Monthly Archives: June 2012
Ram Pump (A gravity powered pump)
A ram pump uses gravity and inertia to pump water from a lower reservoir to a higher one. Build a demonstration model.
Some Energy Harvesting Development Systems
This page contains some links to development systems for use in energy harvesting systems: http://www.digikey.com/us/en/techzone/energy-harvesting/resources/articles/standards-drive-energy-harvesting.html?WT.z_sm_link=FB_ergyhartz_0627. Come up with ideas of your own for an application.
Wifi to servo or A/D
This device allows you to use wifi to control servo’s and/or read from A/D
Decrease “vampire” power.
When devices aren’t plugged in but turned off they still take a small amount of power from an outlet. Design a system that avoids this.
Use SolidWorks (or MATLAB) to generate a 3D Koch’s snowflake.
Use SolidWorks (or Matlab) to generate a 3D Koch’s snowflake (link)
Animation of Koch’s Snowflake in MATLAB
Animate the formation of a Koch’s snowflake, in MATLAB with smaller triangles gradually emerging out of the larger ones.
Sensitivity Analysis of Robot
The robot your built is more accurate at some locations than others. Do a sensitivity analysis (this involves some derivatives) to quantify this sensitivity function.
Animate (in MATLAB) a model of your robot.
Make a MATLAB model of your e5 robot that animates the motion on the screen as the arm moves in the real world.
Make a SolidWorks model of your robot
Make a SolidWorks model of the robot you built during E5. There are online models of servo motors.
Find interesting application for an interesting sensor
Find interesting application for an interesting sensor (compass, accelerometer, touchscreen, proximity…)
Dual Slope A/D
Build a dual slope A/D converter. Quantify it’s performance.
Cardiotachometer – measures heart rate.
Build a cardiotachometer – a device that measures pulse rate. The signal from the heart can either be from an ECG (electrical) source, or from a light source (measuring light transmission through skin)
Connect MATLAB and Solidworks
At the link below you can download a MATLAB toolbox that connects MATLAB to Solidworks. You should be able to use this to control a SolidWorks object from MATLAB.
Design and build a solenoid actuated valve
Design and build a solenoid actuated valve to restrict air or fluid flow. Some info is here Solenoid Valve Basics.
Wireless Power Transmission
A background article (from IEEE Spectrum) on wireless power transmission. Design and implement such a system.
Quadrotor with Wireless Power Transmission
Spectrum article about quadrotors that get power wirelessly.
Quadrotors Turned Into Flying Wireless Battery Chargers – IEEE Spectrum.
Carbon Footprint and Downloading Files
Research the carbon footprint tradeoffs of accessing files “in the cloud” (i.e., on a distant server), on a local server (i.e., on a server at Swarthmore) and on your personal machine.
A touch screen with dynamically alterable surface
3D Model of Ericsson Cycle Engine
Use Solidworks to create working model (i.e., an assembly) of the Ericsson cycle engine in the lobby of Hicks. Have it printed.
3D model of crank mechanism
Make a model of the crank mechanism from class using Solidworks (make it an assembly so the parts move). Print the model.
3D model of Hicks
Use Solidworks to create a 3D model of Hicks and have it printed.
Field programmable analog circuitry.
Anadigm® makes a field programmable analog array that allows for dynamic synthesis of analog circuits (much as an FPGA does for digital circuits). This might be useful as a general purpose signal conditioner – or perhaps used with a genetic algorithm for analog circuit design.
49$ Android Computer
APC has developed a 49$ Android computer. This might be an interesting platform for an embedded system for somebody who wants to learn app development on an Android system. It should have very powerful low level control of hardware and a very nice user interface.
MSP430 LaunchPad
Altera FPGA Embedded System
Do something with a small FPGA package (in a USB dongle).