The mini-scope was first developed by William Liberti, who originally designed the mini-scope to study zebra finch mating songs. Currently, scientists are looking to expand upon the applications in which mini-scopes can be used.  In collaboration with The Salk Institute, Team 13 aimed to further improve the Integrated Sensor Module (ISM) for the institute’s mini microscopes. This will be accomplished by benchmarking a known heat sink design, modeling, optimizing, and integrating the current heat sink design, and benchmarking the ISM as a whole.

This project added force-feedback to a prosthetic hand. A state-of-the-art model hook was used to compare new prototypes against and was used as the baseline for comparison.

The team aims to resolve a problem Proportion-Air has come forth with. Proportion-Air is a manufacturing company located in McCordsville, IN. The company was founded in 1985 by Daniel E. Cook for making proportional electronic air pressure regulators and air flow control valves. The electronic proportional control found great success in sales and industry during this time. The focus of this project’s problem is determining the position of a piston in a pneumatic cylinder. Some pistons do not use rods therefore the position of the piston cannot be measured.

The goal of the project was to optimize light transmission using 3d printed materials. In order to measure the light throughput, a power meter was used to measure the light input and output. Results were compared by % efficiency. Efficiency was calculated by input / output * 100. The first step to optimal light transmission was to select a printable translucent material that had the best light transmitting properties. After experimentation with PETG, PLA, TPU, and Nylon, we ultimately chose TPU. Non-printed TPU measured an efficiency of approximately 22%.

The Salk Institute has been working on imaging of the CNS (central nervous system) of mice, developing miniature wearable microscopes and imaging modules to capture the synapsis inside the spinal cord in response to a stimulus. Thanks to advancements in the microscope optics, they have been able to develop a new generation of miniature microscopes able to capture color with increased field of view.

In a setting with many people outdoors, such as concerts, sports events, fairs, and amusement parks, there is a need for a crowd management system to direct pedestrian traffic through a fixed or deployable exit in case of an emergency. During emergency situations, normal entrances and exits may be overused or clogged due to the amount of people in the event. The goal of the project that the Purdue Research Foundation is sponsoring is to determine a safe and more efficient way to evacuate large amounts of people in case of an emergency.

A UV photoreactor has been prototyped to neutralize toxic chemicals from testing cannabis products to aid in safe disposal down the drain and reducing pollutants in waste water. 

Fifty-three percent of U.S households have at least one bike, and the bike sharing market has grown substantially since it started in 2007. Around 84 million trips were recorded in 2018. Bike thefts have also grown in recent years due to a renewal in outdoor activities sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, bike security and locking mechanisms have seen a spike in demand as more bikes are being used and shared across the country. An easy-to-use bike lock that utilizes the one thing everyone always carries, a smartphone, is finding its place in the marketplace.

The engine-dyno project is our senior design project given to us by the university. Our client, Megan Prygoski, plans to use the engine-dyno in a few mechanical engineering technology courses to demonstrate heat transfer and efficiency. In the future, the engine-dyno may be modified to be used in other courses, but our current focus is to make the engine-dyno a functional piece of equipment that enhances students’ ability to learn about heat transfer and efficiency.  

The project executed by Team 31 for Southwire Company involves providing a design for implementing an automated talc delivery and detection system, to improve the talc application process, and remove the opportunity for operator related errors in the talc application process. The project also involved assessing the current industry, and the detection methods available for detecting talc on cable cores. Lastly it involved evaluating how the machine is maintained.