The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. ... more The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. Today individuals can design and manufacture a variety of products in their living rooms. However, scaling a product from prototype to production and setting up a small-scale manufacturing business is often hindered by the expensive machinery and high upfront capital investment required. This paper presents the findings of a unique experiment that was carried out to understand the process of prototyping a relatively complex product (in this case, a 3D printer) in a home setting and then scaling it up to a small-scale production (10 units). In order to partially automate the manufacturing processes, two open source machine tools (OSMT), whose blueprints are freely available in the internet, were built, namely a CNC laser cutter and a CNC milling machine. The experiment reveals the particularities of starting a small-scale production in a home setting and the potential of OSMT to affordably scale up production, while also highlighting the challenges of OSMT adoption.
The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech She... more The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech Shell Eco Marathon Team (GSET) prototype vehicle 2016. Considering the fact that increased weight has a detrimental effect on fuel economy, this thesis aims to aid the weight reduction objective set by GSET through designing a chassis that is lighter and stiffer than the previous year’s chassis. The overall proportions of the vehicle are also reduced by packaging the rear end in a more compact manner. Chassis design concepts are introduced and different composite materials are analysed. The newly designed composite chassis is modelled in Solidworks and then simulated in ANSYS Workbench Mechanical coupled with ANSYS Composite PrepPost using finite element analysis (FEA). Several possible loading scenarios are taken into consideration and then simulated in order to achieve the optimum compromise between low weight and adequate stiffness.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech She... more The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech Shell Eco Marathon Team (GSET) prototype vehicle 2016. Considering the fact that increased weight has a detrimental effect on fuel economy, this thesis aims to aid the weight reduction objective set by GSET through designing a chassis that is lighter and stiffer than the previous year’s chassis. The overall proportions of the vehicle are also reduced by packaging the rear end in a more compact manner. Chassis design concepts are introduced and different composite materials are analysed. The newly designed composite chassis is modelled in Solidworks and then simulated in ANSYS Workbench Mechanical coupled with ANSYS Composite PrepPost using finite element analysis (FEA). Several possible loading scenarios are taken into consideration and then simulated in order to achieve the optimum compromise between low weight and adequate stiffness.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
This is an experimental lab report for the determination of the critical point. In this experimen... more This is an experimental lab report for the determination of the critical point. In this experiment the phase diagram of Sulphur Hexafluoride was plotted by carrying out an experiment using a critical point apparatus. This apparatus could be used to determine the critical point of a gas.
This is an experimental Lab report for experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische... more This is an experimental Lab report for experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) laboratory in the RWTH Aachen University labs for a thermodynamics lab course.
This paper is a lab report for the temperature experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für T... more This paper is a lab report for the temperature experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) performed at the RWTH Aachen University Lab in Germany as part of a thermodynamics lab course.
This paper is a lab report for pressure related experiments performed in the RWTH LTT (Lehrstuhl ... more This paper is a lab report for pressure related experiments performed in the RWTH LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) labs in Aachen .
The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. ... more The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. Today individuals can design and manufacture a variety of products in their living rooms. However, scaling a product from prototype to production and setting up a small-scale manufacturing business is often hindered by the expensive machinery and high upfront capital investment required. This paper presents the findings of a unique experiment that was carried out to understand the process of prototyping a relatively complex product (in this case, a 3D printer) in a home setting and then scaling it up to a small-scale production (10 units). In order to partially automate the manufacturing processes, two open source machine tools (OSMT), whose blueprints are freely available in the internet, were built, namely a CNC laser cutter and a CNC milling machine. The experiment reveals the particularities of starting a small-scale production in a home setting and the potential of OSMT to affordably scale up production, while also highlighting the challenges of OSMT adoption.
The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. ... more The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. Today individuals can design and manufacture a variety of products in their living rooms. However, scaling a product from prototype to production and setting up a small-scale manufacturing business is often hindered by the expensive machinery and high upfront capital investment required. This paper presents the findings of a unique experiment that was carried out to understand the process of prototyping a relatively complex product (in this case, a 3D printer) in a home setting and then scaling it up to a small-scale production (10 units). In order to partially automate the manufacturing processes, two open source machine tools (OSMT), whose blueprints are freely available in the internet, were built, namely a CNC laser cutter and a CNC milling machine. The experiment reveals the particularities of starting a small-scale production in a home setting and the potential of OSMT to affordably scale up production, while also highlighting the challenges of OSMT adoption.
The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech She... more The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech Shell Eco Marathon Team (GSET) prototype vehicle 2016. Considering the fact that increased weight has a detrimental effect on fuel economy, this thesis aims to aid the weight reduction objective set by GSET through designing a chassis that is lighter and stiffer than the previous year’s chassis. The overall proportions of the vehicle are also reduced by packaging the rear end in a more compact manner. Chassis design concepts are introduced and different composite materials are analysed. The newly designed composite chassis is modelled in Solidworks and then simulated in ANSYS Workbench Mechanical coupled with ANSYS Composite PrepPost using finite element analysis (FEA). Several possible loading scenarios are taken into consideration and then simulated in order to achieve the optimum compromise between low weight and adequate stiffness.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech She... more The aim of this thesis is to design and analyse an optimal lightweight chassis for the GUtech Shell Eco Marathon Team (GSET) prototype vehicle 2016. Considering the fact that increased weight has a detrimental effect on fuel economy, this thesis aims to aid the weight reduction objective set by GSET through designing a chassis that is lighter and stiffer than the previous year’s chassis. The overall proportions of the vehicle are also reduced by packaging the rear end in a more compact manner. Chassis design concepts are introduced and different composite materials are analysed. The newly designed composite chassis is modelled in Solidworks and then simulated in ANSYS Workbench Mechanical coupled with ANSYS Composite PrepPost using finite element analysis (FEA). Several possible loading scenarios are taken into consideration and then simulated in order to achieve the optimum compromise between low weight and adequate stiffness.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
This is an experimental lab report for the determination of the critical point. In this experimen... more This is an experimental lab report for the determination of the critical point. In this experiment the phase diagram of Sulphur Hexafluoride was plotted by carrying out an experiment using a critical point apparatus. This apparatus could be used to determine the critical point of a gas.
This is an experimental Lab report for experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische... more This is an experimental Lab report for experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) laboratory in the RWTH Aachen University labs for a thermodynamics lab course.
This paper is a lab report for the temperature experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für T... more This paper is a lab report for the temperature experiments performed at the LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) performed at the RWTH Aachen University Lab in Germany as part of a thermodynamics lab course.
This paper is a lab report for pressure related experiments performed in the RWTH LTT (Lehrstuhl ... more This paper is a lab report for pressure related experiments performed in the RWTH LTT (Lehrstuhl für Technische Thermodynamik) labs in Aachen .
The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. ... more The democratization of desktop 3D printing has opened the domain of manufacturing to the masses. Today individuals can design and manufacture a variety of products in their living rooms. However, scaling a product from prototype to production and setting up a small-scale manufacturing business is often hindered by the expensive machinery and high upfront capital investment required. This paper presents the findings of a unique experiment that was carried out to understand the process of prototyping a relatively complex product (in this case, a 3D printer) in a home setting and then scaling it up to a small-scale production (10 units). In order to partially automate the manufacturing processes, two open source machine tools (OSMT), whose blueprints are freely available in the internet, were built, namely a CNC laser cutter and a CNC milling machine. The experiment reveals the particularities of starting a small-scale production in a home setting and the potential of OSMT to affordably scale up production, while also highlighting the challenges of OSMT adoption.
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A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
experiment using a critical point apparatus. This apparatus could be used to determine the critical point of a gas.
inproceedings
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
A sandwich panel structure utilising nomex and carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) is researched instead of a solely carbon fibre approach. The effect of increasing the sandwich core thickness is analysed using FEA. Furthermore an attempt to implement the engine as a chassis member is looked at with the final composite chassis design weighing in at less than half as much as the previous year’s aluminium chassis. A 55% weight reduction is achieved without compromising on stiffness and in the final chapter fabrication recommendations are provided that would be helpful for the next generation of GSET to fabricate the composite chassis in the University workshop.
experiment using a critical point apparatus. This apparatus could be used to determine the critical point of a gas.