Bob Rinefierd - Mechanical Engineer

My thesis is a proprietary research project sponsored by Parker Hannifin to analyze the effects of several process variables on the tensile and fatigue strength of diffusion bonded samples. Diffusion bonding is a relatively new manufacturing process which fuses materials using only heat and pressure with no welding, adhesives, or significant deformaion. For some materials, the strength of the diffusion bonded samples approaches the strength of the parent material. Several tensile and fatigue tests have been performed and results are encouraging. Work will be completed in July.

The goal of this project is to create a miniature tensile tester for use in a scanning electron microscope (SEM) chamber. The load frame must meet several criteria including vacuum compliance, size constraints, and cost limitations. The load frame allows dynamic observation of welds, bond lines, and metallic defects during tensile testing at the microscopic level. Unlike most tensile testers, this module will fit inside the microscope chamber. A computer interface allows load and position control for the system using LabView software. This project was modeled and analyzed using Pro Engineer.

Simulating the behavior of my car on a rough road, I used Matlab's Simulink package to model my system. Building in functions to consider a changing damping coefficient (shocks are stiffer on rebound than in compression), I made some simplifying assumptions. Roll, pitch, and yaw were neglected and the tires were assumed to be rigid. The spring and shock rates were estimated from published information and the results were fairly accurate.

As part of the Engineering Vibrations course, my project team designed a second spring and mass system to mount to the end of the existing spring and mass system used in a previous lab experiment. Vibration absorbers are useful designs that can protect an expensive system that operates near resonance, directing vibration into a cheaper, more expendible component. Due to the length of the beam, the cantilever approximation wasn't as accurate for the second beam, but after some minor tuning, the vibration absorber worked correctly, almost completely removing vibration from the first mass. Shown is a Pro E model of the design.

The goal of this project was to design a speed reduction system from a motor to drive a crankshaft. Tension of the belt, stress and fatigue life of shafts, in addtion to the sizing of the sheaves were among the major calculations. Cost was also a factor, as the project was to be the cheapest possible design while serving its purpose.

As a project for Fluids I Lab, my team constructed a test fixture to evaluate the drag coefficient in a small scale wind tunnel, using 1/18 scale model cars. The test fixture was designed to hold the car above the boundary layer with a ramp to develop a smooth laminar flow. Also constructed was a custom base for mounting our test fixture Three cars were tested: A Porsche 911 convertible (with and without roof), 2000 Chevrolet Corvette, and a 1984 Ferarri Testarosa. A scale was constructed to measure drag force and drag coefficients were determined from three trials. The equipment is still available for use in RIT's wind tunnel lab.