ME-410: Mechanical product design and development

Summary

Study and explore design principles of the different mechatronic components and systems. We will cover in-depth especially on meso-scale actuators, sensors and body construction methods.

Official source

https://edu.epfl.ch/coursebook/en/mechanical-product-design-and-development-ME-410

Moodle Page

http://go.epfl.ch/ME-410

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Related concepts (38)

Related MOOCs (14)

Flexure

A flexure is a flexible element (or combination of elements) engineered to be compliant in specific degrees of freedom. Flexures are a design feature used by design engineers (usually mechanical engineers) for providing adjustment or compliance in a design. Most compound flexure designs are composed of 3 fundamental types of flexure: Pin flexure- a thin bar or cylinder of material, constrains 3 degrees of freedom when geometry matches a notch cutout. Blade flexure- thin sheet of material, constrains 3 degrees of freedom.

3D printing

3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer control, with material being added together (such as plastics, liquids or powder grains being fused), typically layer by layer. In the 1980s, 3D printing techniques were considered suitable only for the production of functional or aesthetic prototypes, and a more appropriate term for it at the time was rapid prototyping.

Compliant mechanism

In mechanical engineering, a compliant mechanism is a flexible mechanism that achieves force and motion transmission through elastic body deformation. It gains some or all of its motion from the relative flexibility of its members rather than from rigid-body joints alone. These may be monolithic (single-piece) or jointless structures. Some common devices that use compliant mechanisms are backpack latches and paper clips. One of the oldest examples of using compliant structures is the bow and arrow.

Sensor

A sensor is a device that produces an output signal for the purpose of sensing a physical phenomenon. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a device, module, machine, or subsystem that detects events or changes in its environment and sends the information to other electronics, frequently a computer processor. Sensors are used in everyday objects such as touch-sensitive elevator buttons (tactile sensor) and lamps which dim or brighten by touching the base, and in innumerable applications of which most people are never aware.

Pneumatic actuator

A pneumatic control valve actuator converts energy (typically in the form of compressed air) into mechanical motion. The motion can be rotary or linear, depending on the type of actuator. A pneumatic actuator mainly consists of a piston or a diaphragm which develops the motive power. It keeps the air in the upper portion of the cylinder, allowing air pressure to force the diaphragm or piston to move the valve stem or rotate the valve control element. Valves require little pressure to operate and usually double or triple the input force.