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Cluster 2: Engineering Design & Control of Kinetic Sculptures

Week 4: Last Week!

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Professor Raymond de Callafon intructs students on the design and use of a gyroscope

A visit to the Laboratory

In order to better illustrate the experiences that an incoming Freshman encounter, a laboratory within MAE was explored. Guided by Prof. de Callafon, the students of Cluster 2 were introduced, and when safe, allowed to experiment with the equipment used by UCSD students in the laboratory. The "field trip" follows a series of college presentations, and represents a continuation in the effort to acclimate students to college life and academics by Cluster 2.

Gyroscope Experiments

Guided by Prof. de Callafon, tests were made on the laboratory's gyroscope, such as adjusting the rpm, axes or rotation, and orientation

Helicopter Axis Control

As the aviation adage goes, "everyone is a student in a helicopter". Here, 2 students attempt to program and control the interdependent axes in which a helicopter uneasily sits in order to achieve flight

"Miniature" Wind Tunnel

To accurately test object aerodynamics and wind flow, a small wind tunnel is used. The wind tunnel is one of many devices within the laboratory that is used to simulate and calculate expected flight characteristics

Image of the Solar Turbines production line, which was toured by the Cluster 2 class. Image credit Solar Turbines.

*Due to the inclusion of proprietary material, pictures were not allowed for a large portion of the trip.

A trip to Solar Turbines

Like all clusters during the last week of COSMOS, Cluster 2 took a field trip to an important location relevant to it's field of study. In the case of our cluster, a visit to Solar Turbines was made, a company that manufactures turbine engines for the oil and gas industry. The name, while initially appearing a misnomer, was a reference to the solar, sunny climate of San Diego, from which the original name, Solar Aircraft Company, was derived. Now a subsidiary of construction giant Caterpillar, Solar Turbines is the largest manufacturer of gas turbines in the world.

Students took a tour of the Solar Turbines plant, exploring the manufacturing floor, test cells, control systems assembly line, and other critical elements of the factory. Students found the trip extremely informative, and questions were posed on how to secure a job at the company following the tour.

Complimentary Merch

To serve as a memento for the field trip, each student was given a has a sticker sheet at the end of the presentation, taking home not just valuable information but apparel as well.

Conference Room

One of the few places where photography was permitted, introductory presentations, post-tour debriefings, and Q&A panel of managers were all hosted in the conference room.

Tour Group ID Cards

ID cards that designate each Cluster 2 student as a tour group member, which also provided important contact and emergency information on the reverse side.

Final Sculpture Project

Representing the culmination of 4 weeks of education on engineering design, manufacturing, CAD techniques, and CAM systems, the final sculpture leverages every engineering discipline taught to Cluster 2 students. Tasked with building a fully autonomous, reliable, and cyclical marble run featuring human input and automatic mechanisms, each team within Cluster 2 has risen the occasion and constructed a sculpture that represents coordination and engineering expertise. In addition to creating an impressive sculpture, every group documented their progress and will present their process, challenges, code, and mathematical analysis to a group of parents on Friday.