Machine Design Course Research Articles

Integrating Real-World Applications into the Machine Design Course through an Open-Ended Assignment – A Case Study

This paper presents a case study in engineering education, focusing on enhancing conceptual understanding, realworld application, comprehension, teamwork, self-directed learning, and familiarity with design codes and standards. The study involves student analysis of artifact safety and optimization, engaging them in practical problem-solving. The outlined methodology covers artifact selection, analysis, and assessment of the assignment's impact. The findings exhibit improvements in knowledge acquisition, real-world relevance, teamwork, and selflearning. Moreover, the study highlights the assignment's enhanced appeal and challenge compared to conventional assignments. Students express a preference for more such assignments over routine ones. The paper underscores experiential learning's significance in cultivating critical skills for modern engineering and advocates integrating practical applications into curricula for holistic skill development. Keywords—Conceptual Understanding; Experiential Learning; Engineering Education; Real-World Applications; Open-Ended Assignments; Assignment Impact.

Vibration Analysis of Rotating Elements of A Motor

Abstract: With the industrial revolution, the range of applications for rotating machinery in daily life as well as for industrial use in manufacturing and processing, nuclear power plants, automobiles, oil & gas refineries, etc., has greatly expanded. And for all this rotating machinery, the problems brought on by bearing faults significantly contribute to machine failure. Machine Design courses usually teach students how to design a system consisting of a shaft and its bearings under rotating, bending, transverse, axial, and torsional loads. Most textbooks cover Rayleigh's and Holzer's methods, which do not cover other important dynamic effects in shaft and bearing system design. The diameter of the shaft is calculated and then the deflection of the shaft is evaluated by using static deflection formulas. However, this assumption can cause serious errors in shafts' deflection due to eccentric and nonaligned gears mounted on the shaft. The authors addressed this potential manufacturing defect issue in a Machine Design class as a term project, which required students to transfer and apply content knowledge from their dynamics and vibrations’ courses. This paper presents all aspects of this successful experience of implementing ABET strategies in the engineering classroom to maximize its reach and potential impact.

A Step-by-Step Procedure to Perform Preliminary Designs of Salient-Pole Synchronous Generators

This paper presents a straightforward step-by-step procedure to design salient-pole synchronous generators, starting with its main specifications and finishing with all necessary data to put it on production. As most of the electricity is generated by synchronous generators, the design of these machines remains an interesting subject, but, although it is important, it is difficult to find a complete step-by-step procedure in the literature. The proposed procedure can be followed by an electrical engineer or student and, distinctively from most papers and books, all steps are presented. Such a procedure is based on analytic calculations, eventually relying on finite element simulation to verify if everything is all right and to adjust some design parameters. All calculations have been chosen to keep the design as simple as possible; otherwise, it would not be possible to present all steps and procedures. Therefore, it can be used for beginners in the art of design-synchronous generators, applied to obtain an initial design, or be adopted by any electrical engineering course, not only aiming to be an introductory electrical machine design course but mainly to enhance the students’ comprehension of synchronous machines. The results have been compared with finite element simulation, presenting very small differences.

A Rule Induction Framework on the Effect of ‘Negative’ Attributes to Academic Performance

Attaining high retention rates among engineering institutions is a predominant is-sue. A significant portion of engineering students face challenges of retention. Academic advising was implemented to resolve the issue. Decision support sys-tems were developed to support the endeavor. Machine learning have been inte-grated among such systems in predicting student performance accurately. Most works, however, rely on a black box model approach. Rule induction generates simpler if-then rules, exhibiting clearer understanding. As most research works considered attributes for positive academic performance, there is the need to con-sider ‘negative’ attributes. ‘Negative’ attributes are critical indicators to possibility of failure. This work applied rule induction techniques for course grade predic-tion using ‘negative’ attributes. The dataset is the academic performance of 48 mechanical engineering students taking a machine design course. Students’ at-tributes on workload, course repetition, and incurred absences are the predictors. This work implemented two rule induction techniques, rough set theory (RST) and adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (FIS). Both models attained a classifi-cation accuracy of 70.83% with better performance for course grades of ‘Pass’ and ‘High’. RST generated 16 crisp rules while ANFIS generated 27 fuzzy rules, yielding significant insights. Results of this study can be used for comparative analysis of student traits between institutions. The illustrated framework can be used in formulating linguistic rules of other institutions.

Machine Design for Technology Students: A Systems Engineering Approach

This book is intended for students taking a Machine Design course leading to a Mechanical Engineering Technology degree. It can be adapted to a Machine Design course for Mechanical Engineering students or used as a reference for adopting systems engineering into a design course. The book introduces the fundamentals of systems engineering, the concept of synthesis, and the basics of trade-off studies. It covers the use of a functional flow block diagram to transform design requirements into the design space to identify all success modes.

A Systematic Approach to Teaching and Learning Machine Design Course

In this modern world students are looking at new method of learning the courses and as well it is very difficult for the instructors/teachers to take attention of students to teach the theory courses. This paper brings a different method of teaching and learning methodology for the machine design course. In this, the tutorial and course project has been linked to the course to develop student's involvement, complex thinking, team management skills, and higher order thinking skills. Here the author would like to share some of the new techniques extracted from the outcome based learning and project based learning approaches to make students and teachers to involve in to the course. Student's feedback and the project did show their involvement in the course.

English As Course Instruction Language. Experiences From Machine Design Courses

Abstract Globalization and internationalization of higher education around the world is “forcing” many universities and colleges from non-English speaking countries to offer a significant part of their educational programs in English. The main motivation to do so is partly to successfully implement student exchange programs such as the European Erasmus Program, and partly to attract “fee-paying free-moving” students from abroad. A third long-term reason to teach in English is to educate young pre-professionals for the global market. However, the adaptation of technical courses from national languages to English cannot be done overnight. On the contrary, this process demands time-consuming preparations that typically involve the expansion of background references and careful planning. In addition, the English skills of course instructors must assure the effective transmission of information, and very often professors face certain difficulties and uncomfortable limitations. Generally speaking, instructing in a foreign language results in less “colourful” expressions. Recent investigations conducted in Sweden on higher education show that teaching efficiency is inferior for courses taught in English when compared with the same courses given in Swedish. This paper deals with various experiences related to the process of changing the language of instruction from Swedish to English in three Machine Design courses taught at Linnaeus University.

Regular Student Feedback Concerning Education Quality - Good Practice To Follow

AbstractThis paper presents some of the experience of two European Universities concerning regular student feedback in the area of higher education quality, which is implemented at the end of every course of a particular subject. It also presents a comparison between survey questionnaires at Linnaeus University, Sweden in Machine Design courses, at the Mechanical Engineering Department, where such feedback has been applied during the last fifteen years, and the existing experience in the same field at the Department of Machine Sciences, Machine Elements, and Engineering Graphics at the University of Ruse, Bulgaria. Conclusions are made on the necessity of providing students with regular opportunity to take part in quality management in higher education.

TEACHING DESIGN FOR SAFETY THROUGH REAL WORK INCIDENTS

Good design means at least safe design. There is no doubt that engineering students have to develop the ability to design for safety in order to satisfy the expectations of the profession and of employers. According to the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board, an appropriate exposure to safety and health must be part of any engineering curriculum. Design for safety principles can be taught in project-based courses. Those courses provide real-world contexts for the development of design for safety skills. Design minima established in standards, regulations, and handbooks can easily be integrated throughout the curriculum in engineering science courses. In association with safety, engineering science courses may go beyond the application of standards and guidelines and prepare the student to become a better designer. The Case Study approach is a very interesting pedagogical tool for engineering education and can be introduced in the most engineering courses. When based on real work incidents and investigation reports, case studies become a perfect instrument to expose students to safety as professional engineers should apply it. To illustrate the idea, this paper presents an example of a case study based on an incident that occurred with a scissor lift. This particular case was introduced in a machine design course and helped students to link safety concepts with machine design contents.

COLLABORATIVE DESIGN PRACTICE INVOLVING PARTNERS FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLLABORATIVE ENGINEERING EDUCATION (PACE)

This paper describes efforts to develop a collaborative design project involving third year mechanical engineering students from the University of British Columbia (UBC) and the University of Toronto (U of T). Selected students enrolled in a core kinematics and dynamics course at U of T were partnered with selected students enrolled in a core machine design course at UBC. These project groups were given the task of designing an automotive product specified by the industrial client, General Motors. The pilot project required students make full use of the advanced design resources provided under the Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education (PACE) program. This pilot project was performed as a simulation of real world automotive design where design offices around the globe participate in concurrent design of new automobile components and systems.

A Mechanical Dissection Laboratory using KitchenAid Mixers

This paper presents the development of a Mechanical Dissection Laboratory at Dalhousie University using KitchenAid stand mixers. In addition to a reputation for durability, the mixers are very well designed mechanically, and thus serve as an excellent teaching tool for Machine Design. The mixers contain a large number of robust and relevant components, covering almost all of the topics discussed in most Machine Design courses. In this lab students are introduced to topics such as electric motors, planetary gears, helical and spur gears, worm gears, bevel gears, shafts and couplers. Students work in small groups of approximately three; they are provided with a tool kit, as well as a disassembly manual. After a short safety introduction, the students disassemble the device, taking measurements as they proceed. They then re-assemble the device, and test that it is in complete working order.

Design and Manufacture of a Museum-Grade Children's Indoor Trebuchet by Mechanical Engineering Students

The trebuchet, a medieval siege weapon, can play an important role in stimulating and maintaining interest in engineering and the physical sciences. We discuss our experience with use of a specialty trebuchet design project in engineering education and service learning. In particular, mechanical engineering juniors in a machine design and synthesis course designed and manufactured (based on formal specifications) trebuchets for use by children 5–12 years of age in an indoor museum environment. The entire process entailed brainstorming of ideas, concept selection, dynamic analysis, design for assembly (DFA) analysis, along with manufacture and testing. Throughout the process, feedback was solicited from the community partner, a local technology discovery center, or museum (‘The Works’). In the end, a total of six children's indoor trebuchets were manufactured and installed in the local technology center. The results presented are reproducible for use by other interested instructors.

Role of the Machine Design Courses in the Mechatronic Faculty

General assumptions of educational faculties at universities are specified by the instructions of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education. In this paper, educational standards with the focus on the design subjects for the Mechatronic Faculty have been presented. Taking the instructions of the Ministry into account, the Mechanical Faculty of Wroclaw University of Technology has started the faculty. The studies general timetable has been created and discussed, indicating the position and scope of the design subjects in it. A curriculum of the subject concerning mechanical systems design for the studies has been suggested.

Planetary gear set and automatic transmission simulation for machine design courses

AbstractDue to their unique ability to provide a variety of gear ratios in a very compact space, planetary gear systems are seen in many applications from small powered screw drivers to automobile automatic transmissions. The versatile planetary gear device is often studied as part of an undergraduate mechanical engineering program. Textbook presentations typically illustrate how the different planetary gear components are connected. Understanding of the operation of the planetary gear set can be enhanced using actual hardware or simulations that show how the components move relative to each other. The Department of Engineering Mechanics at the United States Air Force Academy has developed a computer simulation of the planetary gear set and the Chrysler 42LE automatic transmission. Called “PG‐Sim,” the dynamic simulations complement a static textbook presentation. PG‐Sim is used in several of our courses and assessment data clearly indicates students' appreciation of its visual and interactive features. In this paper, we present an overview of PG‐Sim and then describe how the simulation courseware facilitates understanding of the planetary gear system. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 11: 144–155, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com); DOI 10.1002/cae.10045

An Introduction to the Design and Behavior of Bolted Joints

Abstract Although the title of this book includes the word “introduction”, the treatment of the subject is extensive and complete. The material goes well beyond the coverage of bolted joint design received in a typical undergraduate machine design course. The easy-to-read text begins with the fundamentals of bolt strength, deformation, and material selection and proceeds to cover the topics of preload, torque, and stretch control. The emphasis is on practical considerations for the efficient design of joints, including cost, ease of assembly, inspection, and disassembly. This second, revised edition has expanded the coverage of corrosion, fatigue, gaskets, and ultrasonic measurement of bolt strain. Also included are discussions of the failure modes and mechanisms of bolted joints. Case histories from industry are presented throughout the text to illustrate key points. Many up-to-date references are presented at the end of each chapter to allow the reader to pursue individual topics further, if desired. The text contains several appendices with useful tables and formulas for quick reference. The author has broad experience in the subject area from many years as a consultant to the power generation and nuclear industry, active participation on society working groups such as ASME and PVRC, as well as the presentation of numerous seminars on the topic. This book would serve as a valuable desk reference for engineers concerned with the design and performance of bolted joints.

An interactive graphics program for teaching computer aided design of beams

A computer program developed for teaching flexural design of shafts to students taking machine design courses is described. The program utilizes conversational mode interaction via a storage tube graphics terminal and it includes interactive facilities for problem definition, analysis, evaluation and modification. Some experience in using this program is also presented.