical Engineering Society
Advisors: Dr. Deborah Won, Kevin Delao
Students: Alejandro Martinez Jose Juarez, Esau Martinez, Jessica Velazquez, Padraic Castillo, Natalie Diaz
TEAM 19
Diabetes is quickly becoming one of the most prevalent health issues in the United States. Currently, there is no cure for diabetes, it can only be managed by lifestyle choices of nutrition and physical exercise. Despite the growing number of mobile apps for diabetes management, Type 2 diabetes disproportionately afflicts the Hispanic community. The goal of the INSIGHT (Intelligent System for Inspiring Glucose-related health management for Hispanic individuals with Type 2 diabetes) project is to develop a mobile application that effectively engages Hispanic individuals in managing their Type 2 diabetes. One of the key features of the INSIGHT mobile app is community-based health management which incorporates cultural traditions of the Hispanic community. Another key feature of the INSIGHT mobile app predicts blood glucose levels and Hba1c levels in order to guide the user to make healthier lifestyle choices.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
BIOMED
IoT Environmental Sensors
Client: Cal State LA Facilities Department
Advisors: Airs Lin, Dr. Charles Liu
Students: Juan Avila, Jeffrey Espinoza, David Hernandez, Anthony Huynh, Vincent Oviedo, Jose Rodriguez, Akbar Rizvi.
TEAM 25
Humanity’s presence in nature has created changes in our environment, these changes are significant and can possibly bring harm to its inhabitants. It’s important to detect and monitor these changes pre-existing in nature as well as those created by man-made infrastructures however insignificant. Tracking these changes allows us to find trends and prevent potential dangers, such as wildfires, hurricanes, and tornadoes. IoT (Internet of Things) allows us to use micro-computers and cloud computing to record these real-time changes over long distances. IoT technology allows us to also track more localized dangers such as inter-office fires, smoke, or flammable gas. Our IoT Environmental Sensors project includes several IoT devices that are equipped with sensors for environmental monitoring. Each IoT device or sensor station will consist of a PSoC microcontroller (PSoC 5LP or PSoC 6 BLE), two or three sensors, and a LoRa Module (Long Range) for wireless communication. A Raspberry Pi will act as the central station, receiving communication from our sensor stations and relaying the data to an AWS database for data storage.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
SYSTEMS
Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS)
Client: Cal State LA
Advisor: Everardo Hernandez
Students: Enoch Asare, Talal Binjubail, Sin Tsan Chan, Edward Roemer, Claudio Sanchez
TEAM 36
The Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) will capture kinetic energy through a process called dynamic braking. Dynamic braking takes advantage of the motor that is used to drive the bicycle to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. The electrical energy will then be stored in a battery which will be used to alleviate some of the input required to propel the rider from a stop or to assist in going uphill. Due to the limitations of the battery, a series of supercapacitors are used to control the regenerative current. The system will also use an automated gearing system to provide maximum efficiency to the rider.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 2)
Large Angle Flexure for Oscillating Heat Pipes in Space
Client: NASA JPL
Liaison: Dr. Scott N. Roberts
Advisor: Dr. Jim Kuo
Students: Sufi Asadi, Anthony De Leon, Allan Hernandez, Spencer Miesner, Christopher Molina
TEAM 5
CubeSats are miniature satellites that serve as a low-cost alternative for space research. An area of improvement for CubeSats is their cooling ability. One route being explored for improving the cooling ability of CubeSats is the implementation of an Oscillating Heat Pipe (OHP) system. However, to make this system work it requires the implementation of a large angle flexure to serve as the joint for the deployable solar panels. This project, in partnership with Jet Propulsions Laboratory (JPL), serves to accomplish the objective of developing a flexure capable of bending to a large angle, handling the implicit mechanical requirements of performing a large angle bend, allowing fluid to flow through the flexure, having proper dimensions to fit on a CubeSat, and the capabilities of being manufactured through additive manufacturing (metal 3D printing). The Senior Design students will show their work in having developed unique flexure designs and built supporting data through Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulations and experimental testing with at-home 3D printed, PLA-scaled flexures. Through accomplishing the objective of creating this flexure, CubeSat technologies will take a large step in their cooling capabilities.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ENERGY (Session 2)
Microgrid Sizing for Resiliency
Client: Southern California Edison
Advisor: Dr. Masood Shahverdi
Student: Matthew Gomez, Luis Rosales, Christopher Barrios, William Portillo, Arlene Cardona
TEAM 13.1
The use of microgrids can greatly improve the reliability of service to customers in the event of natural disasters which cause abnormal operation of the electric grid. During faulted conditions, the microgrid will be able to operate independently, supplying its own generation to sustain the energy demanded. The purpose of this project is to implement such a microgrid using distributed energy resources such as a photovoltaic battery storage system. The requirements are to appropriately size the PV source to meet the projected energy demand and determine the necessary upgrades to the system to improve resiliency.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ENERGY (Session 2)
Microgrid Sizing for Resiliency
Client: Southern California Edison
Advisor: Dr. Masood Shahverdi
Students: Felix Abel, Derek Castaneda, Devyn Cordero, Christian Flores, Jonathan Monroy, Carlos Rodezno
TEAM 13.2
In the event of a natural disaster, energy supplied to customers may cause power failures, which is devastating for public safety. Southern California Edison is interested in improving the reliability of meeting the energy demand for their customers. To manage the burden of these natural disasters, a renewable-energy-based microgrid system will be developed to sustain the residential load and operate independently from the main power grid. The team’s goals for developing the microgrid consists of defining the system’s operational limitations and costs.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 4)
Parrot Mini-Drone Competition
Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Dr. Michael Thorburn
Students: Luis Lopez, Lester Arauz, Gina Yama, Miguel Gopar
TEAM 8.4
Our project had two distinct objectives. First, we were to design an autonomous control system for a Parrot Mini drone that would follow a path by using the Mini drone's camera and successfully land on a circular target. This portion was based on the MathWorks Mini drone Competition held worldwide. Our second objective was to design and integrate a mechanism that would pick up a cube and take it back to the starting position of the path, drop off the object and continue to land safely. To complete these tasks, we developed a control system using Simulink/State flow and uploaded the code onto the Parrott Mini droned We designed our mechanism using Solidworks, FEA Simulations, and preparing Manufacture the Part to do further testing.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 4)
Mini-Drone Competition
Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Ofelia Quintero
Students: Rachael DiRegolo, Rosa Cortes, Jonathan Caravantes, Isaac Aldape Torres, Cesar Chavez
TEAM 8.1
Technology has advanced to the point where a driver or pilot is no longer needed to operate a vehicle. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV’s) are aircraft that are controlled autonomously through sensors, an onboard camera, accelerometers, and implemented algorithms. The objective of this project was to design and implement an algorithm to fly a Parrot Mambo Mini-Drone completely autonomously in the MATLAB Capstone Competition. The algorithm was constructed within Simulink and utilized image processing to detect and follow a path. The path was defined to be straight-lined, have turns, and have a circular landing marker at the end. Additionally, this project consisted of the construction of an entirely mechanical claw capable to retrieve a package at the end of the predesigned path. The design was derived from a bear trap mechanism, adapted to the anatomy of the Mini-Drone to function at a smaller scale activated with a pressure sensor.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 4)
Autonomous Drone Design and Controls Competition
Client: MathWorks & Cal State LA
Advisor: Jose Luis Perez
Students: Tiffany Alvarez, Robert Engler, Omar Jarquin, Alexander Magana
TEAM 8.2
Autonomous drone technology is rapidly expanding with applications ranging from military technologies to household hobby drones. Our team was tasked with creating a Simulink algorithm to autonomously control an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) drone for a MathWorks sponsored competition. The primary goal was for the drone to follow a path with multiple turns of varying angles and land inside a designated marker. Multiple teams competed to determine which could successfully complete the course in the fastest time. In addition to this, our team was also required to design and fabricate drone augmentations, more specifically, a grabbing mechanism to aid the drone in payload pickup and delivery.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 4)
Cal State LA ECST / MathWorks Mini Drone Competition
Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Dr. J. David Scholler
Students: Brian Santiago, Lazaro Cano Hernandez, Nikolina Glamuzina, Peiwei Yu
TEAM 8.3
The MathWorks Mini-Drone competition is a yearly competition held by MATLAB with the objective to program a Parrot Mini-Drone to identify a path and follow it autonomously. This path may be subject to intermittent atmospheric disturbance such as a wind disturbance. This will be accomplished by designing a flight control system utilizing MATLAB, Simulink, and State-Flow to make the drone autonomous. An additional part of this competition is that the drone shall lift a payload with a student-designed mechanism and shall return to the starting point. The drone will be subject to modifications and must also be designed to complete these objectives efficiently with the least amount of time.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
ENERGY (Session 1)
Optimization of Hydrogen Production Schedule and the Strategy of Power Trading
Client: Southern California Gas Company
Adviser: Dr. Arezoo Khodayari
Student: Nick Bhadania, Alexis Blanco, Gustavo Martinez, Rafael Perez, Fatima Valdez
TEAM 16.1
The first objective of this research project is to optimize the hydrogen production schedule to reduce the electrolyzer electricity costs. This will be done by operating the electrolyzer during different periods of time when energy rates are cheaper to reduce electricity costs. The second objective is to increase the utilization of hydrogen by selling the unused hydrogen to markets and transportation that use hydrogen fuel cells.
THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
ENERGY (Session 1)
Optimization of the Hydrogen Production Schedule
Client: Southern California Gas Company
Advisor: Dr. Arezoo Khodayari
Students: Joel Cook, Mayra Izquierdo Montoya, Maria Turrubiartes, Yobany Cabrera, Abdullah Thabet
TEAM 16.2
The Hydrogen Station at Cal State LA has served as a research station for students and faculty since 2014. The station was the first in the world to sell hydrogen fuel by the kilogram to retail customers and continues to serve as a living lab for education and outreach about hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuel for vehicles. An electrolyzer at the station uses electricity purchased from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) to produce hydrogen gas that is compressed and chilled to the proper pressure and temperature for fueling vehicles. The electrolyzer is programmed to produce hydrogen after fueling events to maintain the storage tanks full. The goal of this project was to develop an algorithm that would calculate a less expensive operating schedule. The schedule would take advantage of less expensive Time of Use (TOU) rates to lower the cost of producing hydrogen fuel while producing enough fuel to meet each day’s demand. Fuel sales data from 2019 and 2020 was used to calculate the estimated cost to produce each day’s fuel using the standard electrolyzer operating procedure and the proposed, optimized schedule. The proposed operating schedule would have reduced the cost to produce hydrogen during the data timeframe by as much as 68%. Lastly, the team identified additional applications of hydrogen fuel on campus that would increase the utilization of hydrogen fuel, decrease the use of fossil fuels, and lower the cost to produce hydrogen by increasing the overall revenue of the Hydrogen Station.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
ROBOTICS (Session 1)
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle RoboSub Competition: Lanturn
Client: Office of Naval Research
Advisors: Dr. Michael Thorburn, Dr. He Shen
Student Team 28.1: Louis Carlin, Angel Toribio, Eddie Hernandez, Jose Barrera, Yongjie (Jay) Li
Student Team 28.2: Christopher Reza-Nakonechny, Anthony Gonzalez, Daniel Romero, Charles Vidal, Brian Sager
TEAM 28.1-28.2
The RoboSub competition is held yearly by the nonprofit organization RoboNation and is sponsored by the Office of Naval research. It tasks participants with building an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) which must navigate a large underwater arena and complete various tasks. Autonomous means that the robot must navigate its tasks without external input from a human controller. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, rather than the traditional competition, a paper and presentation on the project and a website will be judged for the competition. The Electrical and Mechanical Senior Design team 28 has analyzed and designed components and systems that will facilitate success in the RoboSub competition: including machine design simulation, control system simulation and modeling, various actuated systems, and power distribution. The EE/ME team works together with a Computer Science Senior Design Team, who’s responsible for navigation, mission planning, sensor fusion, and control systems. Because of the pandemic restrictions, our teams have emphasized long-term planning for onboarding next year’s teams with the hope that they can maximize the use of their time and participate in the traditional competition with a fully functioning AUV.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
SYSTEMS
Solar Lab Demonstration
Client: Grid Alternatives
Liaison: Anthony Romero
Advisor: Dr. Samuel Landsberger
Students: Faisal Aldossari, Napat Atikanit, Nathan Castro, Calvin Chhun, Steven Garcia, Ashley Guo, Kailen Loualhati, Sergio Miranda, Alex Rodriguez, Mohammed Shukr, Ulises Vega
TEAM 14.1-14.2
We are the Cal State LA senior design team working on the solar demonstration called The Solar Express. Our amazing and generous sponsor is Grid Alternatives and we have the privilege of being advised by Professor Samuel Landsberg. Our project is a design of a solar-powered trailer that will function as both an energy storage system (equipped for generation and consumption) and a viable workplace/rest area.
The Solar Demonstration Lab senior design project aims to effectively design, construct, and implement a solar energy system to provide clean energy for the user. Our vision was to produce a model that was cost-effective, eye-appealing, and of course, efficient. This year, our team decided we would retrofit a camping trailer, which could be used to spend several days or a week out in nature, all while harnessing the power of the sun to power their stay. Our camping trailer is 6 feet wide, 7 feet tall, and 12 feet long. The goal is to educate the public on the benefits of using solar power in their homes all while keeping a fun, cost-effective, and modernistic design. As the need to go green becomes greater and greater, a project of this scope helps aid the transition to making such a power option viable for all. With the help of our sponsor Grid Alternatives, we were supplied solar panels that we were able to digitally fit on the trailer. Within the trailer itself, our team set out to accomplish research and progress in a variety of topics, such as energy generation and consumption, roof mounting, battery storage, and solar hot water. For the spring semester, as the process of getting together on campus faced more obstacles, our team focused more on remote processes, such as modeling, the solar system circuitry, and solar hot water. In addition, each team member received a mini at-home kit in which we built a small replica of the system that the trailer would utilize.
View Pre-Recorded Student Presentation Team 14 View Presentation Slides Team 14THU • MAY 6 @ 1:00 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 1)
Solid Rocket Fuel Design & Performance
Client: Eagle Rocketry
Advisor: Dr. Jeffrey Santner
Students: Jennifer Rivello, Jacquelyn Rader, Jana Ramirez, Aldo Solis, Steven Joel Mora
TEAM 4
The purpose of this project is to provide Eagle Rocketry with a solid fuel recipe that they may replicate and use for their full-scale rocket. Eagle Rocketry needs a solid fuel recipe that has minimal air bubbles, thus maximizing the burn time. We have developed several solid fuels and are testing them to find which recipe provides the max burn time, thrust, specific impulse, and overall best performance. The solid fuel will be tested by conducting a static fire test measuring thrust and burn rate. We designed a reusable fuselage, test stand, and thrust acquisition system allowing us to analyze which recipe results in the longest burn time.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ENERGY (Session 2)
System Inertia Impact Due to High-Renewable Penetration - Texas Interconnection
Client: Southern California Edison
Advisor: Ayman Samaan
Students: Salvador Zambrano, Arnuvio Hernandez, Justin Vergara, Gonzalo Urias, and Jeremiah Rodriguez
TEAM 12
This project examines the effects of high penetration of renewable resources on the stability of the grid maintained by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). A 2017 model of the ERCOT grid has been modified using PowerWorld to simulate a projection of the grid by 2045. Traditional sources of generation like coal and natural gas plants have been retired until the penetration of renewable resources has been maximized and this threshold has been established. Stability analysis has been conducted on this projected model which represents the grid during peak demand periods, as well as on another model that has been modified to reflect the projected 2045 condition during off-peak demand periods. A cost analysis has been performed to approximate the economic impact of our additions and alterations. (Electrical Engineering)
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ENERGY (Session 2)
High Renewables Impact
Client: Southern California Edison
Liaison: Ayman Samaan, ME, PSEE
Advisor: Ayman Samaan, ME, PSEE
Students: Manuel Rodriguez, Mayra Silva, Kimberly Guido, Michael Carbajal, Shouran Liang, Alexis Vargas
TEAM 11
In 2018, California passed Senate Bill 100, targeting 100% carbon-free electricity by 2045 to reduce greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. To meet this ambitious goal, we must consider the potential impacts caused by this significant resource shift. The predominant sources of renewable energy in California are solar and wind, which do not contribute substantially to system inertia. The decline of system inertia causes significant frequency deviation leading to load shedding, instability, machine damage, and even blackouts. The team goal is to simulate an impact using PowerWorld Simulator software and provide a suitable recommendation.
The objective of this project is to develop study scenarios to identify transmission challenges and determine system improvements such as under frequency/voltage load shedding, synchronous condensers, static VAR compensation (SVC), static synchronous compensator, series capacitor/reactor, and shunt capacitor/reactors. To perform an economic study and select the least-cost mitigations.
View Pre-Recorded Student Presentation Team 11 View Presentation Slides Team 11THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
ROBOTICS (Session 1)
Telemedicine Robot
Client: Cal State LA Biomedical Engineering Department
Advisor: Curtis Wang
Students: Ye Nyi Aung, Andres Saavedra, Jose Martinez, Steven Vu, Mario Martinez Cisneros, Miguel Cano, Erick Alvarez, Manual Ibarra, Henry To, Reynaldo Aguirre, Christian Velez
TEAMS 29.1-29.2
With the COVID-19 pandemic, doctor visits have been much harder to conduct in-person due to social distancing requirements. The usage of telemedicine has been climbing steadily with more people depending on internet services and tech gadgets. The team is developing a low-cost, easy to sanitize robot that doctors can use as a medium to conduct medical checkups during patient visits. The robot will navigate around the patient’s house after deployment, conduct medical procedures and relay video feed to the doctor via the internet. The robot can provide patients with non-intrusive, safe, and convenient medical service at the comfort of their homes.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 1:00 PM
VEHICLES
Solar-Assist TurboTrike Demonstration Laboratory (TTL)
Client: John Wieland, Inc & GridAlternatives, Inc.
Advisor: Dr. Samuel Landsberger
Students: Loren Barton, Jairo Martinez, Wesley Aquino, Ivan Petean, Martin Morales, Jihane Ait Bella, Dillon Howard, Hernan Reyes, David Bonilla
TEAMS 35.1-35.2
With an increasing awareness of environmental concerns, engineering industries have begun to shift away from combustion-driven processes with a goal to decrease worldwide pollution. With new technologies, electric motors and batteries are now more efficient than ever and they provide performance that rivals that of combustion engine vehicles. The Turbo Trike project is a take on an electric single passenger vehicle that has modern features seen in current production vehicles. The project sought to modify an existing electric trike to have improved stability, better handling, and include safety features such as autobraking and a roll cage. The trike design was modified to include an independent front suspension, improved steering, a roll cage, solar panels, regenerative braking, and an automatic braking system. The suspension would improve vehicle dynamics and ride comfort, and the improved steering system would aid the driver’s control over the vehicle’s handling. The auto-braking system would assist the driver to avoid a collision, and the roll cage would protect the driver in the event of an accident, as well as improve overall trike rigidity. The regenerative braking system and solar panels would increase trike efficiency, reducing reliance on grid power.
FRI • MAY 7 @ 2:30 PM
ROBOTICS (Session 2)
Two-Wheel Self Balancing, Obstacle Avoiding & Wirelessly Controlled Robot
Client: Raytheon Technologies
Liaison: Dr. John T Jacobs
Advisor: Bob Dempster
Students: Anthony Castillo, Taylor Hemwall, Kin Cheung, Wyatt Luong
TEAM 30
This is a continuous project that was started in 2018-2019 and is sponsored by Raytheon Technologies. The scope of this project is to design and build a self-balancing robot with obstacle avoidance and wireless control capabilities. The robot must be able to continuously balance for at least 15 minutes while having the ability to receive and execute commands from a wireless controller. It must also detect objects at least 1 foot away from it and avoid them autonomously. The main components used to accomplish these tasks are a PID controller, 3S 11.1V LiPo battery, stepper motors, PSoC 6 microcontroller, ultrasonic sensors, and an RF transceiver module.
THU • MAY 6 @ 2:30 PM
AEROSPACE (Session 2)
Venus Wind Harvester Design and Optimization
Client: NASA JPL
Liaison: Dr. Jonathan Sauder
Advisor: Dr. Jim Kuo
Students: Saul Loza, Oscar Lopez, Kevin Pan, Jonathan Serrano, Anthony Izaguirre, Zacharias Garza
TEAM 6
The Venus Wind Harvester is an ongoing project which consists of the development and optimization of a wind turbine designed to operate in Venusian atmospheric conditions. The atmosphere of Venus is 96% carbon dioxide and contains clouds of sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid, with surface temperatures in excess of 470 degrees Celsius and pressures 92 times that of Earth. These extreme environmental conditions make planetary exploration difficult as modern electronics cannot survive for prolonged periods of time. The NASA – JPL Hybrid Automaton Rover Venus proposes using a mechanical wind energy harvester to further explore the Venusian surface. At the proposed landing site, the surface wind speeds range from 0.3 to 1.3 m/s with an average wind speed of 0.6 m/s. These wind speeds, combined with the high density of Venusian air, results in the promising potential for power generation. The power goal for the proposed wind harvester is 9W at an average wind speed of 0.6 m/s. A horizontal axis turbine is used to avoid dynamic stall experienced by vertical axis wind turbines at low wind speeds. In the horizontal axis wind turbine design, existing airfoil profiles were evaluated and chosen using QBlade. The blade designs were analyzed using blade element momentum theory (BEM) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to predict and improve turbine performance.