Students apply real-world skills in capstone projects presented at Senior Engineering Design Conference
KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Undergraduate students across Western Michigan University’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences are preparing for one of their biggest accomplishments yet: they are getting ready to graduate. As a part of this accomplishment, seniors develop capstone projects to be presented at the Senior Engineering Design Conference every fall and spring semester.
Western students’ capstone projects showcase the skills and innovation each student is capable of, displaying their technical and applicable knowledge to projects that impact the world. Join us for this semester’s Senior Engineering Design presentations on Tuesday, Dec. 2, at Floyd Hall, home to WMU’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Projects will be presented from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Continue reading to learn more about some of the outstanding work these graduating Broncos have been designing, testing and building.
Redesigning Intersection of Kalamazoo Ave and Michigan Ave
10:30 to 10:55 a.m., Room D-115, Floyd Hall
Graduating civil and construction engineering students Franchesca Rivera, Martin Hoeksema and Otto Reick are creating infrastructure plans tied directly to the Kalamazoo community.
“Currently, Kalamazoo Avenue and Michigan Avenue both operate as one-way streets,” says Rivera. “However, under the City of Kalamazoo’s ‘Streets for All’ initiative, these corridors will be converted into two-way streets. This conversion creates challenges where the two streets meet, such as confusing lane configurations, congestion and potential traffic delays.”
The team’s efforts focus on enhancing accessibility and safety for pedestrians, as well as improving efficiency and traffic movement for vehicles.
“My team and I worked hard to ensure our design was not only theoretical but also practical, feasible and aligned with the city’s goals and objectives,” says Rivera.
CalmPaw: Pet-Aware Vacuum System
10 to 10:25 a.m., Room D-204, Floyd Hall
With the intention of easing the anxiety of pets caused by the loud sounds of vacuums, graduating Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering students Alfonso Jimenez and Marcus Nesbary created a pet-aware cleaning system using a BISSELL vacuum.
The project was sponsored by BISSELL Inc. and has a functioning prototype.
“Our team wanted to create a more pet-aware cleaning system that improves animal comfort while also enhancing cleaning efficiency,” says Nesbary. “The project merges embedded systems, sensing technology and user-focused design into a single engineering solution.”
CalmPaw utilizes a wearable collar that transmits its proximity to a receiver integrated into the vacuum. The aim is to ease pet anxiety by lowering noise output and LED cues.
“The most rewarding part of this project was combining multiple engineering disciplines together such as embedded systems, analog design, sensors, PCB development and wireless communication into a cohesive and working product,” says Jimenez. “Putting everything I’ve learned from internships and my major has made it all worth it.”
Improving Indoor Air Quality of Natatoriums
2 to 2:25 p.m., Room D-109, Floyd Hall
Jacob Collins, Shea McCarty, Joel Parker and Alex Morrison, all graduating from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, partnered with sponsor TowerPinkster to explore HVAC systems in swimming facilities. Their design integrates a Paddock Pool Evacuator system with two dehumidification units.
“As the physical design was already in works before we established this project as our senior design project, our goal as students was to fully understand the requirements with the given environment, and why the equipment selected was chosen for this design,” says Parker. “A thorough understanding of HVAC principals, psychrometrics, chemical reactions that create chloromines, thermodynamics and heat transfer were needed to understand why TowerPinkster selected the components they chose.”
The opportunity to work with TowerPinkster introduced new opportunities to the team, offering them the opportunity to make real-world applications for their design.
“TowerPinkster was very inclusive throughout the process as they shared professional insight, offered guidance and supported us from start to finish,” says McCarty. “It was reassuring to know we had a local, experienced firm backing us and helping bridge the gap between academic design and real-world application.”
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