My main work in the field of dynamics includes the following:

Inertial analysis of T-Handle in 0g

The objective of this project was to produce a working dynamic simulation of the tumbling behavior along the longitudinal direction that a T-handle exhibits while in 0g. The following video illustrates this phenomenon.

To analyze this behavior and simulate the motion, I developed equations of motion using conservation of linear momentum and first principles. The result of that analysis is shown below.

DE equations that govern the motion of T-handle

Using these equations, I wrote a MATLAB script to compute the angular positions and velocities. The solution approach involves developing a state-space equation with the above variables and solving it with MATLAB’s built-in ODE solver.

Below is an animation of the T-handle.

Force analysis on PEX crimper

The following project builds on the linkage analysis code mentioned below. The notable differences are the method of solving and what is being solved for. Instead of directly writing vector loop equations and solving them and their derivatives for position and velocity, I used Newton-Rasphson and constraint equations. This allows for an object-oriented approach to solving the linkage to be used. The constraint equations can then be used to solve for forces with the virtual work approach. The video below shows the animation generated by the MATLAB code of the PEX crimper, followed by the mechanical advantage of the PEX crimper. The model assumes an applied force of 20 lbs normal to each handle at the ends.

Modeling linkages is an essential part of designing dynamic systems. To design these mechanical systems successfully, it is essential to be able to calculate the position and velocity of any point on a linkage at any given time to better understand the linkage’s range of motion and speed. The primary linkages include the threebar slider crank, the slider crank, the fourbar, the inverted slider crank, the geared fivebar, and the sixbar linkage. The primary method of analyzing the linkages is to derive a vector loop equation that represents the linkage. Write those vectors in terms of the known lengths and unit vectors, and solve. To find the velocity, simply take the derivative of that equation. Using matrix algebra, calculate the solution of the equation relating the known values to the missing angular and linear velocities. Shown below are the results of the MATLAB code I developed to solve the equations specified above for the given range of motion of the crank in the linkages.

Design of European hinge using graphical synthesis

The European hinge is the type of hinge often found in IKEA cabinets. Its design is unique since you have two cabinet doors, which can be opened at the same time, with their hinges next to each other. This action is possible because the cabinet door is mounted on a fourbar linkage, and it translates into the cabinet slightly. This design is unlike that of a traditional door hinge where the door moves the width of the door in the adjacent direction. To develop this linkage, I used graphical synthesis in SolidWorks to constrain the degrees of motion until I found a viable solution. A report on the procedure I used is shown below.

EuropeanHingeReportDownload

Next, I created a SolidWorks model and constrained it to ensure that there were no collisions and that the links stopped in the correct places. Shown below is the SolidWorks model.

Finally, I laser cut the hinge out of balsa wood and connected the links with rivets. The result is shown below.