MSOE takes first and third place in the world at ASME Student Design Competition
The Adiabatic Flame and The Wet Bandits, two teams of students from MSOE’s chapter of the American Society for Mechanical Engineering, won first and third place, respectively, in ASME’s annual Student Design Competition.
"The ASME Student Design Competition has been a great venue for our students to show case their ingenuity and design talent at the international level for many years," said Dr. Mohammad Mahinfalah, team advisor. "Other schools are always eager to see what design solution we are presenting in these competitions."
Students were challenged to design a scaled, proof-of-concept prototype for water energy conversion. Their prototypes had to propel their vehicles by converting the potential energy of water that was manually loaded into their device.
“Every year ASME tasks undergraduate students with a new engineering challenge, and this year’s is called H2Go Revisited,” said Collin Ostrowski, a senior mechanical engineering student on the first-place Adiabatic Flame team. “The challenge is to build a robot that delivers as much water as possible from one corner to the other of the field in 15 minutes. However, the vehicle can only source energy for propulsion from water that is poured into it in the starting zone.”
The Adiabatic Flame took first place in the 2022 ASME Student Design Competition
Adiabatic Flame’s solution to the ASME Student Design Competition challenge was named W.A.D.E. (weight-activated delivery effort).
The Adiabatic Flame, from left: Jorge Gutierrez, Collin Ostrowski, Morgan Patch, Chrissy Roebke, Katie Wolfgramm.
The Wet Bandits' vehicle and design took third place in the ASME Student Design Competition.
Above, Adiabatic Flame’s solution to the ASME Student Design Competition challenge was named W.A.D.E. (weight-activated delivery effort). W.A.D.E. uses the force from a large tank of water to propel it forward. The red acrylic water tank was custom made to maximize the water W.A.D.E. could carry in its limited space. Custom gearboxes were also made to structurally support the water tank as well as multiply the distance moved the exact amount needed. W.A.D.E. also has a custom control system so that a driver could actuate brakes as well as steer W.A.D.E. Each teammate pushed for the maximum performance of the vehicle through developing aspects of the design based on their interests within the scope of engineering, and analyzed for feasibility through skills developed over the course of the MSOE education. The team and W.A.D.E. placed first overall in the worldwide competition. In the team's best run, W.A.D.E. scored over 300,000 points and moved nearly 80 gallons of water.
The Wet Bandits’ third-place design consisted of a “drop tank” where the water tank carrying the item for delivery drops, and a gear and pulley system propels the vehicle forward. The water-powered vehicle was built without the use of any control systems. However, several subsystems worked together to help the vehicle make its trip across the competition field: an aluminum frame, gear and pulley system, drain system, wheels, steering system, and more. The frame was designed to be lightweight but rigid to handle the application. The gears and pulleys transfer the potential energy to the drive wheel. The center wheel is an omni wheel that allows for universal movement. The steering is set at the start, so the motion of the vehicle is predicted. Two ball valves are used to drain the vehicle at the end of the trip. They scored 80,000 points over the course of eight runs in 15 minutes. Each delivery took just under two minutes to complete (loading, travel, draining and scoring.)
Teams were awarded points based on the amount of water that is transported to the other size in milliliters. Score multipliers are awarded on a per-run basis, for activities such as reaching a bonus zone or returning the vehicle to the starting zone under its own power. The final score is the sum of all runs’ points. The completed vehicle design is allowed to occupy a maximum volume of 50cm by 50cm by 50cm.
“We bonded over the rigorous courses of the junior mechanical engineering curriculum and decided to take on this capstone project together,” said Ostrowski. “We utilized many MSOE resources over the course of the project, including the material sciences lab, machine shop, CNC, 3D printers, laser cutter and of course many of the faculty and staff at MSOE, who we wish to show our appreciation.”
In addition to Ostrowski, the Adiabatic Flame includes mechanical engineering majors Jorge Gutierrez, Morgan Patch, Chrissy Roebke and Katie Wolfgramm. The third-place Wet Bandits team was comprised of Simo Huhtanen, Changhyuk (Brian) Kim, Trevor Ponath, Paul Rizza and Harlan Schwanebeck.
Their entries for this competition also served as their senior design project. Both teams were advised by Dr. Mohammad Mahinfalah, professor and mechanical engineering program director.