Design and Fabrication Projects
I am fascinated by the principles of analysis, design, and fabrication in mechanical engineering. As such, I have attempted to work on as many projects as I can get my hands on, specifically ones that are located in the domain of mechatronics and robotics. My experience has familiarized me with several fabrication techniques, including 3D printing, laser cutting, CNC router operation, and conventional machining. Additionally, I have implemented motors, sensors, actuators, and microcontrollers through these, and other, projects.
Automated Validation Station for Mobile Robots
Gecko Robotics, Pittsburgh (Manager: Mr. Kevin Low) - Summer 2023
Gecko Robotics develops the world’s most advanced ultrasonic inspection robots for understanding the current condition of critical infrastructure. As an intern over the summer of 2023, my goal was to improve the reliability of Gecko's robots by developing a testing station for the validation of units before they were deployed in the field.
More specifically, I defined, designed, and fabricated an automated test rig to validate water and power delivery to the robots. From a technical perspective, this required work on hydraulic and electrical instrumentation, mechanical packaging, embedded software and control system development, and user-interface design. Throughout the project, I relied on frequent interviews with the relevant stakeholders and iterative design to ensure that the system I was developing was aligned with the needs of the end users.
Preliminary testing of the final prototype showed that the validation station was 40% more effective than the legacy validation process in detecting flawed units. Additionally, consolidating all the validation tools into a single workstation offered the repeatability and consistency in system testing that was missing from the legacy processes.
Vine Robot for Industrial Inspection
Apical Robotics Capstone Team, Santa Barbara - Fall 2022 to Spring 2023
Inspection of industrial piping systems is a significant engineering challenge. This project aims to develop a vine robot (see below for information on this technology) for inspecting currently inaccessible pipes or other industrial equipment. As a short-term deliverable, we focus on the optical inspection of a pipe section 3' in diameter with a 120' long horizontal section followed by a 40' vertical section.
After 6 months of development, our team focused on integrating the robot's sub-systems which included the base station, electronics box, fan mechanism, and sensor mount. While my work in the previous quarters focused on modeling, designing, and manufacturing the base station, I spent the bulk of my time this quarter on electrical and mechanical troubleshooting and hardware modifications with some contributions to control system design and sensor mount design.
The link below includes the final report for our project. The report includes details of our field testing with Bechtel Corporation in Houston, Texas, where we successfully grew our robot into a mock-up pipe system. The following video demonstrates the robot growing through the large scale pipe. Apical robotics received the award for outstanding innovation in mechanical engineering at the UCSB engineering capstone fair.
Fall 2023 Update: A Low-Cost, Intensity-Based Fiber Optic Sensor for
Shape-Sensing in Soft Robots
Hawkes Lab, UC Santa Barbara (PI: Dr. Elliot Hawkes, Dr. Mike Gordon) - Fall 2023
In continuation of my work concerning fiber optic shape sensing for soft robots, I led a team of three undergraduate researchers to develop proof-of-concept hardware and software for the sensor. So far, have developed a repeatable hardware fabrication process for the sensors, created a test rig for evaluating the prototypes, and curated a data processing pipeline in MATLAB to characterize the input-output behavior of the prototypes using a feed-forward neural network. The following paper summarizes the progress of this project at the end of the Fall quarter.
Paper Abstract: Fiber optic sensing is a promising approach for shape estimation in soft continuum robots. However, commercial fiber-optic shape sensors are prohibitively expensive for many applications in research and development due to their extensive data acquisition apparatus. Moreover, low-cost solutions that have been developed in research settings lack the sensing range of commercial sensors and can only estimate bending radii for a single curvature. We present a novel fiber optic sensor that enables multi-curve shape sensing with millimeter-scale accuracy via an off-the-shelf camera. This paper introduces a sensor fabrication method based on laser-engraving optical fibers and a data-processing pipeline for interpreting the sensor output. We furthermore provide an analytical model to inform engraving patterns based on the spatial resolution required from the sensor. Finally, we report empirical findings from a soft, multi-curvature joystick that highlights the sensor's unique capabilities.
Spring 2023 Update: A Low-Cost, Intensity-Based Fiber Optic Sensor for
Shape-Sensing in Soft Robots
Hawkes Lab, UC Santa Barbara (PI: Dr. Elliot Hawkes, Dr. Mike Gordon) - Spring 2023
Optic fiber bending sensors constitute a promising method for 3D shape sensing with potential applications in localization and control of continuum robots. However, the existing instruments for fiber bending sensing are prohibitively expensive. A prelude to my Master's research, this project presents laser cutting as a low-cost, repeatable method for fabrication of sensitized optical fibers. We present a custom test setup for characterization of sensitized fibers and use this setup to empirically validate effective laser cutting parameters for creating bending sensors.
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CrystalMark Air Abrader CNC Fixture
CNSI Innovation Workshop and Microfluidics Lab - Spring 2023
The CrystalMark Air Abrasion machine fires pressurized abrasive material from it's nozzle to remove material. While primarily used as a biomedical tool, this machine can also be used in microfluidics fabrication to create patterns on silicon wafers or glass slides. The goal of this project (undertaken jointly with the other workshop wizards at the CNSI labs) was to create a CNC setup for this tool to enable repeatable, precisely-controlled cutting.
To accomplish this, we created a fixture to mount the cutter to a benchtop mill. My colleagues created a similar fixture for holding the work-piece on the milling stage. We additionally implemented a custom optical zeroing process using a side-mounted camera. Lastly, we connected the CrystalMark to a CNC control box via a solid-state relay to control cutting. With the hardware intact, we fine-tuned the cutting parameters empirically to hand-off the tool for laboratory use in the microfluidics lab. The video below shows the final prototype creating a custom pattern on a wafer.
Prototype Base-Station V2
Apical Robotics Capstone Team, Santa Barbara - Fall 2022 to Spring 2023
Inspection of industrial piping systems is a significant engineering challenge. This project aims to develop a vine robot (see below for information on this technology) for inspecting currently inaccessible pipes or other industrial equipment. As a short-term deliverable, we focus on the optical inspection of a pipe section 3' in diameter with a 120' long horizontal section followed by a 40' vertical section.
The physical base of the robot - carrying the body material spool, pressure supply, pneumatics, retraction motor, and electronics - is referred to as the base station in the literature. This is the second prototype base-station designed and built during this project which features DC motors for retraction, modular pneumatics and electronics subassemblies, and a novel compliant sealing scheme based on a vinyl bag.
The design was optimized in several passes based on FEA studies, expert feedback, analytical models developed earlier in the project, and rapid prototyping. The components were fabricated using CNC and manual machining, laser-cutting, and 3D printing.
The link below includes the final presentation concluding our progress from the first two quarters, including a more detailed discussion of the design rationale for the base-station and its relation to the other subassemblies.
Prototype Base-Station V1
Apical Robotics Capstone Team, Santa Barbara - Fall 2022 to Spring 2023
Inspection of industrial piping systems is a significant engineering challenge. The objective of this project is to develop a vine robot (see below for information on this technology) for inspecting currently inaccessible pipes or other industrial equipment. As a short term deliverable, we are focused on optical inspection of a pipe section 3' in diameter with a 120' long horizontal section followed by a 40' vertical section.
The physical base of the robot - carrying the body material, pressure supply, pneumatics, retraction motor, and electronics - is referred to as the base station in the literature. This prototype was the first large-scale (accommodating 24" diameter robots) base-station made in our project. The base station was used as a proof-of-concept for the proposed design and as a test stand for data collection. This data, in turn, informed our analytical models which helped in translating the business requirements of the product into engineering specifications. I was responsible for the design, fabrication, and testing of this prototype with the aid of my teammates.
The link below includes the final presentation concluding our progress from the first quarter, including the data collected using the base-station.
Automated Resin Filtering Station for Formlabs 3 3D Printers
UC Santa Barbara, ME153 (Introduction to Mechanical Engineering Design) - Spring 2022
SLA 3D printers work by selectively polymerizing liquid resin that is stored in resin tank. Cleaning the resin tanks after failed prints or when changing materials is difficult since the viscous resin must be filtered out. We developed a solution to this problem by interviewing 3D printer operators and identifying the key requirements needed to ensure ease of use from an operator perspective. Our proposed solution consists of a frame, fixture that secures the resin tank, a servo motor that tilts the resin tank.
The device was able to automatically filter the resin in trials, and the project received a grade of A+. The poster and a final report detail the work on this project - both attached below.
Mechanical Engineering Lab: Measuring Mechanical Systems
UC Santa Barbara, ME105 (ME Laboratory) - Fall 2022
This class provided abundant hands-on experience in scoping and making measurement systems and test rigs. The four labs in the course covered solid mechanics, thermal systems, fluid systems, and vibrations, with a fifth experiment individually designed by students. My individual design, an extension of the capstone project, focused on characterizing a previously unexplored property of vine robots in growth. Attached below you can find this experiment and a sample write-up from this course.
Mechatronics Lab: Integrating Measurement Systems, Sensors, and Actuators
UC Santa Barbara, ME104 (Mechatronics) - Spring 2022
The lab work for this course was divided into three segments: design and operation of measurement systems (LabVIEW programming, fundamentals of signal conditioning), Sensors (temperature, position and proximity, encoders), and Actuators (PDMC, servo, and stepper motors). The lab reports emphasized scientific communication, cooperation within engineering teams, and rigorous error-analysis. You can find selected reports attached below.
Roborats Autonomous Robot
UC Santa Barbara, ME 179L (Robotics Design) - Fall 2021
ME179L is the lab component of the undergraduate robotics series at UCSB. Throughout the class, I designed, programmed, and built several robots that used a microcontroller and an array of sensors (range sensors, reflectance sensors, microswitches, and more) to accomplish simple wall-following and line-following tasks. To move and act on their surroundings, these robots used a combination of DC motors and servo motors. These tasks were completed using a combination of on-off and PID controllers that were tuned heuristically for the various sensors and actuators.
The final project of the class consisted of designing a robot that collects foam blocks (cheese) from a designated board area. The resulting robot is capable of autonomously navigating the board and collecting hanging blocks using a gripping mechanism. The robot's unique gripping approach allowed it to score the single-run high score of the class in the final competition.
The details of the design are outlined in the report attached below.
Self-Balancing Cart
Santa Barbara - Fall 2021
The self-balancing cart was an exercise in control systems design and implementation for the classic inverted pendulum problem. The state-space model was generated from the principles of mechanics, and a PID compensator was planned in Simulink, with the impulse response shown below. Then a physical model of the cart was built.
However, an issue was not accounted for in transitioning between the simulation and the physical model: the linearization of the inverted pendulum problem is only valid for small angle approximations. A small wheel was selected to generate sufficient torque, as predicted by the model, but this resulted in a lower speed - which in turn made it difficult for the robot to remain in the linear salient. This was an example of failure to account for model limitations in the physical implementation of a system.
Impulse Response (Simulink)
Physical Implementation
Block Diagram
Impulse Response (Simulink)
Wearable Fixtures for Haptic Actuator
UC Santa Barbara, RE Touch Lab (PI: Dr. Yon Visell, Advisor: Bharat Dandu) - Fall 2021
In continuation of my work on the novel haptic actuator under development at the RE Touch Lab, I had the chance to design and prototype wearable fixtures to mount the actuator to users' index fingers. The main objective of this assembly is to facilitate the use of the device in haptic experiments. The design was guided by average finger dimensions, and the prototypes feature a lead screw that allows height adjustments based on a specific user finger geometry.
Scientific Apparatus for Research
CNSI Innovation Workshop/Microfluidics Lab, Santa Barbara - Winter 2020 to Spring 2023
As a part of the workshop wizards program, I assisted researchers working in the Microfluidics Laboratory and Innovation Workshop by providing training, consultation, and engineering services. One component of this work is designing and fabricating parts based on user specifications to facilitate research. The attached images highlight a few such projects: a custom-designed flexible rhinoceros airway stent, custom 3D printed parts, and a baffle for a specialized silanation chamber.
Fissure-in-ano Mitigation Device
Terry Research Lab, University of Nebraska, Lincoln - Summer 2021
Over the summer of 2021, I Designed, prototyped, and manufactured a therapeutic device for fissure in ano based on prior research at Terry Research Laboratory. Due to the proprietary nature of the project, I am not able to share the details of the project at this time - more information will be posted at a later time.
Rover Project
UC Santa Barbara Robotics Club - Spring 2021
The rover project was carried out with the goal of developing a compact, 3D printed, and remotely operated vehicle that is capable of collecting environmental data using a basic array of sensors. Additionally, the rover was designed to extend its range of operation by dropping communication towers that are carried as a part of its payload. I contributed to the project by working on the chassis design and cooperating with the other members in the development and integration of a torsion-spring suspension.
You can see a finalized SolidWorks design of the rover chassis-motor assembly below.
DC Motor Car - In Progress
Woodland Hills, CA - Spring 2021 to Present
This simple vehicle was designed to be fabricated with minimal equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic. The car features 2 DC motors controlled with a simple H-bridge motor driver and an Arduino Uno. The next stage in the project is to implement a motion control system using an accelerometer.
The following video highlights the car being controlled with an analog joystick.
Electrical and Electronic Circuits
UC Santa Barbara, ME6 (Introduction to Electrical and Electronic Circuits) - Winter 2020
Through our class for Introduction to Electrical and Electronic Circuits (ME6), I was able to assemble a variety of simple but interesting circuits ranging from Wheatstone bridge sensors and Instrumentation amplifier beam scales to square-wave generators. The class emphasized the use of basic circuit elements like capacitors, inductors, Op-Amps, and H-bridges.
The beam scale assembly, shown here as an example, was one of the several circuits completed in the class. The voltage reading was used along with the circuit gain and beam bending theory to estimate weight.
Triple Soccer
UC Santa Barbara, ME18 (Toy Product Design) - Fall 2020
Developed as a case study in product design and development, this is a simple game that was planned, sketched, designed, prototyped, and fabricated over the course of 10 weeks.
For more information regarding the details of the project, please press the button below to see the project's specific webpage. The final project presentation is also shared below.
PPE Container
UC Santa Barbara, ME10 (Graphics, CAD, and Design) - Spring 2020
As the final project for my CAD design, this device was designed for simplicity of fabrication and ease of use. The concept behind the device is to remind the household members to use masks/gloves/etc. prior to leaving the house during the Covid-19 pandemic. The function is very simple, with an ultrasonic sensor to detect hand motion and a small servo motor to unlock the door.
The following video is the final presentation of the project. Feel free to click the button to see my other projects for this class.
Pneumatic Motor
UC Santa Barbara, ME12s (Introduction to Machine Shop) - Fall 2019
This simple pneumatic actuator rotates a crankshaft when pressurized air is provided into the piston assembly. The components were fabricated on a lathe and a mill, finished appropriately, and assembled using fasteners and press fits.
