Title: Side Panel Applicator Cutting Module
Departmen: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Nels Christopherson, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Kimberly Clark
Team Members: Nick Manville, Edward Ng, Chris Plott, Kristina Owen, Chihyun Ryu
Project summary      
We identified design revisions to improve knife service life on the Cutting Module for the Side Panel Applicator.

Title: Liftgate/Swing-Gate Design
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. William Endres, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: General Motors
Team Members: Aaron McCabe, Patrick McGee, Micah Bowron, Sarah Pearson, Christy Hall
Project summary      
We designed, tested, and built a dual action system for a Liftgate / Swing gate that will be integrated on the next generation Hummer H2 Sport Utility Truck.

Title: 1939 Ford Flathead V8 Fuel Injection System
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Thomas Grimm, ME-EM
Team Members: Thomas Kostrzewski, Gregory Austin, Justin Novak, Richard Tubandt
Project summary      
The goal of this project was to construct an intake manifold with electronic fuel injection and distributorless coil pack ignition. This engine control update improves driveability, performance, fuel economy, and emissions production. An intake manifold was designed using helmholtz resonance frequency theory, 3D modeled, matched to Ford Motor Company design standards, and fabricated by the team. The controls system was purchased, and on road calibrated. Ford EDIS-8 was retrofitted for ignition control, due to compatibility with the powertrain control module. The power system was also upgraded from 6 to 12 V to support this integration.

Title: Portable Human Powered Laptop Charger
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisors: Dr. Tom Grimm, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: National Science Foundation and NCIAA
Team Members: Catherine Rottier, Darald Chao, David Henderson, James Stitt, Mark Burgener
Project summary
The purpose of our design team consisting of two electrical engineers and three mechanical engineers was to build an innovative prototype of a human powered laptop charger. This product’s main use will be in the event of an emergency when the user needs an extra few minutes on their laptop to save or send their data. The laptop charger uses a manual crank mechanism to get a generator up to speed. There is a gear train that allows for the necessary speed reductions. A circuit board has been designed to regulate the power through a capacitor and release it with sufficient power to charge a laptop.

Title: Alternative Prototype Engine
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Tom Grimm, Mechanical Engineering
Sponsor: Alex Van Holstyn, Independent Inventor from Comstock Park, Mich.
Team Members: John Cox, Derrick Kendziorski, Chris Kero, Jacob Stine, Kiel Vanderhovel
Project summary      
Our project is to design a sequentially-fired, chambered, rotary turbine engine from the inventor’s concept to compete against conventional piston-type internal combustion engines. Utilizing the rotary turbine design will minimize the number of moving parts and make the engine lighter than contemporary piston-type engines on the market today. The prototype will ideally have a greater range of power by taking advantage of the decrease in mechanical losses. Team ME 1 focused on testing combustion chamber designs. A second senior design team is currently working on building the prototype and is expected to have that completed in December 2007.

Title: Calendar Roller Vibration Abatement
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Nels Christopherson
Sponsor: Thilmany Paper, Kaukauna Mill
Team Members: Greg Ehlert, Aaron Meyer, Greg Montie, Ed Leonard, Seung Hyun Moon
Project summary
Currently, the finishing calendar roller at Thilmany Paper experiences natural vibration that is suspected to be the cause of premature cover wear. This particular calendar roller works much like rollers in steel mills. The paper passes through, exerting some load across the roll that results in a deflection. The roll is typically ground to counter this, however to increase the flexibility of the line, this roller has pistons that can change the ‘crown’ very quickly. When the pistons were added, resonances developed and the purpose of this project to determine what is resonating and some possible solutions to prevent it.

Title: Novel Flashlight
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisors: Robert, Whipple, Mechanical
Sponsor: National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance, National Science Foundation
Team Members: Owen Seltz, Jon Moran, Matt Rossman, Josh Olsen, Chris Sherman
Project summary      
The product is a LED battery- free flashlight which is capable of projecting images on walls or the sidewalk at night. It would be marketed as a novelty item. One version of the product might be a children’s Halloween flashlight which could project images of bats, witches, trolls, or monsters. Other versions might project patriotic, religious, or educational images. The team will be in a position to create, design, prototype, test, produce, and market a novel batterly-free LED flashlight which can project a variety of images.

Title: Tool Change/Safety System
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Roshan D’souza, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Anchor Coupling, Inc.
Team Members: Dave Grunlund, Jeremy Heidbrier, Lee Woelmer, Dave Siegfried, Nitin Yadav
Project summary      
Our challenge was to design a new process for changing Anchor Coupling’s Screw Machine tooling by developing a new tool clamping mechanism. A successful solution will eliminate the risk of injury to the operator while decreasing the amount of time and the number of tools required to complete the process.

Title: Transaxle Assembly at the General Motors Lansing Delta Township Asssembly Plant
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Thomas Grimm, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: General Motors Corporation
Team Members : Ben Deyo, Jeff Taylor, Dave DeVormer, Rachel Sherzer
Project summary      
The General Motors Lansing Delta Plant currently assembles a V6 AWD engine for their production vehicles. In the spring of 2007 a new AWD powertrain option will be available. This project addresses the fact that the current V6 and upcoming engines cannot be assembled using the same process on the current assembly line. The goal of this project is to incorporate a design into the assembly line to allow for either engine to be assembled as production warrants.

Title: Terex NVH muffler design
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Mohan, Rao, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Terex
Team Member: Scott Kiel, Jason Panzcenko, Jeff Whaley, Evan Winer, Peter Duesing
Project summary      
Our goal was to redesign and evaluate current muffler used on production Terex Telehandler. Our group’s research included the evaluation of the current production muffler and exhaust system used on the telehandler, as well as other competitors exhaust systems. From this a new Muffler and exhaust system was designed and evaluated with the main factors being increased sound attenuation, cost and in house fabrication at the Terex facility

Title: HVAC Duct Acoustic Profiling
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisors : Dr. Mohan, Rao, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Caterpillar
Team Members: Kyle Marsh, Justin Metsa, Jeff Pruetz
Project summary      
The noise heard by the operator inside the cabs of heavy machinery is a dominating factor in the marketing and the operation of such products. Caterpillar’s current goal is to decrease noise levels within their line of operator cabs. HVAC systems are a dominant source of this noise within the operator cabs due to factors including blower noise and air turbulence. Therefore, there is a need to quantify this noise to improve duct designs and lower overall interior cab noise. The objectives of this project were to design, construct, and test a HVAC duct test apparatus that could measure the sound insertion loss of various HVAC duct configurations.

Title: Rotational Sensor Test Stand
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Robert Whipple, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Ford Motor Company
Team Members: Derek Botero, Jeff Bowman, Aik How Tan, Dasol Kim, Nurudeen Balogun
Project summary      
We are designing and building a rotational sensor test stand that will replicate a car engine compartment. This will allow the various sensors found in the engine to be tested for their effectiveness without having to run a full scale test. The test stand will be able to mount many different types of sensors and target wheels, and it will also utilize a data acquisition for data capturing.

Title: Material Handling System II
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. William Endres, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Winsert Inc.
Team Members: Michael Heavener, Jeff Lachapell, Dan Morgan, Stephanie J. Walton
Project summary      
The objective of this senior design project is to design a material handling system which will assist machine operators in loading and unloading valve seat inserts entering and exiting various machining operations. Encompassed within this project is the transition of the valve seat inserts between machines. The system is assumed to be loaded and oriented prior to entering the machines. The overall process needs to be more economical, faster, and have less human interaction with the parts.

Title: Series Turbocharger System with Interstage EGR Routing
Department : Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Jeff Naber Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: John Deere
Team Members: Aaron Sklenar, Chad Brunet, Ryan Windgassen, Jake Loiselle
Project summary      
For off road diesel applications emissions must be reduced to meet upcoming EPA Tier 4 standards. In order to do this John Deere has challenged our team to engineer a series turbocharger system that will allow the recirculation of larger amounts of exhaust gas. This increase in EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) should burn off more particulate matter and help meet these Tier 4 Emissions Standards.

Title: High Expansion Foam Generator System
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanic
Advisor: Dr. Madhukar Vable, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Ansul Innovative Fire Solutions
Team Members: Michael Fleck, Neal Frantti, Julie Motz, Ryan Stoeger, Jason Tougas
Project summary      
We were given the task of optimizing the output of a high expansion foam generator system made by Ansul Innovative Fire Solutions for fire prevention. The foam created by a generator forms a barrier that prevents a chemical fire from spreading, eventually forming a blanket that smothers and extinguishes the fire. Our project was two phased, the first phase redesigned the water and foam delivery system. We took the first phase’s design, designed a new housing/mounting system, and redesigned the screen that the foam is sprayed through in order to get an optimized amount of foam production.

Title: Improved Wastewater Aeration Process
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Robert, Whipple, Mechanical Engineering
Sponsor: Van Aire, Inc.
Team Members: Andrew Daavettila, Thomas Halt, Kassie Monick, Alan Pieniadz, Christopher Thoms
Project summary
The purpose of this project was to design and build a prototype of an improved wastewater aeration system, utilizing a pump and a multi-stage venturi. In addition, the generation of Computational Fluid Dynamic models provides a means for correlating testing data to that of a simulated model. This new design provides a self-stirring process allowing for start/stop operation as well as decreased manufacturing and assembly costs. The project goal is to develop a “formula” for the optimal design, maximizing the air intake into the venturi.

Title: Wireless Automotive Security System
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Nels Christopherson, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance National Science Foundation
Team Members: Kenny Ng, Jeff O’Brien, Mark Dehlinger, Mike Marantis, Elise Vertin
Project summary      
Our senior design challenge was to create an automotive audio and video security system which is both user-friendly and affordable. The security system is a unit which combines three wide-angle surveillance cameras into the rearview mirror of the automobile with a fourth backup camera. The cameras communicate wirelessly with a digital video recorder which captures security footage.

Title: Material Handling System I
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisors: Dr. William Endres Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: Winsert Inc.
Team Members: Nicole Drexler, Joeseph Lechnyr, Michael O’Shaughnessey, Tyler Pagel, Neil Sanders, Martin Strande
Project summary      
The purpose of this project is to provide the sponsor, Winsert Inc., with a material handling system for their unloading process. This system must operate with a variety of machining operations and reduce manual handling of the valve seat inserts as they are being unloaded from the machines. The system will unload valve seat inserts onto transportable arrays of rods. Each array has been designed to be compatible with the loading system at each machine.

Title: Energy Recovery Project
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Robert Whipple - MEEM
Sponsor: Grain Processing Corporation(GPC)
Team Members: Andrew Volmering, Jason Frazier, Joshua Arthur, Luke Donovan, Jesse Manthei
Project summary
We have been involved in a year long Energy Recovery Project for Grain Processing Corporation. Our project’s purpose is to evaluate low value biomass product(s) to fuel plant operations and reduce operating costs. Our official Problem Statement is: “Analyze, design, and demonstrate an energy recovery system to reduce operating costs for Grain Processing Corporation.” We have been asked to evaluate five possible technologies for this potential energy recycle, and have eliminated 4 of them(cellulosic fermentation, anaerobic digestion, bubble and circulated bed combustion). Currently, we are finishing an interactive gasification plant process flow diagram that includes mass/energy balances and economic analysis.

Title: Pedal System Test Stand
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Roshan D’Souza, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor : DURA Automotive Inc.
Team Members: Matt Kempeinen, Ben Riutta, Thanh Pham, Ron Knoeble, Matt Pavlovich
Project summary      
We have designed and built a test stand to be used by DURA Automotive Inc. for the use of brake and clutch system testing. The test stand is capable of providing and measuring both input and output forces similar to those experienced during vehicle use. The test stand includes a programmable drive system, data acquisition and simple control logic.

Title: Up-Sized Tractor Variant Prototype
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Nels S. Christopherson, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Team Members: Mike Aho, Joe Bartell, Jeff Haber, Clint Pernack, Andrew Rajala, Sean Williams
Project summary
Elmer’s Crane & Dozer was formed in 1956. They currently have 15 locations in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. They have built 20 current Du-More tractor models. The current Du-More has a 1.5 yard bucket and 115 HP engine. Our team is designing a larger, more powerful and more capable tractor for Elmer’s Crane and Dozer, based on the current Du-More model. The new machine will incorporate existing components while preserving the functions of the existing model.

Title: Draw Bar System for Electric Snowmobiles
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Tom Grimm, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: KRC
Team Leader: Grant A. Stanczuk
Project summary      
The purpose of this project was to design a draw-bar measuring system for the Clean Snowmobile Challenge. One of the criteria the teams will be tested on is the draw bar capacity. Draw bar capacity is the maximum force that the machine is able to tow, whether it is limited by traction or engine power. Our job was to create a system that can measure this automatically. The key to this design was to measure the contestants’ snowmobiles accurately and quickly, and provided the contestants the most impartial competition circumstances.

Title: NVH Air Filtration
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. Mohan Rao, Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Team Members: Scott Kiel, Chris Heczko, Chris Metelsky, John Barszcz, Michael Aho
Project Description     
Our group’s research included the testing and evaluation of sound Power levels and sound intensity from a portable air purification system with the intent to improve sound Quality and increase sound attenuation. Our test consisted of the evaluation of the sound power levels produced from the overall system and the effectiveness of each component from the system. This included, all purification filters, air ducts and the multi speed fan currently used on the system. From this, data was collected and solutions to the problem were concluded, as testing was done on the effectiveness of these changes. Last, these solutions were suggested to our sponsor for both the current production model and for future models to incorporate

Title: GHSP Team Innovation
Department: Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
Advisor: Dr. William J. Endres, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
Sponsor: GHSP, NSF, Dr. Edward Lumsdaine
Team Members: Jonathan Davis, Rachel Canepa, Tenasia Hatch, Jacquelyn Wilson, Samuel Johnson
Project Description     
Currently, GHSP is seeking to diversify its product line by developing a new and innovative product. During the Fall Semester, the objective was to identify products that could be made using the company’s existing infrastructure, and recommend these to company representatives.  This resulted in the selection of a weed sensor for outboard boat engines.   The Spring Semester focuses on proceeding through the design, prototyping, and test phases. The end objective consists of producing a fully functioning prototype that can be activated autonomously and effectively detect entanglement by weeds (or simulated weeds) in a the test environment.