All Tech Expo Capstone Projects
Spring 2024
The engineering problem that we are faced with is producing a black box that integrates a range of measurables from gait analysis that have been determined essential.
Develop and construct a stationary unit for the Imagination Station that demonstrates the workings of Endress+Hauser sensors in an engaging and interactive way.
The goal of this project is to create a mobile workstation capable of cutting, milling, and tapping 80/20 aluminum. By incorporating all three of these operations into one location, the use of 80/20 becomes more available to students.
The problem our team will focus on solving is the accessibility and affordability of 3D printer kits for engineering students in the smart engineering lab. There are few opportunities for the understanding and development of the 3D printers to progress.
The process of maintaining efficiency within a workplace is a strenuous task, which has only been compounded within the past decade. Extended lead times and heightened costs have led many industries to establish new methods of extending their equipment’s
The project involves designing and implementing a closed, controlled chamber with the capacity to regulate CO2 concentration, humidity levels, and temperature. Key tasks are specifying the canister and nozzle components for the CO2 control system, determi
Create an apparatus that decontaminates large quantities of water infected with PFAS (forever chemicals) and pharmaceuticals using TiO2 and ultraviolet light.
Team 29 is automating the scanning and inspection process of parts manufactured by Howmet Aerospace using a ZEISS ScanBox.
The purpose of our team is to create a pneumatic clutch system and all electrical components for the National Fluid Power Association’s Vehicle Challenge. The Vehicle Challenge hosted by the NFPA tasks teams from colleges across the country to build human
The goal of this project is to develop an efficient, economical, and sustainable carbon nanotube water desalination filter meeting Purdue Research Foundation specs for salt removal and low-energy operation.
The purpose of our team is to redesign sealing elements of the BD3 version of the Burling valve in order to be compatable with superheated steam.
The objective is to enable users to visualize the robot's environment directly in the HUD of the Vuzix glasses while utilizing the GyroPalm watch for control.
The die casting industry faces a critical challenge related to the deterioration of dies used in production, leading to the emergence of defects like solder, sinkholes, cracks, material inconsistencies, and excess material in castings. Currently, the indu
There is currently no way to simulate Earth gravity for biological experiments and mixed material separation in microgravity laboratories. Given the high cost of space transport (~$3k/lb), shipment of heavy laboratory centrifuges to orbit is undesirable.
the client seeks to implement a system for measuring usage and wear on the hoists used in production to shift from preventative maintenance to predictive maintenance.
Unusable cordless power drills with dead batteries take up space but have useful hardware. This is important to reduce waste and generate quantifiable energy using available drill mechanisms.
The aim of the project is to create a water lifting system that can move hot spring water to a man-made spa at a height of 150 meters. Renewable energy sources will power the system as well as wind power. To assess the functional performance of the full-
Restore the NACTO (National Automatic Tool Company) transfer line model to full function to be presented at a trade-show in Fall 2024.
The purpose of this project was to design and implement a multi-pendulum inverted cart system intended for educational and research use. Testing needs to be conducted to verify a stable and consistent outcome.
The problem our team is working on is to design, build, and test a frame that will be able to support different systems and the pilot itself. We aim to improve the hydraulic system mounted on the vehicle by refining various components with the system.
Develop a new testing method to ensure the proper operation of the HS in the vehicle production line.
The printer needs to be affordable, functional, safe, and simple enough that anyone can assemble it. Must also comply with middle school safety guidelines to ensure student safety.
Our project seeks to make use of the abundant energy provided through solar light to provide a more cost-effective alternative to solar panels and demonstrate the potential for energy harnessing through LEDs and waveguides.
o Small Parts Inc. is experiencing difficulties preserving the knowledge that is currently held by many employees nearing retirement. These employees are experts in die manufacturing, servicing, and turning processes. Untrained new employees can cause a d
Team 17 is designing a user presence detection system for an Allegion door lock that can meet power and weatherproofing requirements. This system has an adjustable backlit keypad that lights when a user approaches the door.
Students from Kindergarten to High School aren’t given the opportunity or experiences to allow them to explore STEM careers and/or degree upon graduation. Most school systems don’t have the funds or resources to offer these opportunities.
This team was focused on creating an analytical model to simulate a future neural network thermostat as well as creating a physical box model that can be used to test said thermostat as well as competitors to compare to.
The team was tasked to conceptualize and prototype an acoustic position sensor that will use proportional control to read the position of a piston inside a rod less pneumatic cylinder.
Fall 2023
The SoET needs an effective way to store and Charge the headsets.
The problem our team has been assigned is to either increase the output force of a solenoid actuator by 50% or reduce its overall response time by 50%, while maintaining the same physical dimensions.
We aim to enhance chainsaw safety by improving performance and maintenance, addressing the stagnation in their design. While other power tools have evolved with technology, chainsaws lag behind, leading to a higher risk of accidents.
Our goal is to design/create a rehabilitative walking cane that targets the knee adduction moment in order to test how much we can alleviate the stresses of walking that can develop into knee osteoarthritis later in life.
SIP Test
Beulah Inc. would like to automate their process of turning the large bundles of goat hair that they receive from their suppliers, into smaller bundles to fit their final product.
The cart is outfitted with an array of sensors. The data from the sensors cannot be easily accessed in the machine’s state and will need to be fully integrated. Endress+Hauser would like for the measurement values to be read in a real-time scenario.
Black Hawk Seals is in need of data on static seal performance and a system that will evaluate seals at various parameters to test and collect that data. This will allow BHS to alter seals' design and material composition to develop superior products.
Salk is requesting a novel system that optimizes and expedites data acquisition from many experiments involving plant growth. The client requires the system to use actuators and motors to move petri dishes on and off a scanner, thus allowing the ability t
Spring 2023
The team at the Honda plant needs a solution to more efficiently perform maintenance on their ES-200 and ES-165 robotic welding arms. Currently the method being used by the Honda employees to support robot arms is causing that are making maintenance mor
Bumpers must have a resistance to ground of 1MΩ or less. To meet this requirement, an automated measurement process has been implemented that can accurately measure bumper resistance within 42 seconds.
When products/packages open and spill it is called amnesty. Amnesty causes damage to the conveyors that causes downtime and loss of revenue. Packages break because they experience too much force and are not protected and prepped to meet force requirements
Tote Ranger is an autonomous inspection vehicle being developed for Amazon’s IND1 facility. It aims to reduce maintenance personnel's time spent investigating conveyor system damages.
Team 27 needs to create a testing unit for our client to be able to run various test on their products. This will use this information to revolutionize standards in their field.
CTS’ actuator product showed some inaccuracy because Hall states are not always changing relative to the coil states. The team believe this inaccuracy can be improved and increase the precision on the CTS’ actuator lines.
The engineering problem our team will focus on resolving is creating an efficient electronics control system for the vehicle. The end customer is a team of industry judges for the competition assessing how well we have met the challenge requirements.
A difficult problem in the pharmaceutical industry will be addressed using a robotic arm powered on ROS and the GyroPalm wearable. The advancement will feature an assembly line that will perform actions related to measurement, performance, and inventory.
Team 25's goal is to figure out how to integrate AR glasses and the Gyropalm wearable into a robotic system that can identify, interact and move pill bottles for the pharmaceutical industry.
The focus of this project is to work with SIA to realize the potential of augmented reality in the manufacturing environment.
Aiding in the development of exoskeleton technology by designing a test bench to measure the performance of the energy storage mechanism of a DIY exoskeleton. The test bench’s movements will be designed to mimic a human bending over.
The purpose of this project is to produce a compact and mobile workstation that can cut and machine extruded aluminum structural members ready for assembly.
Our problems to overcome were fixing the previous years design faults including: glare, fly tube/food orientation, and camera angle/lense
Our customer, Crown Equipment Corporation will be implementing our fully integrated engineering solution into their production line. During this project we focused on automating the pressing of two bearings into the upper tube of the steering column and r
The main goal of this project is to renovate a NATCO transfer line trade show demonstration piece which is a replica of automated manufacturing machinery that is still used today in industry. In order to renovate the transfer line, there will be upgrades
Endress Hauser tasked our group with designing and building a portable, and interactive demonstration unit that displayed the functions of their Micropilot (level sensor); Ceribar (Pressure sensor); and Picomag (flow sensor).
Honda has an issue within their automated brazing department where the wire fed into the robotic arm tends to kink. This kink halts production and leads to wasted time which is very valuable within the manufacturing industry.
Team 21 was tasked with attending to the air-cooled-chilled-glycol system at the John Deere Harvester Works Facility in East Moline, IL. The chilled glycol system supplies several workstations around the facility, linked by a large piping network. As the
Our team strives to make progress in developing a method of carefully aligning carbon nanotubes in a solution that can be manipulated from a liquid to a solid state.
Proportion-Air has tasked us with creating a pneumatic demonstrator to show the variation of pneumatic power by controlling pressure and flow.
This project implements a Spiking Neural Network controller on an FPGA to control an autonomous vehicle which follows a guidance line. This will be done using a more natural logic system formed by patterns and associated weights.
Design, test and build a portable process automation demonstration unit/kit to promote Endress+Hauser sensors’ capability to display fundamental characteristics of fluid mechanics to K-12 and College students on a small scale.
Our team will focus on the problem of reducing the load on the lower backs of workers who can potentially overexert their back muscles to the point of injury, by building a passive exoskeleton that puts a supportive force on the chest of the user as they
The BorgWarner EMC validation team needs an improved method for charging and discharging batteries to optimize the utilization of the OPTOCAN device for EMC testing.
Manual inspection results in reliability issues for detecting defects for Stellantis’ die-casting facility. Framework product needed to support cameras and determine minor/borderline defects without affecting cycle time (150s for valve body).
Amazon's Reliability Maintenance Engineering (RME) team aims to prevent unexpected conveyor belt downtime in fulfillment centers, which costs the company millions of dollars each year. To achieve this goal, the team is seeking a standardized product that
Our mission is to provide Amazon with a rugged digital monitoring system that will help reduce maintenance downtime on pneumatic systems within Amazon Distribution Centers.
Allegion’s Schlage Touch dead-bolt lock needs an improved method of adding and removing entry codes. The team has implemented Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology and an iOS App Clip to improve the user experience.
Team 13 was tasked with benchmarking and modeling the performance of a current heatsink generation, which was completed using ANSYS CFD software. ANSYS results were compared and validated by experimentally testing benchmark and SALK heatsinks.
The aim of this study is to develop a new product that is economical, sensitive to delicate objects and provides visual force feedback to the user. Testing needs to be conducted to compare the state-of-the-art model hook to a new compliant mechanism.
This project was tasked with optimizing light collection through translucent filament using 3D printing, prototyping, and experimental testing methods. The use of a 3D printer, power meter, and lamp were crucial to our research and data collection. The fi
Spring 2022
The team has been tasked with designing, manufacturing, and testing an image module that utilizes an image sensor selected by a previous Capstone team to match the capabilities of the new miniature wearable microscope developed by the client.
During an emergency, many entrances and exits can get overcrowded due to the amount of people trying to exit from the same place. Our project aims to direct individuals to alternative exits, therefore increasing evacuation times and reducing injuries.
Due to the legalization of cannabis from the Farm Bill of 2018, products must be tested to ensure the THC content is less than 0.3% by dry weight. This testing causes toxic chemicals that need to be neutralized for safe disposal.
Transportation in urban areas can cause several issues. Two of the biggest being greenhouse gas emissions and congestion. Bike-sharing programs have shown to be effective, offering users the chance to easily rent a bike nearby and simply leave it when the
Further development on Purdue’s Portable Engine Dynamometer. Implement and test an electronic control system to dynamically adjust loading and implement a dynamometer control and data acquisition system to perform automated test runs while recording data.
Team 31 was asked to improve the talc application process on insulated cables. Research on this process laid the foundation for improving the preventative maintenance program. This resulted in an improved knowledge base, functionality improvements, and el
Our project examines the move from Document-based systems engineering to Model-based systems engineering through a Digital Thread. This allows for a feedback loop, thus reducing product definition change, missed change impact, and copy-paste propagation.
The goal of this project is to build an automated greenhouse for GrowCery, which will be used as a teaching tool for educating students about food insecurity and the benefits greenhouses can have fighting these prevailing circumstances.
For our project we need to create a growth chamber that can be stored in greenhouses and regulate growing conditions for plants. The goals of the growth chamber are to regulate humidity, temperature, and carbon dioxide levels. Our client, Professor Raghot
Our scope of work over the past two semesters has involved development of a time study application that can be available across multiple platforms and work in online and offline environments all while being seamlessly integrated with enVista’s current LMS
The team has researched different available technologies and has decided to work on developing three systems: mechanical, serialization, and thermal monitoring to determine the end of lifetime of a Stryker reusable medical device.
To study the interaction of dynamics and control systems, a cart with an inverted pendulum is made. A disturbance to the pendulum causes the cart to move and for the cart to come to a standstill, the pendulum needs to be in the balanced position.
The artist would like a solution that provides a minimum of 16 visible laser “strings” for an individual to play. This will allow for any personnel to play the harp with two diatonic scales. Once an individual breaks a laser’s light beam, the system must
Black Hawk Seals needs their current line of static seal products tested, analyzed, and compared to their competitors to allow them to bring a superior product line to the market.
The task of this problem is to review the open-source plastic shredder CAD design, made by Mandin and provided by the client, and make changes to ensure that the product is functional, meets safety requirements, and will integrate well with the extruder.
Public parks in Clay County, Indiana seek security measures to reduce vandalism on park grounds. The parks need an integrated system that can be replicated to work in different environments, with a design that has incorporated engineering problems such as
Endress+Hauser needs a portable demonstration unit that is easy to use with an easily accessible fluid. The unit must demonstrate the flow, level, and pressure of a fluid in an easy-to-understand manner for students and adults.
Our team needs to create a robust low-power, "prep-less", DPS solution that can easily integrate with the rest of Allegion’s products.
PRF desires a commercially viable solution for bike sharing. The desired device allows the owner of a bicycle to keep it secured while also allowing the ability to grant shared access to others.
The Capstone Team 15 has been tasked with finding and purchasing a plastic extrusion machine that will take recycled plastic and melt it into a new skateboard deck.
Our research objective was to propose a well defined solution to help Purdue Libraries aid the current engineering technology students be prepared for the information literacy skills needed in the workplace.
Our client is in need of a functional prosthetic arm which performs daily tasks. Our project is to create a fully functional quick disconnect wrist joint for a prosthetic arm so the user can quicky and efficiently detach a prosthetic at the wrist joint.
Salk Institute needs a way to scan multiple plant root plates in a more efficient manner that does not require much human interaction. Salk will receive a fully capable robot that scans each plate at the press of a button and saves each scan.
The die casting machine in state farm is getting old and has no process monitoring capability. The only safety measure is a cover which goes over the die. In order to modernize the machine, sensors and a logic controller should be installed.
We need to create a model-based system that the client will be able to change in order to fit the company’s needs. The system needs to be able to be repeatable and collect data. The model-based system will be of a Dewalt Electric Push Mower that will capt
Our team's project is to assist Eli Lilly’s engineers and scientists to use the HMT-01 device for live transcription use to improve productivity. We have conducted various tests between three software to find the best software to implement.
The objective of this project is to develop and improve an existing assembly line for coasters, to be used at Purdue Polytechnic High School in an educational setting.