Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering Program Projects 2022

EE ME PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS

Please take a moment to provide feedback on the Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering presentation and Q&A session. Your feedback will be incorporated into the project evaluation and shared with the student teams, who greatly appreciate hearing from you. EE ME Project Feedback and Evaluation

(AEROSPACE Session 1)
Weight Optimization of Rocket Components Using Filament Winding and Composite Material

Client: Eagle Rocketry
Advisor: Patrick Hartunian
Students: Doo Park, Xavier Garcia, Alexander Gomez, Marvin Martinez, Zachary Morris

TEAM 1
The mass fraction of a rocket determines its success in flight. The previous rocket design flown by Eagle Rocketry failed to meet its apogee because of the rocket’s weight. To optimize the construction process, Cal State LA recently acquired the capability to use filament winding for manufacturing carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) structures. A team of mechanical engineering students redesigned the fins and fuselage for Eagle Rocketry’s rocket, taking advantage of the new filament winder. Considering structural, aerodynamic, and thermal loads, FRP will be used to provide the necessary strength and reduction in weight. Multiple candidates’ designs and tradeoffs between strength, cost, weight, and durability between varied materials were also considered. Computer-aided design (CAD) and simulation software, theoretical equations, and previous Senior Design projects were used to compute and validate the final rocket’s design. The goal is to manufacture a rocket for the Friends of Amateur Rocketry (FAR) 1030 competition on June 3-5, 2022.

(Aerospace Session 1)
Meteorite Imaging Positioning System (MISPM)

Client: Arizona State University, NASA Psyche
Liaison: Cassie Bowman, Ed.D.
Advisor: Everardo Hernandez
Students: Damian Herrera, David Reyes-Ramirez, David Strickland, Reny Takeda

TEAM 2
The NASA Psyche mission will be the first time ever that humans are exploring a world made not of rock or ice but metal! https://psyche.asu.edu/. Students were tasked to design and build a system to allow for the efficient production of high-quality images of meteorite samples to assist the development of a meteorite image database. The mechanical positioner is required to be able to precisely hold the meteorite in a desired position and orientation to ensure high-quality photographic images. The Meteorite Imaging System Positioning Mechanism (MISPM) is able to grip and articulate meteorite samples of various sizes and shapes. It is able to control the angular movement of a meteorite sample in two axis of rotation, as well as adjust the height in the “Y” direction. This allows the sample to be positioned at any angle necessary to obtain a precise image of the sample at the proper distance. The mechanism can verify when a sample's surface is perpendicular to the camera’s lenses. This also allows the mechanism to maintain a proper focal range for the camera and ensure that the image precisely represents the sample.

(AEROSPACE Session 1)
Venus Wind Turbine Optimization

Client: Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Liaison: Jonathan Sauder, Ph.D.
Advisor: Jim Kuo, Ph.D.
Students: Jesse Millan, Grayson Hanes, Eric Huang, Jazmin Reyes, Erick Mendoza

TEAM 3
In this project, students will work with faculty, graduate students, and our client, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, to design and optimize a Venus wind harvester. The objective is to design a fully deployable wind turbine to power potential Venus missions. Students will apply the design methodology developed by the previous team to optimize rotor design and design a testing platform to aid the verification process. The project will provide valuable experience in aerodynamics, finite element analysis, rapid prototyping, and machine design.

(AEROSPACE Session 1)
ASME University Rover Competition

Client: ASME Cal State LA
Advisor: He Shen, Ph.D.
Students: Isaac Aguayo, Christian Barrios, Vanessa Carrillo, Luis Castro, Ricardo Corona-Saavedra, Richard Cortez, Carlito Ferrer Jr., Jonathan Flores, Ian MacDougall, Kimberly Moran, Timothy Tang

TEAM 4
The University Rover Challenge (URC) is a robotics competition for college students hosted by the Mars Society in Wayne County, Utah at the Mars Desert Research Station. This annual event is intended to challenge student teams to design and build a simple rover that will one day encourage the next generations of Mars rovers that will work alongside astronauts on the Red Planet. The URC competition is divided into 4 distinct missions that challenge the rover’s capabilities in a simulated environment that mimics Mars terrain:

• The Science Mission requires the rover to conduct in-site analysis of samples to detect any evidence of life, extinct or extant. The team must figure out its own science packages and instruments to achieve this goal.
• The Extreme Retrieval and Delivery Mission require the rover to pick up and deliver objects in the field and deliver instruments to astronauts while traversing for 1 km on rough terrain.
• The Equipment Servicing Mission requires the rover to perform several dexterous tasks on a mock-up equipment system with its robotic arm.
• The Autonomous Navigation Mission requires the rover to autonomously traverse 2 km in relatively rough terrain to and in between posts and gates assigned at the start of the mission.

The objective of the 2021-2022 Mars Rover Team is to continue the work from the previous year’s team and aim to complete 3 of 4 missions. The team is split between two main categories: rover and robotic arm. The rover team’s responsibilities are to overhaul the suspension system with Finite Element Analysis (FEA), design an integrated weatherproof electronics compartment with Computational Flow Dynamics (CFD) analysis to determine the adequate placement of the electronics and optimize air cooling, design and manufacture a robotic arm mount, test maximum communication system (12dBi, 2.4Ghz) range, wire and test all electronic components on the rover with correct gauges, control the drive system via teleoperation with a joystick, simulate and control the rover via state machines with ROS for autonomous navigation for mission 2. The robotic arm team’s responsibilities are to simulate the SCORBOT-ER III robotic arm with MoveIt! and control it via PIDs, mainly for missions 2 and 3. Through these accomplishments, the 2021-2022 Mars Rover Team will hand it off to next year’s team to complete mission 1, upgrade any existing systems, and compete in URC.

(AEROSPACE Session 2)
NASA CubeSat Wildfire Prevention

Client: NASA
Advisor: Amir Nankali, Ph.D
Students: Joel Ramirez, Manuel Galvan, Andres Hernandez, Youssef Atlam, George Gomez

TEAM 5
Cal State LA College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Technology will team with Cal State Fullerton to design a CubeSat that will monitor the surface of the Earth to detect areas of high risk to wildfires. These areas are described as hot and dry zones with an infrared camera monitoring the Earth. The team focused on mechanical, thermal, and electrical features in CubeSat design. Such as structure, material selection, CAD design, structural/ thermal analysis, power system, and research into deployable solar panels. Prototype construction will be done in the maker space by means of water jetting and milling. Infrared imaging will be monitored and analyzed from the Raspberry pi using an infrared camera and thermal sensor. Structural/thermal analysis will be used to simulate the conditions the CubeSat must endure during the launch and when the CubeSat is orbiting Earth. MATLAB/Simulink and design software using SolidWorks.

(AEROSPACE Session 2)
Heat Pipe Design for High Power CubeSat

Client: Eagle Rocketry
Advisor: Jim Kuo, Ph.D.
Students: Eric Anthony, Ricardo Chaparro, Evelyn Cortez, Abigail Laguna, Hugo Montanez, Cristian Vera

TEAM 6
Students will work with faculty and Eagle Rocketry to design a CubeSat. The objective of this design project is to design a working Oscillating Heat Pipe suitable for dissipating heat under high-power CubeSat operations. The CubeSat will consist of the OHP with an evaporator and condenser sections, a battery, and a DAQ to record the temperature of the OHP.

(UAV)
Drone Flight Controller Design and Deployment

Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Michael Thorburn, Ph.D.
Students: Derrick Sean Atkins, Peter Dang, Wilfredo Pineda, Roberto Salas, Jasmine Valencia

TEAM 7-A
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have become a popular field of choice for tasks and activities ranging from leisure photography to scientific exploration. Development and application have been prominent in a variety of industries and the field will continue to expand. In the current years, MATLAB® and Simulink® have played an important role in making UAV controller system design more accessible. In this project, students will use Simulink® to create and design a flight controller pilot system which will be run on a popular QAV250 drone with a Pixhawk 4 processor. Students will develop skills in simulation, 3D modeling, model-based programming, and troubleshooting.

(UAV)
Recovery Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (RUAV)

Client: MathWorks Excellence in Innovation Project
Advisor: Michael Thorburn, Ph.D.
Students: Ricardo Fuentes, Adolfo Mendez, Tabi Monzon

TEAM 7-B
As the technology behind UAVs advances, drones are finding their place in various operations. They are easy to deploy, use sensors that allow for precision location management, are excellent for taking aerial videos and photographs, and can also be used for security purposes. While there is a wide range of applications for drone usage, there are still numerous challenges to their usage. One function that could improve is pick up and deliveries made by drones. This project aims to determine if a hook transportation system is a viable means for transporting a small package via an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Utilizing MATLAB is essential to customize the UAV for this goal, and Simulink similarly plays a vital role in simulation and modeling for analysis of the control system.

(UAV)
UAV Flight Controller Design and Hardware Deployment

Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Michael Thorburn, Ph.D.
Students: Saron Gebreslassie, Antranik Karayan, Armine Grigoryan, Gabriel Montañez, Jonathan Jauregui

TEAM 7-C
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are no longer a thing of the future. They are being implemented more often across a wide range of industries. Transportation, delivery, agriculture, surveillance, and defense are some of the industries that UAVs are revolutionizing. MathWorks is critical in making it easier for customers to design and apply their UAVs. For this project, Team 7-C was tasked with creating a Simulink algorithm to control a UAV drone with the sponsorship of MathWorks. The team utilized a selected QAV250 frame to build the UAV and design a flight control system utilizing MATLAB, Simulink, and State-Flow. Doing so allows the drone to switch between autonomous and remote-controlled mode. In addition, the team loaded and tested the control model onto the UAV’s flight controller, Pixhawk 4 Mini. Upon the completion of this project, the team gained an immense amount of knowledge about the fundamentals of building, troubleshooting, and creating a flight control model for the UAV using MathWorks products.

(UAV)
Short Range 8-Propeller UAV

Client: The Aerospace Corporation
Liaison: Allyson Yarbrough, Ph.D.
Advisor: Michael Thorburn, Ph.D.
Students: Ray Ayala, Cameron Bolger, Annie Cornejo, Ethan Lucas, Quocvi Mai, Andy Zepeda

TEAM 8
In this project, students collaborated with faculty, industrial advisors, and a client of the Aerospace Corporation to design a prototype UAV with an autonomous hovering flight. The objective was to implement an Aerospace Corporation structural UAV patent concept. The UAV embodies autonomous RPY stabilization, altitude control, and image processing limited at 1-meter altitude and includes landing capabilities with fixed-wing flight endurance, multi-rotors, and center-contra rotating propellers to enable autonomous hovering. The emphasis of this project was on the structural design and corresponding flight control system to determine the feasibility of the Aerospace concept and the performance that can be achieved.

(ENERGY Session 1)
Vault-0 Thermal Management System

Client: hatchTank Innovations
Advisor: Nurullah Arslan, Ph.D.
Student: Cristina Huerta, Mineh Khodagholian, Nicholas Lee, Luis Paz Tinoco, Francisco Reyes

TEAM 9
Many businesses, government agencies, and community centers rely heavily on fleets of work trucks to obtain energy for their needs. These work trucks require an off-grid power supply that often relies on gasoline generators or idling vehicles to have access to electrical energy that is required to operate their necessary equipment during the workday. These generators are noisy, unreliable, expensive to operate, pollute the air, and create carbon emissions. hatchTank’s EnVault Vault-0 is looking to replace these inconvenient fossil fuel-powered generators by using the latest in safe lithium-ion battery and inverter technologies to make an environmentally friendly and efficient off-grid energy source. The objective of this project is to select a potential replacement battery cell, analyze the heat it would generate, and design a thermal management system able to keep the EnVault at optimal operational temperatures. The team shall perform research for the replacement batteries, plan the proper setup for the batteries to meet the required energy output, design a cooling system that meets the space limitations of the EnVault, and use FEA simulations to optimize the performance of the cooling system. Based on the results, the students will identify areas of safety concern and inefficiencies, make design suggestions and implement any changes approved by the client.

(ENERGY Session 1)
Harvest Thermal Extraction System R&D

Client: hatchTank Innovations
Advisors: Nurullah Arslan, Ph.D.
Students: Alejandro Calderon, Eduardo Silva, Kevin Ruiz

TEAM 10
Without an efficient method of dissipating solar heat from our Harvest noncrystalline photovoltaic (PC) solar panels, internal temperatures can get above 65.6 degC. The Harvest panel is estimated to experience at least a 12% electrical production loss during hot and sunny days, with the average temperature coefficient being 0.3%//degC for every degree above 25 degC. The higher the average lifetime temperature PV panels experience, the quicker they experience heat-related degradation. As the project progressed throughout the semester, our group established possible methods of thermal improvement for increased safety, efficiency, and longevity through mapping the thermal properties of our Harvest panel system. Our group used ANSYS to produce data to develop different thermal extraction methods and evaluate potential ways to utilize extracted thermal energy. Moreover, our group has created thermal models and researched different thermal extraction methods in relation to the materials for solar panels and cells.

(STRUCTURES)
3D Printer for Cementitious Materials

Client: Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Laboratory (AM2L) at Cal State LA
Advisor: Mohsen Eshraghi, Ph.D., Ramon Garcia
Students: Daniel Michaels, Yelsi Flores, Michael Flores, Emmanuel Ramirez, Ricardo Melgar, Kevin Perez de la Torre

TEAM 11
Concrete 3D printing takes advantage of 3D printing technologies and expands the build volume while also utilizing cementitious materials/mixtures. Cementitious printers allow for structures, such as houses, to be built quicker and less expensively than traditional methods while also requiring minimal human labor. This project focuses on the development of a 3D printer for cementitious materials with a 10-foot length in the x, y, and z-direction. Previous teams have built the basics of the gantry, electrical system, along with the coding. However, no concrete testing was accomplished by them. Some modifications to the gantry system were made to improve its performance. A new and improved design of the extruder and nozzle will also be accomplished. The electrical system had some faults, and therefore material selection and purchase need to be done to better maneuver the printer. Further progress needs to be made to complete and refine these aspects. The work done on the printer mainly consists of the extruder, gantry, coding, and testing. To verify the performance of the printer, testing in the form of printing single layers, multiple layers, and patterns will be done.

(ROBOTICS)
Delivery Robot

Client: Cal State LA ECST
Advisor: Cal State LA
Students: Irene Zhang, William Corella, David Pacheco, Daniel Del Rio, John El-Hosni, Jayson Castro

TEAM 12
For this project, we are building a delivery robot focused on searching and collecting tennis balls autonomously, traversing across a tennis court. The robot is required to traverse its surroundings using localization concepts using its sensor, detect tennis balls using OpenCV computer vision and collect the tennis balls. It will also be able to detect its surroundings and avoid obstacles. Known obstacles include the net, the fence surrounding the court, and possible side benches around the court.

(ROBOTICS)
RoboSub

Client: RoboSub, Cal State LA
Advisor: He Shen, Ph.D.
Students: Forrest Hale, Victor Sandoval, Damien Ramos, Zachary Beattie, Emigdio Alaniz, Andrew Maravilla, Edward Komperda

TEAM 13
RoboSub is an international student competition. The student team will design and build a robotic submarine, otherwise known as Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV). The behaviors demonstrated by these experimental AUVs mimic those of real-world systems, currently deployed around the world for underwater exploration, seafloor mapping, and sonar localization. Some of the mechanical systems are composed of pressure vessel design, mechanical claw and arm, torpedo system, and target-based payload dropper. The competition will be in August of 2022 and this project will be representing Cal State LA at the Navy’s TRANSDEC location in San Diego.

(AUTO)
SAE Baja Off-Road Vehicle Design and Manufacturing

Client: Baja SAE, Cal State LA
Advisor: John Chris Bachman, Ph.D.
Students: Sergio Perez, Hector Palapa, Darren Crawford, Raymond Farias, Jocylene Arevalo, Ronald Carranza, Shahroz Zaheer

TEAM 14
Baja SAE is an intercollegiate competition where teams build an off-road vehicle and compete in various events that challenge their designs and manufacturing. The competition has a set of rules that every team must adhere to. The most recent revision requires the vehicle to provide power at all four wheels. This new rule has presented a new challenge for the Cal State Los Angeles Baja SAE team since only 2-wheel drive vehicles have been built in the past. Implementing the 4-Wheel drive system will have a drastic impact on the steering and drivability of the vehicle. The BAJA SAE senior design team is set to design and develop a 4-Wheel drive off-road vehicle that is capable of navigating the typical maneuvering SAE event.

(AUTO)
SAE Formula

Client: Formula SAE, Cal State LA (Formula Society of Automotive Engineers)
Advisor: John Chris Bachman, Ph.D.
Students: Steven Lim, Jessica Plascencia Magdaleno, Henry Amador, Leonardo Sanchez, Cesar Ramirez, Uriel Perez Mora, Kyle Misa

TEAM 15
This team is required to design a formula-style race car with the assistance of the Formula SAE team. Team members will design and build the rear suspension, restrictor, gas tank, data acquisition systems, drivetrain, and intake systems for the engine. The project will involve design, computer-aided drafting, simulation, stress analysis, manufacturing, and testing.

(AUTO)
Solar Beach Cruiser for People with Disabilities

Client: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cal State LA
Advisor: Samuel Landsberger, Sc.D.
Students: Cesar Cuevas, Omar Cota, Jimmy Martinez, Joel Ortiz, Kevin Ly

TEAMS 16
For this generation of the Solar Beach Cruiser, this team focused on achieving efficiency, reliability, and comfort of the Solar Beach Cruiser. To reach this goal, the replacement of the motors was our focus going from brushed to brushless motors became a priority. Another modification would be upgrading the power source of the Solar Beach Cruiser’s 24V DC Car batteries to a 32V lithium-ion battery would help sustain the power of the new brushless motors, as well as run the Cruiser at optimal efficiency. The user’s comfort is also a priority for the team, and so we have decided to upgrade the seat for a new seat that additionally improved the overall look of the Solar Beach Cruiser. The new generation of the Solar Beach Cruiser will be tested on hiking trails and beaches by clients with disabilities that range from ages 12 to 80 years old.

(ENERGY Session 2)
Flame Stability: Hydrogen Enriched Natural Gas

Client: SoCalGas
Advisor: Mario Medina, Ph.D.
Students: Byron Barillas, Juan Limeta-Rios, Brandon Rodriguez, Michael Rodriguez, Edgar Vargas

TEAM 17
The project objective is to achieve a stable flame for the combustion of a natural gas and hydrogen mixture. Flame stability will be characterized by flame temperature, flame speed, flame height, and energy release. The approach includes chemical equilibrium calculations with Cantera, flow simulations with ANSYS, and experimental testing on a retrofitting stove burner. Theory from fluid dynamics, thermodynamics, and combustion will be applied to control important parameters such as equivalence ratio, fluid pressure, and flow rate to help maintain a stable flame when increasing hydrogen content in the fuel mixture.

(BIOMED)
Parametric CAD model of the Female Pelvic Floor System

Client: Biomedical Soft Tissue Modeling - Upscale (BioTiM-Us)
Advisors: Mathias Brieu, Ph.D.
Students: Annabel Baltazar, Jean Bas, Mika Clark, Mark Cable, Dann Jemson Galeon

TEAM 18
Medical imaging provides caregivers with accurate three-dimensional information about each patient's anatomy. Looking at these images can assist users with a simple understanding of the geometries and anatomy being analyzed. However, due to the complexity of each organ as well as the quality of the images, the MRI images are not as realistic to each patient’s anatomy to be
used in a practical way. The objective of the project is to develop a set of parameterized CAD models that will be able to render the anatomy of the female pelvic system with a low number of variables that will make the reconstruction much easier. The aim of this project is to study the women's pelvic system, composed of organs, muscles, bones, and ligaments, and to define relevant parametric geometry that would define them separately, and as a whole. The project focuses on looking at the bladder, the rectum, the vagina, the pelvic floor muscle, and the pelvic bone to recreate a generic model of the female pelvic floor that can then be modified to each patient’s specific anatomy. This begins by creating individual models for each organ, muscle, or bone that can easily be defined by different variables in order to create each part of the anatomy specific to each patient. Once this has been accomplished, then an assembly of the overall pelvic floor system will be created using this same method to create a more accurate reconstruction of the female pelvic floor. Students will work with faculty, members of Biomedical Soft Tissue Modeling - Upscale (BioTiM-Us) to create this CAD model that can easily be parameterized per each patient’s anatomy.

(ROBOTICS)
Target & Tracking Vehicles

Client: Raytheon Technologies
Liaison: John Jacobs, Ph.D.
Advisors: ABob Dempster
Students: Rafael Machuca, Andrea Abelian, Mark Macaraeg, Fatima Flores, Joshua Garnica Juarez

TEAM 19
Raytheon Target and Tracking Vehicles are based on the topic of search and identification, acquisition lock, and continuous navigation capabilities. This project's objective is to build two robots, one of which is Remote Controlled (RC) the lead Robot #1, and a following autonomous Robot #2 that is set to follow the lead Robot #1 with sensing capabilities. Once identified the tracking robot must autonomously follow the RC robot in complicated maneuvers, including a figure 8 while maintaining a fixed distance.

(ROBOTICS)
Radar Guided Rescue Robot

Client: Raytheon Technologies
Liaison: John Jacobs, Ph.D.
Advisor: Bob Dempster
Students: Armando Martinez, Lynel Ornedo, Steven Toyama, Kevin Ramos, Jacob Alexis Novoa-Carrillo

TEAM 20
The objective of the Radar-Guided Rescue Robot is to design and build a navigation system for a robot. The robot must search for a target based on its given width using an ultra-sonic distance sensor. The robot shall navigate to the target autonomously. The robot shall transmit its data wirelessly to the user. The contractor shall develop an understanding of object detection and navigation for an autonomous robot. The contractor shall research and determine the best microprocessor and components. The contractor shall also create a program that will control the detection, navigation, and wireless communication systems of the robot. The contractor shall acquire and assemble the components for the robot, perform statistical tests of the components and sensors, debug, and then calibrate the system. The robot must operate for at least 15 minutes on battery power and scan for a target over the range of 9 feet/2.7 meters. The robot shall distinguish each object and then move towards the target with the width determined by the user. The robot shall autonomously navigate to the target and stop 1 foot/0.3 meters away from the object.

(ENERGY Session 1)
Portable Charging System for Electric Vehicles

Client: MathWorks
Advisor: Khosrow Rad, Ph.D.
Students: Ismael Sital Figueroa, Kemyl Tadeo, Chad Rivera

TEAM 21
Electric vehicles are rising in popularity as the global trend toward electrification continues. However, this new and exciting technology also poses different challenges compared to conventional internal combustion engines, which will need new engineering solutions to resolve. One such challenge is the possibility of an electric vehicle running out of charge before it can reach a recharging station. In such a scenario, it might be easier to have a charger in the trunk of the car that can simply recharge the EV on the spot using an external, charged battery pack rather than putting in the much more substantial and, in places where there is no phone signal, a risky effort of having to call a tow truck to take it to another location. Solving this problem requires a detailed understanding of how battery packs and power electronics operate, and of the control algorithms necessary to manage the charging process in accordance with established standards. Students will create a detailed model and simulate an EV battery pack with electrical and thermal characteristics and devise a solution for transferring electricity from an external battery charger through an intermediate power electronic circuit to the reference EV. They will select an appropriate value of the charging rate and total power transferred as well as consider the trade-off against the time taken and the cost of hardware needed for faster charging.

(ENERGY Session 2)
Project Santa Cruz

Client: U.S National Park Service  
Advisor: Ted Nye 
Student: Alvaro Cuevas, Jacob Dominguez, Pablo Alvarez, Emmanuel Valencia-Ruiz, Ashley Munoz, Enrique Salinas, Jose Reyes, Mario Pinzon, Cesar Medrano, Tracy Jimenez

TEAM 22
A multidisciplinary team of engineering students designed, assembled, and installed
a solar photovoltaic system for the U.S National Park Service on Santa Cruz Island. The power system will be utilized to power a historic adobe on Smugglers Ranch. This system will provide power in a remote location under rugged settings, subject to environmental conditions. The team built a working testbed similar to the proposed photovoltaic power system to familiarize themselves with components, testing, debugging, and failure analysis. The solar array structure will support several solar modules capable of delivering the power necessary to the historic Adobe’s needs from Smuggler’s Ranch.

(AERO Session 2)
Spacecraft Separation Analysis Tool

Client: The Aerospace Corporation
Liaison: Edgar Herrera
Advisor: Ray Manning, Ph.D.
Students: Kishan Patel, Julianna Hernandez, Viviana Gallardo-Cardiel, Alejandro Hernandez, Michael Clopton

TEAM 23
All space vehicles are designed to separate from their launch vehicles in order to be placed into the proper mission orbit. The objective of this project was to create a simulation tool that would showcase this vehicle separation event. A typical separation system relies on springs to separate the payload from the upper stage. The simulation tool which was implemented in python will allow the user to input separation rate requirements, vehicle properties, and an initial separation system design consisting of several springs, their location, stiffness, and stroke. The simulation will then perform bound-constrained optimization on these values according to the separation rate requirements, ultimately producing plots showcasing the initial and optimized linear and angular separation rates of both the payload and upper stage in 6-DOF, and the optimized separation system design variables. The software will then perform a Monte Carlo analysis around the optimized system to show the sensitivity of the optimized design to system parameters. 

(STRUCTURES)
Kinematic Bike

Client: Kinematic Bike
Liaison: Phillip Thomas
Advisor: Everardo Hernandez
Students: Jose Salazar, Richard Chavez, Daniel Wong, Alexandro Rodríguez, Diana Chávez-Leyva, Manuel Noriega

TEAM 24
Mountain bikes have risen in prominence over the last decade and that is due to their ability to handle different types of environments and scenarios. These bikes have evolved to be a lot stronger and lighter which ultimately has increased the riding experience for users all around the world. A well-designed mountain bike requires precision, balance, and a durable structure that will allow it to function effectively while on rough terrains. For this project, students were tasked with designing and building a full-suspension mountain bike frame as well as implementing a mechanical pinion gearbox that will allow the rider to shift gears. Students will review the fundamentals of kinematics to establish the necessary bicycle norms and geometries needed to create a layout, while also familiarizing themselves with mountain bike categories. During the design phase of the project, students will establish a kinematic analysis of the Anti-Rise and Anti-Squat of the system. In addition, Finite Element Analysis will be carried out on the frame to optimize the overall design. With the successful completion of this project, the students will gain experiences in various fields ranging from design, networking, budgeting, and testing. A prototype will be produced to demonstrate the design.

(ENERGY Session 2)
Solar Shower

Client: Solar Showers for All Project, Hillside LA Church, El Sereno
Liaison: Pastor Sam Koh
Advisor: Sam Landsberger, Sc.D.
Students: Neg Motahari, Leo Sanabria, Alfred Moinuddin, MD Enamul Kabir Emon, Nader Aldosseri

TEAM 25
A humble, yet very energetic and innovative minister named Pastor Sam Koh in the El Sereno neighborhood bordering Cal State LA has worked with his volunteers over the past dozen years to help homeless people in many different ways. One of them is building a solar shower for Homeless people in that area to have an easily accessible shower. Pastor Sam's ministry wanted to give showers to the homeless in his area and set out to build a portable shower using a single battery, booster pump, heater, and shower basin to provide a comfortable shower for the homeless in his area.  Using solar panels to charge the battery and provide sufficient power to the booster pump will fix battery burnout. The solar panels will also provide power to the water heater if the solar heating box is found to be ineffective or too costly to maintain. We also use Water Storage that, increases the amount of water carried by a trailer and high water pressure by constricting the shower nozzle to increase water pressure and reduce water gallons per minute usage.

(STRUCTURES)
Advanced Structural Materials for Power Substations

Client: Southern California Edison
Liaisons: Andrew Kao, P.E., Jin Yoon, S.E
Advisor: Stephen Felszeghy, Ph.D.
Students: Dongwei (Tony) Chen, Sako Garoian, Jonathan Gaytan, Angelica Ibarra, Arnold Ignacio

TEAM 26
This project investigated a composite material with a low electrical conductivity that can be used for designing new structural members for the replacement of existing electrically conductive steel structural embers currently in use in power substation A-frames, dead-ends, and equipment racks used by SoCal Edison. The team conducted a Finite Element Analysis of steel dead-end structure and conducted load-bearing tests to determine if the proposed composite materials could replace steel. The team also conducted research on other non-conductive composite materials that can be used for the substation structures. This allows compact structural design as electric clearances can be minimized. The advanced materials should possess strength and stiffness equal to or exceeding that of steel, and durability against exposure to weather and the environment while considering cost-efficiency.

(ENERGY Session 2)
Short Circuit Assessment for Renewable Generation

Client: Southern California Edison (SCE)
Advisor: Ayman Samaan
Students: Luis Contreras, Josue Ojeda, Cyrille Njomo Nganso, Antonio Viramontes

TEAM 27
To evaluate the impact of the high penetration of renewable generation on the system Short-Circuit level. This was accomplished by defining the characterization of the short circuit power contributions from the renewable energy resources using the Simulink program. These models were converted to the PowerWorld platform to evaluate the impact on the power system and identify the necessary mitigations. Team members will be researching the short-circuit duty on wind, battery, and solar generation models. When we finally compared both performances from Simulink and PowerWorld. We found almost no differences in the ultimate outcome performance, so as a team, we decided to go forward and start to model how renewable generations would look like in the near future for California, developing the three cases that our team sought fit to make.

(ENERGY Session 2)
Detection of Down Conductors on Distribution Circuits with Covered Conductors (CC)

Client: Southern California Edison (SCE)
Adviser: Nagy Abed, Ph.D.
Student: Hernan Paz, Hector Leon Gaspar, Dario Barrales Mendez, Andrew Holguin

TEAM 28
Students created a detection technique that should detect High Impedance faults on distribution Circuits. The conductors on the distribution circuit are insulated. Students designed an algorithm that utilizes harmonics in conjunction with protection elements built into the GE F60 digital Relay. The protection elements utilized were “Broken Conductor” and “Neutral Directional Overcurrent.”

(AERO Session 2)
Auto-Leveling Tool

Client: The Boeing Company
Advisor: Everardo Hernandez
Students: Alec Garcia, Juan Garibay, Jose Rochin, Karen Velasquez, Vicki Wang

TEAM 29
Students will develop a portable robotic stand system that can self-adjust and align itself to support a deployed appendage while meeting all the requirements given by the Boeing team. The objective of the project is to design a tool that can precisely align itself with the mating plate on the deployed appendage while supporting the weight of the appendage during its test configuration.

(AERO Session 2)
Field-of-View Tool

Client: The Boeing Company
Advisors: Everardo Hernandez
Students: Adriana Aldana, Aaron Lockett, David Torres, Kevin Luu, Sevag Baboomian

TEAM 30
Satellite systems have many signal-generating horns mounted onto their surface. It is important to verify with physical measurements and with CAD models that these horns are assembled correctly with a clear field-of-view (FOV) to their reflector dish targets. Current FOV verification of satellite horns ranging 10-ft to 25-ft off the ground requires manual operation of laser trackers for measurement acquisition. This is followed by a CAD model comparison of the points scanned during measurement. The project goal was to automate this process by developing a portable system that self-orients and self-aligns to the horn-reflector FOV path, detects obstructions within the FOV path, and verifies the horn-reflector alignment.

(BIOMED)
Computer Vision Guided Navigation System for the Visually Impaired

Client: Department of Electrical Engineering, Cal State LA
Liaison: Debora Won, Ph.D.
Advisor: Yi Zhao, Ph.D.
Students: Alfonso Barbosa, Stacy Blanco, Everardo Bugarin, CJ Evans, Raul Zapata

TEAM 31
Wearable system to assist the visually impaired with navigation through their environment. Using an infrared depth camera, an algorithm is created to detect obstacles, people, and salient information. Feedback is given to the user through audio/vibrational tonal cues.