ENGINEERING PRESENTER ABSTRACTS
ENGINEERING PRESENTER ABSTRACTS
Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy
Tilt Measurement of Buildings Utilizing an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
After an earthquake or other natural disaster, determining building stability and allowing entry into buildings is a key aspect of economic recovery. These assessments need to ensure safety, but economic recovery can be hindered if buildings are assessed incorrectly as unstable. An important factor of assessing building stability is determining building tilt. However, no single device functions exactly as a structural engineer would need for it to accurately assess the degree to which a building is leaning. The device described in this paper uses an absolute orientation sensor, ultrasonic sensor, and a camera, all connected to a Raspberry Pi computer, to determine the tilt of a building quickly and accurately.
Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy
Avoid Gardening Disasters: Testing the Performance of Drip Emitters
One of the most common problems that residential gardeners face is the clogging of drip irrigation emitters. Emitter testers are currently unavailable in the consumer marketplace. A prototype device built to test emitter flow using an Arduino Uno R3, Relay, 385 Miniature Micro DC Water Pump, eTape Liquid Level Sensor, an LCD screen, and a button is described. Preliminary results suggest that the device will be able to rate a drip irrigation emitter's throughput and a path towards validation is described.
Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy
Development of a Prosthetic Liner with Active Cooling to Enhance Amputee Comfort
Over 2 million people in the United States live with a prosthetic limb and for prosthetic users, overheating in the prosthetic interface can lead to discomfort, poor fit and ultimately site blistering. A prosthetic liner with embedded active cooling has been developed that will provide up to 1.7°C cooling. The liner is constructed of silicone sheets and tubing, and preliminary testing confirms that 1.7°C cooling is achievable. A path is presented toward a functional cooling prototype and a validation procedure to verify cooling meets the needs of amputees.
Archer School For Girls
Helping the Kelplings
PART 1: Testing Different Twine Patterns for Kelp Yield
Inspired by a week working at the Seagrove Kelp farm, my objective was to determine the most efficient twine-wrapping pattern for growing algae to help improve kelp farmers’ yields. I used standard kelp-farming methods of inoculating and wrapping twine around a pvc pipe. The algae lived with 8 hours of light, constant filtration, 70 degree room temperature, and daily rotation of pipes. I then wrapped the algae-inoculated twine around pvc pipes in four different patterns: standard spiral, double-helix, double-helix and vertical, and double-helix criss-cross. Daily maintenance simulated the technique of a “kelp elevator” to maximize light and nutrients for three weeks. I measured the change in weight before and after algae growth in grams.The pattern which proved most effective for real-world scenarios was the double helix with a 50% improvement from the standard pattern.
PART 2: Automated Twine Wrapper to Improve Kelp Farmer's Yields
Kelp farming is an up-and-coming industry centered around sustainable food production and nutritional health. Currently the process of growing young kelps is labor intensive and doesn’t maximize space on the line. The process involves splicing, wrapping, and releasing the grow lines wrapped in kelp-inoculated twine. For all kelp farmers, but for small kelp farmers specifically, the excess labor limits how much acreage they can grow without sufficient staff. Based on my previous research, I determined a double helix pattern would increase kelp yield by 50%. I used an open differential to create an automated twine wrapper which wraps the inoculated twine in a double-helix shape around the grow line. With my automated twine-wrapper, I hope to improve the yield of kelp farmers globally by removing the laborious process of twine-wrapping and splicing as well as creating the largest surface area of viable growing twine on a grow line.
Archer School For Girls
The Possibility for Hydro-Electric Energy in Domestic Sewage Systems
Objectives
My objective was to determine the feasibility of implanting hydroelectric turbines in domestic sewage drains. To do this, I 3D printed a turbine, tested it with polyester fiber water and clean water, and recorded the energy produced.
Materials and Methods
My experiment included a 3D printer, polyester fibers, 1 ½ in. PVC Schedule 40 pipe, lego motor, liter beaker, lego generator, a funnel, and pipe sealant. All of the trials used the same amount of polyester fibers. I differed the height of my pipe stand (33°, 46°, & 71°) using clamps. The different heights demonstrated the force necessary for energy production. I designed my turbine housing so that the pipe components could fit in it. When setting up I secured the pipe and turbine in a stable manner so the motor could attach to the axle unobstructed. I used the pipe sealant to seal the pipe and turbine from water leakage once it was positioned.
Results
The results were based on the highest amount of energy the generator recorded. I noticed the group with no polyester fibers produced the most energy overall, the angle got higher, and the water with polyester fibers also produced energy.
Conclusion/Discussions
In conclusion, the trials with no polyester fibers and the highest angle worked the best proving my hypothesis because they produced the most energy. I learned that domestic turbines could not operate in any piping that has matter running through it and they would do the best in a pipe with a severe angle.
Archer School For Girls
Wake Up!: Sequence Alarm System Combining Cognitive Exercise and Physical Movement
Waking up at a suitable time to begin your day is one of the most imperative parts of one’s daily routine, yet it is also one of the easiest to mess up. When that portion of your routine is forsaken, it makes it difficult to keep up with the rest of your day. Not only will you be late to your job or school, but it also has detrimental effects on the user’s long-term and overall health and sleeping patterns.
To combat this, an alarm that combines cognitive physical activity has been devised to ensure the user wakes up when they need to. The primary alarm will be a conventional one: a phone alarm. Once the alarm on the phone is deactivated, it will trigger a pattern on push buttons set up around the user’s room. The user is then forced to stand up (physical activity) and disarm the secondary alarm by pressing the push buttons in the pattern presented (cognitive activity). If the user does not disarm the second alarm or incorrectly completes the pattern, they will have to repeat it.
Archer School For Girls
MisophoniAway: Developing and Testing a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN)-driven acute treatment for Misophonia and Hyperacusis
Although misophonia and hyperacusis are common disorders, there has been very little research done to treat them. The goal of my project was to develop a hearing aid that utilizes active noise cancellation (ANC) to reduce triggers and symptoms in individuals with Misophonia. I planned to do this by creating an artificial intelligence system to identify and cancel triggering sounds using bluetooth earbud-driven ANC.
To test this, I built and trained a convolutional neural network (CNN) to identify chewing sounds, which commonly trigger misophonia. I trained the CNN by uploading a variety of urban sounds and chewing sounds to the neural network and ran the sounds through it until the CNN accuracy rate had plateaued. Once the sounds were identified, I exported the trained CNN and coded the framework to turn on the active noise cancellation feature of the wireless earbuds to cancel out the triggering sounds.
My project was successful because I was able to create and train the neural network to identify chewing sounds. When applied, my AI system would theoretically be able to accomplish the intended goal of reducing misophonia symptoms using AI-driven active noise cancellation.
Archer School For Girls
Hydra: An Automatic Sprinkler System With Infrared Ember-Tracking and Companion Mobile Application for Remote Management
We are developing an automatic sprinkler system that uses infrared cameras to detect and extinguish approaching embers and any resulting hot spots. In the summer of 2020, 2 million acres were burned by wildfires, threatening the lives and homes of thousands. Our school was forced to evacuate due to wildfires twice while the homes of our friends and families were threatened. While searching for ways to help, we found that more than 90% of homes lost to wildfires were ignited by embers, some of which traveled miles ahead of the main fire. Our sensor-targeted system, named Hydra, will conserve water for firefighters by only turning on when necessary, aiming directly at embers and hotspots, and utilizing water from alternative sources like a tank or pool when available. Our companion mobile app will allow homeowners to see their system status (allowing them peace of mind when they must evacuate), view official fire updates, and forward real-time sensor information to the fire department to help them locate hot spots. This year, we have been working on Hydra in five student-led teams. Our app team is completing the app’s interface and connecting it to Hydra, our programming motion team has improved the ember-tracking code, our engineering team has leak-proofed the plumbing, our CAD team has designed an outer shell and base for Hydra, and our communications team has worked on filing provisional patent documents.
Archer School For Girls
Detecting and Identifying Cell Debris and Foreign Material on Complex Medical Instruments through Neural Networks and Image Comparison
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria cause 25% of Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI), with mortality rates as high as 50%. To remedy this widespread problem, building on my previous work, I constructed a program that detects and identifies cellular/material debris and physical damage on medical instruments after sterilization. The device collects precise images of medical instrument using microscope cameras. Through neural networks and encoders, my code can distinguish cellular debris from physical damage and highlight areas needed to clean. This program improves current technologies by locating contaminated areas on a medical instrument and accurately verifying that a tool has been successfully sterilized. Ultimately this reduces the cost of re-sterilization, prolonging the device’s longevity and, most importantly, reducing the number of patients dying from bacterial infections.
Archer School For Girls
Incentive Based Motivation: Task App for Children in Elementary School
My project provides an opportunity to teach kids responsibility in a fun and easy way. By rewarding children in a modern "gamified" fashion that correlates with online gaming stimulus, children can proactively engage with previously unwanted tasks and, in doing so, gain more independence. I created linked parent and child accounts within my application, allowing parents to assign homework, chores, or miscellaneous tasks for either one child or multiple children to complete. If users finish tasks within a timely manner, the app awards points that children can, in turn, spend on various rewards. The eventual goal is that the reward system entices young children to independently continue their less desirable tasks as they age. This independent development will help teach responsibility, time management, multi-step directions and provide achievable goals that reinforce self-satisfaction and esteem.
Archer School For Girls
Repairing Survivor Aftercare: Self-administered Intimate Sample Collection Device to Eliminate the Retraumatization of Sexual Assault Survivors
Sexual assault is a leading cause of trauma around the world. Currently, about 80% of sexual assaults go unreported, meaning scarcely only 20% of people formally report their assault due to the invasive nature of what that entails; police reports, questions, physical examinations, tests, and intimate evidence collecting. My product aims to reduce the hesitation and retraumatization of survivors surrounding bodily evidence collection/examinations. This is accomplished by allowing them to administer their own intimate evidence collection, using my carefully constructed sampling device. The device is legally sound complying with all chain of custody laws so that the evidence collected is valid in court as well. This allows survivors to go through the prosecution process and trial if they choose. This device and process provide survivors with a sense of agency when they have just been stripped of that during a traumatizing event.
Archer School For Girls
Self-Sustainable Reptile Enclosure
Many reptile owners are not properly equipped with the time and knowledge to create the most natural environment for their reptiles. The enclosure aims to parallel the most natural reptile environment and ensure that regardless of human error the reptile will be comfortable and shed on a regular schedule. The reptile enclosure can track and maintain temperatures and humidity by itself. The enclosure can monitor one heating system, one light (which can also have heat), and one electronic misting machine. All of these devices will be plugged into AC plugs and eventually connected to the Arduino. The user can set specific parameters for how hot and how humid they want their enclosure to be. Furthermore, with the RTC on the Arduino, the light can run on a real-time schedule to emulate day and night for the reptile. Heat and humidity sensors throughout the enclosure are tracked by an Arduino MKR1000 and controlled using channel relays that shut the power on and off. For this project I will implement methods such as connecting sensors to an Arduino, building a case to hold the AC plugs which I will connect to the relays, learning C++ to import the data from the sensors and proving the Arduino can connect to an MQTT server for future app development.
Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy
An Integrated Machine Learning Camera for Wildlife Detection
Increasing urbanization in California is resulting in increasing isolation and segmentation of wildlife habitats. To understand the problem, biologists need to be able to count the appearance of animals in habitats in order to know their routine and will reduce intrudes caused by increasing population. This project proposes a machine learning camera for wildlife detection as an enhanced method of wildlife counting. A waterproofed prototype that will constantly record videos in the wild is described along with a process for validation of the new system in direct comparison with typical current methods. In addition, wildlife counts acquired as control data are analyzed and show that after doing the comparison of six weeks data between habitat on the island and the corridor, the island has the most deer appearance, and they are moving constantly from one region to another. Knowing the land animal(deer)’s traits, this project can now decrease the intrude toward known habitats.
Granada Hills Charter High School
An Alternative for the Tenaculum Instrument in Women’s Medicine
My objective was to engineer an alternative to the tenaculum instrument, forceps that pierce cervical tissue to create traction. I developed a 14 cm long suction tip that adapts to a suction unit. The body is a 1 cm diameter plastic tube with a curved tip. In 15 trials, I conducted 3 experiments testing different variables. The first 10 trials of testing focused on efficacy; five trials had adjusted amounts of lubricant and the other five manipulated the newtons applied. The last trials tested durability to ensure the tool can sustain suction for 5 minutes. My testing was conducted on an engineered cervix model with a diameter of 26mm and is made of 00-30 EcoFlex silicone with a water-based lubricant on the surface. A 28mm diameter PVC tube mimics the vaginal wall and all trials were conducted by pulling the cervix model through the opening of the PVC tube. My results concluded that my final prototype could pull 6.5 newtons of force, extend the cervix to 4.5cm, and maintain constant suction to 5 minutes. These results determine that my invention could withstand the procedure of IUD placement without a tenaculum by its ability to pull enough force and hold traction for enough time. However, this would still need testing and further development to ensure that the tool is body-safe. In conclusion, it's possible to replace long-standing medical instruments that cause pain and discomfort.
Archer School For Girls
Bluetooth Motion Sensor & Built-in Microphone Dog Collar and Companion Toy for Dog Separation Anxiety
Dogs with separation-related behavior such as separation anxiety often exhibit unwanted behavior when they are left alone. For instance, property destruction, excessive whining, barking, escape attempts, etc. which can cause distress for both the dog and its owner. This project presents an improved method to help dogs suffering from separation anxiety. By using Arduino Adafruit Feather Sense circuit boards, an accelerometer and microphone can be implemented into an ordinary dog collar to measure the dog’s walking speed as well as barking and whining duration. Barking for an extended amount of time or increased pacing will trigger a companion toy which will produce different sounds and vibrations to attract the dog's attention. From the various functions of the toy (i.e. animal noises, flashing lights, movement, voice recordings, etc.), the toy will act as a distraction and keep the dog company until its owner returns.