Low Cost Preliminary Mission Design Tool Set for Missions Anywhere in the Solar System

The use of multi-stage centrifugal compressors carries out a leading role in oil and gas process applications. Green operation and market competitiveness require the use of low-cost reliable compression units with high efficiencies and wide operating range. A methodology is presented for the design optimization of multi-stage centrifugal compressors with prediction of the compressor map and estimation of the uncertainty limits. A one-dimensional (1D) design tool has been developed that automatically generates a multi-stage radial compressor satisfying the target machine requirements based on a few input parameters. The compressor performance map is then assessed using the method proposed by Casey-Robinson [1], and the approach developed by Al-Busaidi-Pilidis [2]. The off-design performance method relies on empirical correlations calibrated on the performance maps of many single-stage centrifugal compressors. An uncertainty quantification study on the predicted performance maps was conducted using Monte Carlo method (MCM) and generalized Polynomial Chaos Expansion (gPCE). Finally, the design procedure has been coupled to an in-house optimizer based on evolutionary algorithms. The complete design procedure has been applied to a multi-stage industrial compressor test case. A multi-objective optimization of a multi-stage industrial compressor has been performed targeting maximum compressor efficiency and flow range. The results of the optimization show the existence of optimum compressor architectures and how the Pareto fronts evolve depending on the number of stages and shafts.

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Haptic Virtual Prototyping of Buttons

The Arbutus Review ◽

10.18357/tar41201312697 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 86-96

Author(s):

Pranav Shrestha

Keyword(s):

Low Cost ◽

Virtual Prototyping ◽

Design Tool ◽

Haptic Device ◽

Haptic Interaction ◽

Push Button ◽

Commercial Success ◽

Physical Product ◽

Tactile Response ◽

Haptic Simulation

The design of any physical product involves prototyping. Building physical prototypes of the products can be expensive and time consuming. An alternate to physical prototyping is haptic virtual prototyping, which simulates the product using a computer and a haptic device. A haptic device is one that produces the forces similar to that of the product, giving the user a realistic feel of the product. Since the feel of a product plays a significant role in its commercial success, the importance of haptic virtual prototyping as a design tool is increasing. This paper discusses the haptic simulation of a push button on a low cost and commercially available haptic device called Novint Falcon. Two different models were created – the first one was a simple push button, and the second was an on/off click button. The parameters of the two models were selected such that they have the most accurate tactile response or feel of the product. The two models successfully simulated the feel of the buttons, and it was found that haptic virtual prototyping of buttons is achievable using a low cost haptic interaction system.

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Simulation of UAV Systems

Acta Polytechnica ◽

10.14311/754 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 45 (4) ◽

Author(s):

P. Kaňovský ◽

L. Smrcek ◽

C. Goodchild

Keyword(s):

Dynamical System ◽

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽

Low Cost ◽

Design Tool ◽

Inertial System ◽

Principal Function ◽

Low Weight ◽

High Bandwidth ◽

Aerial Vehicle ◽

Selection Of

The study described in this paper deals with the issue of a design tool for the autopilot of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and the selection of the airdata and inertial system sensors. This project was processed in cooperation with VTUL a PVO o.z. [1]. The feature that distinguishes the autopilot requirements of a UAV (Figs. 1, 7, 8) from the flight systems of conventional manned aircraft is the paradox of controlling a high bandwidth dynamical system using sensors that are in harmony with the low cost low weight objectives that UAV designs are often expected to achieve. The principal function of the autopilot is flight stability, which establishes the UAV as a stable airborne platform that can operate at a precisely defined height. The main sensor for providing this height information is a barometric altimeter. The solution to the UAV autopilot design was realised with simulations using the facilities of Matlab® and in particular Simulink®[2].

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Helping farmers and regulators manage and assure the cumulative flood safety of agricultural dams: a cost-effective regionalised review/design tool from Australia

Hydrology Research ◽

10.2166/nh.2015.230 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 47 (5) ◽

pp. 996-1013 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

John D. Pisaniello

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Best Practice ◽

Low Cost ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Design Tool ◽

Community Safety ◽

Dam Failure ◽

Future Research ◽

Dam Safety ◽

Safety Assurance

In Australia and other countries, small private dams in agricultural catchments pose both disastrous individual and cumulative dam failure flood threats to downstream communities; threats that can be exacerbated by increased rainfall intensities caused by climate change. This paper addresses the need for a low cost, scientifically acceptable mechanism and policy guidance to help dam owners and governments better understand and manage these risks and assure community safety. To this end an innovative, cost-effective farm dam flood safety review/design tool is developed and tested in Australia, including hydrology-diverse Tasmania, to complement best practice dam safety assurance policy. The tool's development involved generating complex catchment data to represent hydrologically homogenous regions using best practice water engineering methods, to derive simple regionalised dam flood capability prediction relationships of acceptable accuracy. Results demonstrate the tool's successful development and potential transferability to different hydrological regions; how the relationships can be refined by future research and potentially made to account for climate change; and how the tool can be applied within a best practice dam safety assurance policy which includes additional farmer-friendly elements. The findings are potentially transferable to any region to assure communities that cumulative safety threats posed by rural catchment dams are minimised.

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Experimental and Numerical Development of a Dynamic Clearance Seal for Steam Turbine Application

Volume 8: Microturbines, Turbochargers and Small Turbomachines; Steam Turbines ◽

10.1115/gt2016-56995 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Andrew Messenger ◽

Richard Williams ◽

Grant Ingram ◽

Simon Hogg ◽

Stacie Tibos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Steam Turbine ◽

Low Cost ◽

Design Tool ◽

The Body ◽

Test Facility ◽

Experimental Program ◽

Steam Turbines ◽

Experimental Proof ◽

Static Test ◽

Seal Design

This paper presents a series of experiments on the Aerostatic Seal, a dynamic clearance seal for steam turbine application first described at the 2015 ASME Turbo Expo (Paper Number GT2015-43471). This dynamic clearance seal moves with rotor excursions and so has the potential to deliver a smaller clearance than traditional seals. The concept is an extension of the retractable seal design which is widely used in existing steam turbines. The experimental program was carried out in a low cost static test facility using an aerostatic seal design. The seal exhibited a dynamic clearance response and will therefore respond to rotor excursions. 3D CFD was also used to aid the understanding of flow features not captured by the analytical design tool. Adjustments to both the design process and to future seal designs are proposed in the body of the paper. This paper therefore describes an experimental proof of concept for the aerostatic seal and paves the way for future development in rotating facilities.

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A Digital Video System for Observing and Recording Occultations

Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia ◽

10.1017/pasa.2015.31 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 32 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

M. A. (Tony) Barry ◽

Dave Gault ◽

Hristo Pavlov ◽

William Hanna ◽

Alistair McEwan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Solar System ◽

Dead Time ◽

Low Cost ◽

Low Noise ◽

Recording System ◽

Outer Solar System ◽

Main Belt ◽

Recording Equipment ◽

The Past ◽

Solar System Bodies

AbstractStellar occultations by asteroids and outer solar system bodies can offer ground based observers with modest telescopes and camera equipment the opportunity to probe the shape, size, atmosphere, and attendant moons or rings of these distant objects. The essential requirements of the camera and recording equipment are: good quantum efficiency and low noise; minimal dead time between images; good horological faithfulness of the image timestamps; robustness of the recording to unexpected failure; and low cost. We describe an occultation observing and recording system which attempts to fulfil these requirements and compare the system with other reported camera and recorder systems. Five systems have been built, deployed, and tested over the past three years, and we report on three representative occultation observations: one being a 9 ± 1.5 s occultation of the trans-Neptunian object 28978 Ixion (mv =15.2) at 3 seconds per frame; one being a 1.51 ± 0.017 s occultation of Deimos, the 12 km diameter satellite of Mars, at 30 frames per second; and one being a 11.04 ± 0.4 s occultation, recorded at 7.5 frames per second, of the main belt asteroid 361 Havnia, representing a low magnitude drop (Δmv = ~0.4) occultation.

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