Mechanical Engineering Student

Role. Mechanical design in SolidWorks, plus sensing and control concept (Arduino).

Tools and methods. SolidWorks, FDM 3D printing (PLA/PETG), Arduino, LDR sensors, servo motor

Project overview

The Autonomous Solar Tracking Mechanism explores the use of light sensing and controlled mechanical actuation to orient a solar panel toward a light source.

The design concept uses differential light sensing to identify changes in incident illumination and a motor-driven mechanical arrangement to adjust the panel position.

The mechanism combines sensor feedback, mechanical motion, structural design, and control logic to demonstrate how automated positioning systems can respond to changing environmental conditions.

How it works

Two light-dependent resistors are compared. In the concept and in the interactive demonstration below, a divider fin shades one sensor whenever the panel is not pointing at the light, so the two readings differ. The controller turns the servo toward the brighter side until the difference falls inside a dead-band, then stops.

The panel rotates about a single shaft, and mechanical travel limits stop it at the ends of its range (±70° in the demonstration).

Engineering principles

Interactive 3D demonstration (optional)

A conceptual 3D simulation of the tracking mechanism: drag the sun, watch the two light sensors respond and the servo drive the panel. All values are simulated and illustrative, not measurements from a physical prototype. The viewer downloads only when you press the button.

Launch interactive 3D tracker demo

Verification plan, from the report

• Fit check of printed parts and clearances
• Motion test: sweep the arm without binding
• Sensor calibration under controlled light
• Tracking test against a lamp or the sun, recording angle error
• Power test: current draw and battery runtime
• Durability: repeated cycles, heat and wind outdoors

Next steps

Consolidate the parts into one verified assembly with mates and interference checks, fabricate a prototype, then test against a fixed-panel reference.

Photographs and drawings

What I worked on

• Part-level SolidWorks models: base, panel arm, hinge pin, front and back enclosure faces, LDR housing, PCB, battery and button parts
• Several enclosure revisions, with fillets added to the backlight PCB holder to reduce stress concentration
• STL exports of the panel arm, shell and LED fixtures for printing
• Sensing and control concept: two LDRs compared differentially, with an Arduino commanding a servo
• Planning-level bill of materials and a six-stage verification plan

Real-world applications

• Solar photovoltaic trackingKeeping panels square to the sun to raise energy capture.
• Solar thermal positioningAiming collectors and concentrators.
• Automated lighting systemsPointing lights or reflectors at a target.
• Directional sensingFinding the direction of a light source.
• Mechanical positioning systemsSensor-driven actuators that hold a target angle.
• Renewable-energy applicationsSmall-scale generation where pointing accuracy matters.

Project status and limitations

Concept and planning stage with part-level CAD complete. No physical prototype has been built, so there are no performance results. The 15–25% energy-capture improvement in the planning report is a proposed test target, not a measurement. The 3D demonstration is a conceptual visualization, not a completed physical system.

Role. Sole author. The idea started in 2022; the study applies thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat transfer to a Calgary case.

Tools and methods. Thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, micro-hydro power equation

Project overview

This independent research project investigates the feasibility of collecting snow, melting it into water, and evaluating whether the resulting water flow could contribute to useful energy recovery.

The research considers the energy needed to melt snow, the handling and movement of water, and the conditions under which potential energy-recovery methods could be practical.

The project is particularly relevant to cold-climate regions such as Calgary, where snow management is a recurring seasonal challenge.

Its objective is to evaluate technical feasibility through engineering analysis rather than assume that electricity can be generated efficiently from snow.

How it works

The concept moves snow through five stages: collection from surfaces such as rooftops, melting with a heat source, storage of the meltwater (24–48 hours in the paper’s example), micro-hydro generation as the water falls through a head, and purification for reuse.

The analysis compares the heat needed to melt the snow with the electricity the falling water could return, and asks which heat sources and uses of the water make the idea worthwhile.

Engineering principles

Independent concept study. No prototype was built and no experiments were run. All figures are sample calculations from the paper.

The system, in five stages

Process diagram drawn from the paper’s system design. Conceptual illustration.

Energy balance in the paper’s example

Figures from the paper’s sample calculations. Melting costs far more energy than the turbine returns, so the value is in water recovery, avoided snow hauling and using waste heat, not in net power.

Why melting dominates

At −10 °C, snow needs about 20.9 kJ/kg of sensible heat and 334 kJ/kg of latent heat of fusion: roughly 355 kJ/kg in total. Heat sources compared: solar thermal, building waste heat, ground-source and air-source heat pumps, and electric resistance.

Challenges named in the paper

• High melting energy demand
• Seasonal, variable snowfall
• Road salt, metals and petroleum in roadside snow
• Re-freezing of pipes and tanks
• Capital cost and long payback (10–20 years estimated)

Conclusion and next step

The paper concludes the concept is technically feasible with commercial components and worth pursuing at building or campus scale, with economics that are marginal at small scale. The next step it proposes is a bench-scale prototype of the melting, storage and turbine stages.

Snow melting process: reference footage

Conceptual research visualizations

AI-generated conceptual visualizations of the system described in the paper. They are not photographs of equipment I built or tested.

What I worked on

• Framed the problem and objectives, and reviewed literature on snow melting, micro-hydro, pumped storage and waste heat
• Worked sample calculations for melt energy, hydropower output and water recovery
• Assessed technical, economic and environmental feasibility, with limitations stated
• Proposed future research, starting with a bench-scale prototype

Real-world applications

• Urban snow managementAlternatives to hauling and dumping collected snow.
• Cold-climate infrastructureMunicipal systems sized for seasonal snow loads.
• Meltwater handlingCapturing and routing large volumes of meltwater.
• Water reuseTreating and reusing recovered water.
• Thermal managementUsing building or industrial waste heat to melt snow.
• Integrated municipal systemsCombining snow, water and energy planning.
• Feasibility analysisA template for testing energy-recovery ideas before building anything.

Project status and limitations

Research in progress. This is a conceptual feasibility study: nothing was built or tested. In the paper’s own example the heat needed to melt the snow is far larger than the electricity generated, so the concept only makes sense with low-carbon or waste heat. The figures shown are sample calculations, not measurements.

Role. Independent researcher.

Tools and methods. Thermodynamics, reaction engineering, chemical equilibrium

Project overview

This independent research project examines the thermochemical principles involved in converting solid carbon into carbon monoxide under appropriate reacting conditions.

The work investigates chemical reaction pathways, thermal requirements, process conditions, and the energy considerations involved in carbon conversion.

The research connects thermodynamics, chemical processes, reaction engineering, and industrial energy systems.

The objective is to understand the engineering feasibility and potential applications of carbon-monoxide-producing processes.

How it works

Carbon becomes carbon monoxide when it reacts with an oxidiser. With carbon dioxide the reaction is the Boudouard reaction, C + CO₂ ⇌ 2CO; with steam it is the water-gas reaction, C + H₂O → CO + H₂. Both absorb heat, so the reactor must be supplied with energy and held at a high temperature.

The feasibility question is how much heat the conversion needs, how temperature shifts the balance towards CO, and what that implies for process design.

Engineering principles

Illustrations of typical equipment

AI-generated images of typical thermochemical processing equipment. They are not photographs of my work: this is a feasibility study, not a built reactor.

Real-world applications

• Industrial gasificationTurning solid carbon feedstocks into gas.
• Synthesis-gas productionCO is a building block for fuels and chemicals.
• Chemical manufacturingFeedstock for downstream chemical processes.
• Metallurgical processesCO acts as a reducing gas in ironmaking.
• Carbon-processing technologiesConverting carbon-rich materials into usable gas.
• Thermochemical energy systemsStoring and moving energy in chemical form.

Project status and limitations

Research in progress. This is a feasibility study: no reactor has been built, and no experimental CO production, conversion efficiency or measured result is reported. The images are AI-generated conceptual illustrations of typical equipment, not photographs of my work.

Academic conceptual design. Not commissioned industry work.

Role. Course design project, University of Calgary.

Tools and methods. Thermodynamic cycle analysis, EES (preliminary inputs defined)

Project overview

This ENME 485 academic design project investigates an integrated energy system intended to supply electrical power and refrigeration to a deep underground mine.

The proposed system combines a natural-gas Brayton-cycle power plant with a multistage R134a vapor-compression refrigeration system and a chilled-water cooling network.

The power cycle is intended to supply electricity for mine operations, while the refrigeration system removes heat from the underground environment.

The design examines thermodynamic cycle integration, compressor and turbine performance, refrigerant behaviour, heat transfer, fluid circulation, and heat rejection.

The project demonstrates how power generation and refrigeration systems can be evaluated together when designing energy infrastructure for demanding industrial environments.

How it works

In the power cycle in the schematic below, ambient air is compressed in two stages with an intercooler between them, preheated in a regenerator by the turbine exhaust, burned with natural gas in the combustor, and expanded through the gas turbine, which drives a generator. The electrical bus supplies the mine load and the refrigeration plant’s own compressors.

In the refrigeration cycle, R134a evaporates and absorbs heat from the chilled-water loop that serves the underground air coolers, passes a low-pressure compressor, an interstage cooler and a high-pressure compressor, condenses against cooling water, and returns through an expansion valve. A cooling tower rejects the collected heat to the atmosphere.

Engineering principles

The figures below are from my ENME 485 proposal. The 70 MW and 40 MW values are design requirements, not verified operating results.

Integrated system schematic

Brayton cycle (T–s)

Refrigeration cycle (T–s)

Preliminary system inputs

Table 2 from the proposal: starting inputs for the first EES model, identified as preliminary. The figure is cropped at the right edge.

Literature reference

Reference photographs

Photographs of typical equipment, shown for context. They are not equipment I built or specified.

Design scope

• Natural-gas Brayton-cycle power generation with two-stage compression, intercooling and regeneration
• Two-stage R134a vapour-compression refrigeration
• Chilled-water cooling with cooling-tower heat rejection

Real-world applications

• Deep underground minesPowering and cooling workings where rock temperature is high.
• Remote industrial facilitiesSelf-contained power with on-site refrigeration.
• Integrated power-and-cooling infrastructureEvaluating generation and cooling as one system.
• Large industrial refrigerationMultistage compression for large cooling loads.
• Industrial gas-turbine applicationsBrayton cycles with regeneration for efficiency.
• Thermal management in hot workplacesRemoving heat to keep conditions workable.
• Energy-system design and optimizationComparing configurations before committing to hardware.

Project status and limitations

Academic conceptual design in progress. The ≥70 MW net electrical power and 40 MW underground refrigeration figures are design requirements, not achieved results. No EES solution, cycle efficiency or plant performance is published. The schematic and diagrams below are from my ENME 485 proposal.

Tools and methods. CAD, engineering drawings, tolerancing

Project overview

This mechanical design project focuses on the development of structural components and mounting arrangements for an autonomous underwater vehicle.

The frame provides the supporting structure required to position and integrate mechanical components, including propulsion-related mounting interfaces and equipment housings.

The design considers component accessibility, mechanical stability, structural arrangement, and assembly requirements within the underwater vehicle system.

How it works

The frame fixes where each component sits and how it is attached. Thrusters and the watertight vessel bolt to defined interfaces, so thrust and the weight of the equipment travel through the frame instead of through the housings.

Components are arranged so the mass is distributed evenly, parts can be reached for servicing, and electrical, software and controls teams have clear space for their equipment.

Engineering principles

Photographs and drawings

What I worked on

• Structural layout and modular component mounting concepts
• Thruster positioning and mounting; watertight vessel packaging
• Mechanical integration, serviceability and weight distribution
• Dimensioned drawings with tolerances, fits and interfaces
• Coordination with electrical, software and controls teams

Real-world applications

• Marine roboticsFrames for autonomous and remotely operated vehicles.
• Underwater inspection vehiclesStable platforms for cameras and sensors.
• Oceanographic research platformsCarrying instruments to fixed depths and locations.
• Industrial underwater inspectionTanks, pipelines and hull surveys.
• Modular robotic structuresReconfigurable frames with standard mounting interfaces.

Project status and limitations

Completed frame design for the University of Calgary AUV Team’s vehicle, developed with the electrical, software and controls subteams. The images are CAD screenshots of the frame: structural layout, thruster mounting, vessel packaging and component interfaces.

Tools and methods. SolidWorks, drill press, hand tools

Project overview

The Detachable Arbor Press is a mechanical design project focused on developing a compact, lightweight, and reconfigurable pressing mechanism. Unlike a conventional permanently assembled press, the design allows its major components to be detached, transported, stored, and reassembled for use.

The press uses a hand-operated rack-and-pinion mechanism to convert rotational input from a lever into controlled linear motion of the ram, enabling pressing and positioning operations.

A central objective of the detachable design is to reduce the space required for storage, minimize unnecessary structural weight, and improve practicality and reliability through a simplified, maintainable assembly. These intended advantages make the concept relevant to workshops, maintenance facilities, educational laboratories, and locations where equipment space is limited.

The project demonstrates mechanical design, CAD modelling, assembly planning, component interfaces, and engineering drawing principles.

How it works

The operator turns a lever fixed to a pinion. The pinion’s teeth mesh with a toothed rack on the ram, so rotation becomes straight-line travel. The frame guides the ram, and it pushes on a workpiece supported by the worktable.

A lever arm much longer than the pinion’s radius multiplies hand force at the ram, at the cost of more handle travel. The same geometry gives fine control over how far the ram moves.

Engineering principles

Photographs and drawings

Design advantages

Project scope

• Three SolidWorks design revisions of a modular, detachable design
• Dimensioned drawings and a tolerance-stack analysis
• A bill of materials listing 15 parts in AISI 1020 steel
• Fit and alignment considerations, with fabrication and assembly using a drill press and hand tools

Real-world applications

• Small mechanical workshopsLight pressing and positioning where a floor-standing press will not fit.
• Bearing and bushing installationSeating a bearing or bushing in a housing with straight, controlled force.
• Press-fitting componentsPressing pins, sleeves and gears onto shafts.
• Maintenance operationsA portable press brought to the machine being repaired.
• Engineering teaching laboratoriesA press whose mechanism students can take apart and study.
• Portable workstationsEquipment that packs away between jobs.
• Space-constrained manufacturingStations where floor area is limited.

These are potential applications of the mechanism, not claims that this specific design has been industrially certified.

Project status and limitations

Completed team design project for ENME 337. The advantages above are design intentions. No weight, storage-space, load-capacity or reliability comparison has been measured or published.

Role. Designer and builder of the prototype.

Tools and methods. CAD, electronics, soldering

Project overview

The Automated Indoor Garden was developed as a first-year engineering project to explore how mechanical design, lighting, environmental control, and automated systems can support plant growth indoors.

The concept is particularly relevant to cities such as Calgary, where long, cold winters and limited outdoor growing conditions make year-round gardening challenging.

Instead of depending entirely on natural sunlight and outdoor weather, an indoor garden can use artificial grow lights to provide suitable light for plant development. With appropriate control systems, water delivery, lighting schedules, and environmental conditions can be managed within a compact indoor structure.

The project explores the integration of structural design, electrical components, lighting, and automation to create a more controlled growing environment.

It demonstrates how engineering can help make small-scale food production and indoor plant cultivation more accessible in locations with harsh climates.

How it works

The prototype is a frame carrying grow lights above a soil bed. The photographs and videos show soil probes and wiring, tubing, purple grow lighting, a circuit board being soldered, and a sensor demonstration, and the CAD views show the frame over its base box.

In a system like this, a controller can switch the lights on a schedule and use sensor readings to manage water and other conditions. What the prototype itself demonstrates is what the footage shows.

Engineering principles

Videos

Build photos and CAD views

Real-world applications

• Indoor home gardeningGrowing herbs and vegetables inside.
• Calgary and other cold-climate communitiesGrowing through long winters.
• Year-round cultivationProduction independent of the outdoor season.
• Urban agricultureFood production in dense urban settings.
• Educational growing systemsHands-on plant, light and control experiments.
• Compact residential spacesSmall footprints for apartments.
• Controlled-environment agricultureManaging light and conditions for crops.
• Small-scale automated horticultureAutomating routine plant-care tasks.

Project status and limitations

Completed first-year design project, documented in build photographs, video and CAD views. No crop yield, growth rate, energy use or fully automated operation is claimed or reported.

Role. Designer.

Tools and methods. CAD, STL export, 3D printing

Project overview

The Automated Mini Delivery System was developed as a first-year engineering project exploring how mechanical components and motion-control concepts can be used in small automated transportation systems.

The project focuses on the design and integration of mechanical elements such as gears, rack-and-pinion mechanisms, guides, structural supports, and relevant drive components.

The engineering concept demonstrates how controlled mechanical motion can be used to position or transport items within a defined environment.

The broader idea is applicable to automated delivery and material-handling systems in environments such as warehouses, laboratories, offices, hospitals, and other facilities where repetitive transportation tasks may be automated.

The project introduced fundamental concepts in mechanical design, component integration, CAD modelling, motion transmission, and prototyping.

How it works

In the CAD design, a pinion meshes with a toothed rack on a vertical slab. Turning the pinion raises or lowers the slab, and two flat arms at the base of the slab carry the item. I-shaped guide pieces keep the slab aligned as it moves, and the chassis holds the drive components and positions the lift assembly.

The gallery shows the mechanism in CAD, the exported STL parts, and the layout prepared for 3D printing.

Engineering principles

CAD views, STL renders and print layout

Screen views are phone photographs of CAD software on a monitor. Part images are rendered from the exported STL files.

What I worked on

• Rack-and-pinion lift mechanism modelled in CAD: pinion, toothed rack and slab with two flat arms
• I-shaped guide pieces and chassis geometry
• Exported STL parts and a 3D-print layout for prototyping

Real-world applications

• Automated delivery systemsMoving small items to set locations.
• Warehouse material handlingLifting and carrying totes or parcels.
• Indoor logisticsRepetitive transport between fixed points.
• Hospital supply transportationDelivering supplies to wards and stores.
• Laboratory sample movementCarrying samples between stations.
• Small-scale industrial automationPositioning parts along a production line.
• Repetitive transportation tasksAny routine, fixed-route movement of light loads.

Project status and limitations

Completed first-year design project. CAD views, STL renders and a 3D-print layout document the mechanism. No electronics, sensors, navigation or delivery tests are documented, so no autonomous operation, obstacle avoidance or delivery performance is claimed.