To address the need for search and rescue operators to be aware of the air conditions around them, we collaborated with the Central Intelligence Agency to design a wearable monitor that checks surrounding air composition for combustible gases. Existing gas sensors are typically handheld and limit the user’s ability to use both hands during operation. Our monitor was engineered to liberate the user’s hands, allowing them to choose how and where they wear it. 

We were tasked with making a device to help search and rescue teams in situations where buildings have collapsed. We created a head-up display (HUD) that goes into a helmet. The display shows valuable information like the user’s pulse, blood oxygen levels and harmful gases nearby. The helmet has extra components to ensure the user is safe in these tragic scenarios. We made sure all the electronic parts fit inside the helmet’s frame but didn’t compromise the user’s comfort.

Our goal was to reuse wasted water by creating a cleaning filter for spent dialysis water. This is important because water wasted in dialysis is greater than 50 percent. Dialysis mimics the way the kidneys filter blood within the body. A dialysis machine must use ultra-pure water to prevent infection. Our sponsor provided the goals and targets for this project. 

We wanted to develop a chassis for a 1/10th scale self-driving racecar. We developed the chassis (frame) to package and protect various autonomous driving components. The components consisted of a depth sensing camera, a LiDAR (Light Detecting and Ranging) sensor, a computer which controls the car through a motor, a speed controller and a servo motor to steer the car. The frame also needed clearly defined metrics that affect how the car moves. The most important metrics were the center of gravity and moment of inertia.

Tribometers measure several different quantities such as the coefficient of friction, the wear rate, the friction force and the normal force. For space exploration, tribometers must operate in space-like conditions—in a vacuum and in high or low temperatures and pressures. Tribometers exisit that can operate in these conditions, but they typically have long setup times and can only test one sample at a time. Testing more than one sample at a time is important to the aerospace industry because it saves time and therefore reduces costs.