Crumple zone design for pedestrian protection using impact analysis

This paper describes the design process for an automobile crumple zone for pedestrian protection. The impact load and bending moments predicted by impact analysis were used to design a plastic structure that may help reduce pedestrian injuries to the thigh area. The fracture effect was incorporated into the model by calculating the damage to the plastic material during impact, and the analysis was conducted under the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) test conditions, using the upper legform developed by ESI Corporation. In addition, the values predicted by the analysis were validated by comparison with results of actual impact tests.     

Study on the reduction of flow-induced noise through the suppression of vortex shedding at rotating disk edge

We conducted a computational analysis to better understand the coherent flow structure that arises when the rotation of a disk drive generates flow-induced noise. We set the flow domain to be similar to the actual shape of the flow in Blu-ray disks and examined the phenomena of vortex generation and shedding at the disk edge, focusing on the source of the noise. Our results showed that disk edge vortex shedding was the primary cause of disk-drive-flow-induced noise; therefore, we investigated the technique of lowering the intensity of a disk edge vortex to reduce this noise. We attached concentric projections onto the cover of the disk to suppress the flow returning to the center of the disk through the gap between the disk and cover. Noise induced by disk rotation was reduced by 2.68 dB at the optimal setting: projections 0.002 m wide and 0.006 m width between the projections (and thus a ratio of 1: 3).     

Effects of defects on the thermal fatigue behavior of detonation-gun sprayed thermal barrier coatings

The effects of coating defects, such as pores and cracks, on the thermal fatigue behavior of zirconia based thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) have been investigated. Duplex TBCs, which are composed of an 8 wt.% Y₂O₃ stabilized ZrO₂ (YSZ) layer on top of a NiCrAlY bond layer were produced by detonation gun spraying. Thermal fatigue tests were conducted on three different TBC specimens, the YSZ layers of which were varied in terms of porosity and crack morphology, and failure analyses were subsequently carried out on the tested specimens. From these results, the roles of the defects on the thermal and mechanical degradation behavior of the TBCs were investigated.     

Minimization of focused ion beam damage in nanostructured polymer thin films

Focused ion beam (FIB) instruments have proven to be an invaluable tool for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sample preparation. FIBs enable relatively easy and site-specific cross-sectioning of different classes of materials. However, damage mechanisms due to ion bombardment and possible beam heating effects in materials limit the usefulness of FIBs. Materials with adequate heat conductivity do not suffer from beam heating during FIB preparation, and artifacts in materials such as metals and ceramics are primarily limited to defect generation and Ga implantation. However, in materials such as polymers or biological structures, where heat conductivity is low, beam heating can also be a problem. In order to examine FIB damage in polymers we have undertaken a systematic study by exposing sections of a PS-b-PMMA block copolymer to the ion beam at varying beam currents and sample temperatures. The sections were then examined by TEM and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and analyzed using electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Our empirical results show beam heating in polymers due to FIB preparation can be limited by maintaining a low beam current (≤100 pA) during milling.     

System dynamics modeling of engineering change management in a collaborative environment

Engineering changes to products aim to correct design faults, exploit new market opportunities, improve overall product performance, or reduce production costs. These changes are thus considered as opportunities to stay competitive in the market place and companies strive to implement them in their products at the lowest possible costs. Such engineering changes in a collaborative environment require the original equipment manufacturer to work together with suppliers for designing, manufacturing, and marketing a product profitably. Simulation of an engineering change management process provides an understanding of important factors affecting the engineering change management process and helps in identifying any critical components of the entire process. In this research, system dynamics models have been developed to study the complex interrelationships among various members in a collaborative supply chain to achieve effective and efficient engineering change management processes. To address the complexity of the models, several standard templates have been developed and used.     

Hydroelastic vibration of the bottom plate of the cylindrical tank coupled with sloshing

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - This study is concerned with the hydroelastic vibration of the flexible bottom plate of a cylindrical tank coupled with sloshing. The cylindrical tank...     

Optimization of excitation frequency and guided wave mode in acoustic wavenumber spectroscopy for shallow wall-thinning defect detection

In plate-like structures, wall-thinning defects resulting from corrosion may not be accompanied by any indication of damage on the surface. Thus, inspections are required to ensure that wall-thinning defects are within allowable limits. However, conventional ultrasonic techniques require physical contact to the structure. Alternatively, acoustic wavenumber spectroscopy (AWS) may be used for detecting, locating, and characterizing defects. This paper describes the performance of AWS in the estimation of a wall-thinning defect size in thinplate structures using finite element analysis (FEA). Through a series of FEAs, the structure’s steady-state response to a single-tone ultrasonic excitation is simulated, and the wall-thinning defect-size effect on the wavenumber-estimation accuracy is investigated. In general, the A0 guided wave mode is widely used to visualize defects because of the nature of the wave speed variation in relation to the plate thickness. However, it is not appropriate for the detection of relatively shallow wall-thinning defects, because the rate of change in wave speed with the thickness decreases with increasing plate thickness. To overcome this limitation, we propose a method to optimize excitation frequency and effective guided wave mode instead of utilizing the A0 mode. The results can be used to determine the size of shallow wall-thinning defects in plate-like structures.     

The canonical stewart platform as a six DOF pose sensor for automotive applications

The growing demand for prolonged fatigue life of automotive parts and components requires elaboration of their motion in Cartesian space having six degrees of freedom (DOF). Recently, the canonical Steward platform, consisting of six displacement sensors mounted on two parallel platforms, was introduced to comply with this request. In order to apply this pose sensor to automotive applications, the following two important matters are investigated in this study. First, update Jacobian is proposed as a faster and more stable numerical method to solve the forward kinematic problem without any iteration process. Second, the attachment position and initial configuration of the Stewart platform must be adjustable to avoid the interference with other components due to space constraints under the hood of automotive vehicle. In this case, however, the Jacobian matrix which converts six displacement components into a six DOF pose vector is prone to be ill-conditioned so that the converting accuracy becomes worse. The L₁-norm of each row in the Jacobian matrix quantifies how much the error would be provoked according to the given kinematic geometry. Hence, it can be used here as a reliable error indicator. Furthermore, several numerical examples are discussed to demonstrate what to consider when designing a six DOF pose sensor for automotive applications.     

A multi-material part design framework in additive manufacturing

Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies provide more freedom to functional part design in various industries. One of the unique capabilities of AM is that multi-material parts can be produced with material compositional and geometric complexity. Multi-material parts have the advantage of achieving multiple performance requirements. In the research, we propose a framework for designing multi-material parts using AM processes. The proposed framework is composed of four interacting modules, including design requirement identification, primary material selection, AM process selection, material composition, and part geometry determination. Rules and guidelines for AM are integrated into the proposed framework with AM processes’ capabilities and constraints compiled in databases. We also introduce databases to assist in decision-making and ensure manufacturability of the designed multi-material part in various product design phases. The proposed framework is applied to a case study involving a conceptual design of a multi-material battery pack cooling plate.     

Adsorption equilibria of chloropentafluoroethane on activated carbon powder

An equilibrium study was conducted on the adsorption of chloropentafluoroethane (CFC-115, CF₃CF₂Cl) on activated carbon powder between 298.15 K and 373.15 K. Experimental data were fitted with several isotherm equations. Among the twoparameter equations, the BET equation showed the best results over the entire relative pressure range studied. When the pressure range was divided into two regions, a better result was obtained by applying the Langmuir equation in the lower pressure range and the BET equation in the higher relative pressure region. Among the threeparameter equations, the Langmuir-Freundlich equation gave better results than the RedrichPeterson equation. The isosteric heat of adsorption of CFC-115 on the activated carbon powder was estimated. It was found to have the same order of magnitude with the heat of condensation, which indicates that the adsorption was primarily due to physical forces.