Royal Mechanical Engineering

Robotic device has therapeutic potential for ankles and feet A soft, wearable device that mimics the muscles, tendons and ligaments of the lower leg could aid in the rehabilitation of patients with ankle-foot disorders. This is the claim of Yong-Lae Park, an assistant professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University. He worked with collaborators at Harvard University, the University of Southern California, MIT and Massachusetts-based BioSensics to develop an active orthotic (artificial support or brace) device using soft plastics and composite materials instead of a rigid exoskeleton. The soft materials - combined with pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs), lightweight sensors, and advanced control software - made it possible for the robotic device to achieve natural motions in the ankle. The researchers reported on the development in the journal Bioinspiration & Biomimetics. In a statement, Park said the same approach could be used to create rehabilitative devi

There are 2 types of power steering currently in use. These are integral and linkage booster types. Both are operated by hydraulic pressure produced by an engine driven pump to assist in turning the steering mechanism. The integral power steering is explained below : Integral Power Steering : figure shows the integral power steering when the vehicle moves in the straight head position. the oil pump is belt driven from the engine crankshaft pulley. It consists of a solid cylinder with 2 grooves cut called valve spool which slides within the valve housing. The housing has three internal grooves is connected to the pump and the other are connected to the reservoir.     The two additional opening are connected to the two sides of the cylinder fitted with piston. When the valve spool is in the position as shown is figure , the pump delivers the oil in the central part of the housing which flows back to the reservoir by the passage shown by the arrows. In this position, there is no oil press

1) Investment casting 2) Permanent mold casting 3) Centrifugal casting 4) Continuous casting 5) Sand casting Investment casting Investment casting (known as lost-wax casting in art) is a process that has been practiced for thousands of years, with lost wax process being one of the oldest known metal forming techniques. From 5000 years ago, when bees wax formed the pattern, to today’s high technology waxes, refractory materials and specialist alloys, the castings ensure high quality components are produced with the key benefits of accuracy, repeatability, versatility and integrity. Investment casting derives its name from the fact that the pattern is invested, or surrounded, with a refractory material. The wax patterns require extreme care for they are not strong enough to withstand forces encountered during the mold making. One advantage of investment casting it that the wax can be reused. The process is suitable for repeatable

Manual transmissions use mostly helical gears, but reverse is a special situation that requires a different type of gear - a spur gear. The gears that make up the forward gear ratios are all helical gears. The teeth on helical gears are cut at an angle to the face of the gear. When two teeth on a helical gear system engage, the contact starts at one end of the tooth and gradually spreads as the gears rotate, until the two teeth are in full engagement. This gradual engagement makes helical gears operate much more smoothly and quietly than spur gears. Also, because of the angle of the gear teeth, more teeth are in engagement at any one time. This spreads the load out more and reduces stresses. The only problem with helical gears is that it is hard to slide them in and out of engagement with each other. On a manual transmission the forward gears stay engaged with each other at all times, and collars that are controlled by the shift stick lock different gears to the output sha

There has always been a debate and discussion among all engineering students about which engineering course is the best? Students always love discussing about the best branch of engineering. Though this is a proven fact and it needs no discussion that mechanical engineering is the best still I will be providing 10 reasons over here which make mechanical engineering The Best among all other branches of engineering. 10 reasons why Mechanical Engineering is the best 1) Evergreen Field: Mechanical engineering is an evergreen field. Applications of mechanical engineering have spread over such a wide spectrum that it has penetrated into almost every industry. Mechanical engineering got its application started right from the birth of this universe and it will continue till the end of this universe. 2) Mother Of All Engineering Disciplines : Yeah it’s mother of all engineering disciplines and you know it! Mechanical engineering links all engineering disciplines together and provid

Ultrasonic welding is represented as a friction welding method, where oxides and other contaminants present on the material surfaces are broken up and also the components to be welded are brought together under simultaneous pressure. Molecular bonding, just like the conventional cold-press welding, then takes place. Ultrasonic welding is the conversion of high frequency electrical energy into high frequency mechanical energy. In ultrasonic welding spot welds in thin steels are produced by the local application of high frequency vibrating energy to work pieces held together under pressure. The work pieces are clamped together under a moderate static force applied normal to their face and oscillating shear stresses of ultrasonic frequencies (1 KHz to 40 KHz) with a power ranging of 700 to 6000 watts are applied parallel to the interface. The vibrating probe called “a sonotrode” induces lateral vibrations and slip between the surfaces fracturing the brittle oxide layers and

Although two stroke engines have long since been updated with four stroke racing bike engines, two stroke engines provide a lightweight and suitable solution for racing bikes, motocross and dirt bikes. Earlier on, the two stroke engines in racing bikes were quite popular, but they have since then have been replaced with the four stroke version of the engine. The two stroke engine was a much simpler design, therefore provided a low cost solution for racing teams. The two stroke bike engine operates in two strokes, instead of the normal four stroke Otto cycle. The stages in a two stroke engine are: 1. Power/exhaust stroke: This is the stroke that occurs right after the ignition of the charge, forcing the piston down. After sometime, the top of the piston goes over the exhaust port, with a large amount of the pressurized gases to escape. The downward movement of the piston continues to compress crankcase containing the air, fuel, oil mixture. The top of the piston having pass

  Electronic control common rail type fuel injection system drives an integrated fuel pump at an ultrahigh pressure to distribute fuel to each injector per cylinder through a common rail.   This enables optimum combustion to generate big horsepower, and reduce PM* (diesel plume) and fuel consumption. Bosch will supply the complete common-rail injection system for the high-performance 12-cylinder engine introduced by Peugeot Sport for its latest racing car. The system comprises high-pressure pumps, a fuel rail shared by all cylinders (i.e. a common rail), piezo in-line injectors, and the central control unit which compiles and processes all relevant sensor data.

DISI includes a whole new set of innovations for gasoline engines. To mention a few, direct injection (including cooling the air-gasoline mixture), a new combustion chamber geometry, variable timing technology, and nanotechnology for the catalyst. This all makes the engines consume 20 percent less while getting 15 to 20 percent better performance. Further developments for its diesels: new direct injection technology (most European automakers are switching to piezoelectric injectors), making the engine lighter, DPF, and urea technology to reduce NOx emissions Mazda’s DISI* engines balance sporty driving with outstanding environment performance. With the next generation engine in the series, we are aiming for a 15% ~ 20% improvement in dynamic performance and a 20% increase in fuel economy (compared with a Mazda 2.0L gasoline engine). Based on the direct injection system, we aim to reduce all energy losses (see figure on the right) and improve thermal efficiency through inn

Variable geometry turbocharger s ( VGT s) are a family of turbochargers, usually designed to allow the effective aspect ratio (sometimes called A/R Ratio) of the turbo to be altered as conditions change. This is done because optimum aspect ratio at low engine speeds is very different from that at high engine speeds. If the aspect ratio is too large, the turbo will fail to create boost at low speeds; if the aspect ratio is too small, the turbo will choke the engine at high speeds, leading to high exhaust manifold pressures, high pumping losses, and ultimately lower power output. By altering the geometry of the turbine housing as the engine accelerates, the turbo’s aspect ratio can be maintained at its optimum. Because of this, VGTs have a minimal amount of lag, have a low boost threshold, and are very efficient at higher engine speeds. VGTs do not require a waste gate. Most common designs The two most common implementations include a ring of aero

  A turbocharger is actually a type of supercharger. Originally, the turbocharger was called a "turbo super charger." Obviously, the name was shortened out of convenience. A turbocharger’s purpose is to compress the oxygen entering a car’s engine, increasing the amount of oxygen that enters and thereby increasing the power output. Unlike the belt-driven supercharger that is normally thought of when one hears the word "supercharger," the turbocharger is powered by the car’s own exhaust gases. In other words, a turbocharger takes a by-product of the engine that would otherwise be useless, and uses it to increase the car’s horsepower. Cars without a turbocharger or supercharger are called normally aspirated . Normally aspirated cars draw air into the engine through an air filter; the air then passes through a meter, which monitors and regulates the amount of air that enters the system. The air is then delivered to the engine’s comb

Engines combust (burn) fuel and use the energy of that combustion to do work. The more fuel that is combusted in any given time then the more energy is available to carry out the engines task. Fuel requires air (or the oxygen contained within air) to burn so if there isn’t enough air mixed with the fuel it will not burn. This also means that the amount of air entering an engine determines how much fuel can be burnt and consequently how much energy (or power) an engine can produce. Superchargers are essentially an air pump designed to cram extra air into an engine allowing it to combust more fuel than would otherwise be possible. Mercedes pioneered automotive superchargers on their race cars during the 1920’s. These were simple reciprocating compressors attached to the engine by an electrically operated clutch. A switch activated by the accelerator pedal turned the pump on when extra power (full throttle) was required. A flurry of engineering endeavo

Fuel Cell Stacks This is the heart of the hydrogen fuel cell car—the fuel cell stacks. Their maximum output is 86 kilowatts, or about 107 HP. Because hydrogen fuel cell stacks produce power without combustion, they can be up to twice as efficient as internal combustion engines. They also produce zero carbon dioxide and other pollutants. For more information on the stacks. Fuel Cell Cooling System This has several parts. Perched at an angle at the front of the vehicle is a large radiator for the fuel cell system, while two radiators for the motor and transmission lie ahead of the front wheels below the headlights. The car also has a cooling pump located near the fuel cell stacks to stabilize temperature within the stacks. Ultra capacitor This unit serves as a supplementary power source to the fuel cell stack. Like a large battery, the ultra capacitor recovers and stores energy generated during deceleration and braking. It uses this energy to pro

The introduction of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS) is one of the most significant technical introductions for the Formula One Race. Formula One have always lived with an environmentally unfriendly image and have lost its relevance to road vehicle technology. This eventually led to the introduction of KERS. KERS is an energy saving device fitted to the engines to convert some of the waste energy produced during braking into more useful form of energy. The system stores the energy produced under braking in a reservoir and then releases the stored energy under acceleration. The key purpose of the introduction was to significantly improve lap time and help overtaking. KERS is not introduced to improve fuel efficiency or reduce weight of the engine. It is mainly introduced to improve racing performance. KERS is the brainchild of FIA president Max Mosley. It is a concrete initiative taken by F1 to display eco-friendliness and road relevance of the modern F1 cars. It is

Chassis is a French term and was initially used to denote the frame parts or Basic Structure of the vehicle. It is the back bone of the vehicle. A vehicle with out body is called Chassis . The components of the vehicle like Power plant, Transmission System, Axles, Wheels and Tyres, Suspension, Controlling Systems like Braking, Steering etc., and also electrical system parts are mounted on the Chassis frame. It is the main mounting for all the components including the body. So it is also called as Carrying Unit . The following main components of the Chassis are: Frame: it is made up of long two members called side members riveted together with the help of number of cross members. Engine or Power plant: It provides the source of power Clutch: It connects and disconnects the power from the engine fly wheel to the transmission system. Gear Box U Joint Propeller Shaft Differential FUNCTIONS OF THE CHASSIS FRAME: 1. To carry load of the passengers or goods carried in the b

Touch screen technology in fast few years has grown drastically in various applications, in order to overcome the difficulties faced by the touch screen; a new frontier technology has to take its part to revitalize the use of touch screen. In this counterpart gorilla glass has thrown a flash light focus on touch screen technology. Gorilla Glass has taken an apt plays in touchscreen technology. This scratch repellent glass is used to form touchscreen panel for portable gadgets like ATM machines, android mobile phones, tablets, personal computers and MP3 Players. It’s designed to protect display screens from scratches, sticky oils, fractures, etc,. Characteristics of Gorilla Glass: Scratch resistance Slimness / Thinner Stronger Improved Touch Sensitivity Comparatively perfect fit for today’s abundance touch-screen handsets.   Difference between ‘Scratch- Proof ‘ and ‘Scratch Resistant’ glass: A Scratch- screen proof is impermeable resistant to scratches. This kind of technolog