Past researchers have encountered challenges in measuring animals’ gait kinematics and energy expenditure under different gravitation conditions. Previous methods used large amounts of material and did not incorporate controls for gait speed.

The team developed a means to study how ambulating on different surfaces (synthetic regolith to mimic space travel) and weights (the gravitational pulls of Mars, Earth, and the moon) affects a rodent's gait. Understanding these conditions will allow for innovations in space exploration.

The system is made up of five subsystems: rodent treadmill, sand redistribution treadmill (SRT), harness, filter, and user interface. During operation, the SRT will deposit a fresh layer of synthetic regolith and evenly distribute it on the rodent treadmill. The rodent, secured using the harness, will ambulate on the rodent treadmill, and regolith will be filtered and recycled continuously. This system makes it possible to test the effect of rodent ambulation while simulating different gravitational pulls through a harness assembly.

Jessica Cox, the world’s first armless pilot, is building a foot-controlled airplane to overcome the accessibility limitations she faces with her current Ercoupe aircraft. She is modifying a Van’s RV-10, a larger and faster airplane that can accommodate her as she flies. Among these modifications is a safer and more convenient method for entering and exiting plane’s fuselage. Team 24006 redesigned the door latching and operating mechanism to enable foot-controlled operation for opening, closing, and locking the door, ensuring its secure closure during flight, and provide a manual opening option in case of power failure.

The door opens and closes via a controlled winch-guided strut system in response to electronic commands from a key fob. To secure the door when closed, a lock system activates two electrically driven linear actuators linked to a rack and pinion assembly, extending them into the plane wall. This design provides an emergency opening option, with the winch featuring a readily accessible release mechanism that retracts the actuators to allow the door to open. Safety features include Arduino-controlled sensors that detect complete door closure, locking status, and any obstructions in the door’s path.

By combining innovative engineering solutions with a commitment to safety and accessibility, this project sets a new standard in inclusive aviation, empowering individuals like Jessica Cox to pursue their passion for flight without limitations.

Camouflage is an effective technology used to conceal personnel and equipment by mimicking the visible colors of the background environment. This project presents a novel imaging spectrometer that exploits spatial-spectral information from visible to near-infrared wavelengths to discriminate between camouflage and the background it was designed to simulate.

The team designed an operational and calibrated imaging spectrometer to identify camouflaged personnel at distances of up to 500 yards. The operator uses a scanning system to sweep a narrow field of view across a scene. The system focuses the scanned scene onto an optical slit that is relayed and spectrally dispersed to a CMOS detector using an equilateral prism and spherical mirror. The system then combines multiple slit images into a three-dimensional hyper-spatial-spectral data cube, which it then processes to display a composite digital image and spectral graph on a graphical user interface (GUI). The system uses a clustering algorithm to discern pixels that deviate from the expected background spectra and visually flags those pixels as camouflage on the GUI, facilitating operator analysis and interaction. This project presents a unique system capable of detecting camouflaged objects and people.

Pressure on the spinal cord during fusion surgeries can lead to loss of spinal cord blood flow. The Spinal Blood Flow Monitor (SBFM) provides efficient and compact monitoring of anterior spinal artery blood flow. Current flow monitoring methods are slow, which can result in post-operative motor deficit or paralysis. Intra-operative monitoring using the SBFM can rapidly alert surgeons to blood flow decreases, improving post-surgical outcomes.

Laser doppler flowmetry (LDF) has shown great promise in measuring relative flow rates in confined spaces using affordably sourced components. The anterior spinal artery runs approximately 7 mm below the posterior spinal cord surface midline in the spinal canal.
Using a near-infrared laser allows light penetration of up to 10 mm and enables the fabrication of a less than 5 mm flexible assembly that can be sterilized with medical-grade ethylene oxide.

The SBFM uses a dual optical fiber probe that sends and receives near-infrared light that is scattered by red blood cells depending on their velocity. A photodiode converts received light into an electrical signal that an Arduino converts to a digital signal to send to a medical computer. There it is processed and displayed to give real-time blood flow measurements at the probe site. Multiple probes can be used in parallel at different levels of the spine to pinpoint the location of spinal pinching for more diagnostic utility.

A somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) is electrical activity measured at the skin surface in response to nerve stimulation. SEPs can indicate problems with signal pathways in the central nervous system such as insults during spinal cord surgeries. However, current SEP monitoring provides delayed feedback, which increases the risk of critical neurological damage during surgery.

The team designed a software algorithm that enhances current SEP monitoring with efficient signal acquisition and analysis. This improves the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and provides faster feedback, enabling early intervention to prevent permanent nerve damage.

The algorithm has four blocks: 1) the data collection block processes raw signals and discards corrupted trials based on amplitude thresholds, 2) the model creation block develops an autoregressive model to accurately predict SEP signals, 3) the filtering block uses this model to filter out noise from relevant SEP signals in the recorded data, and 4) the display block calculates the SNR and displays the filtered data.

The system goal is to provide the surgeon with complete feedback within 20 seconds. The current state-of the-art for SEP monitoring is 3 minutes. The SNR will be improved by >= 20db, and tests will ensure the system has 90% sensitivity and 95% specificity. Ultimately, this will significantly reduce postoperative complications with more accurate, real-time feedback during surgeries.

When a person barricades in a closed location, with or without hostages, law enforcement professionals deploy a crisis negotiation team to de-escalate the situation. The team developed a “throw phone” to establish a secure, private, and reliable means of communication between negotiators and the person of interest.

The project includes two subsystems: the throw phone and the command unit. The team designed the throw phone with six video cameras and a video transmitter to transmit wide field-of-view video, a lavalier microphone to receive and transmit full-duplex audio via an iPhone 8, and a speaker to project audio. The phone’s case is durable to ensure that the individual in crisis won’t cause damage that would destroy the line of communication.

The command unit is designed to receive video using a 2.4 GHz and 5.6 GHz receiver and audio via a cellular receiver and SIM card. The throw phone and command unit are connected without the use of a commercial cellular network. The command unit can store hours of video and audio. A laptop screen displays information through a graphical user interface, which the operator also uses to call the throw phone, switch between video feeds, and record video and audio.

The team has produced a rugged, reliable wireless crisis negotiation solution that is ready for use.

Solar Powered Aquaponics Design Exploration (SPADE) is addressing sustainable human nutrition for long distance space travel by incorporating aquaculture and traditional farming as a replenishable food source. The system will include automated fish feeding and water recycle system for low labor and solar panels as a renewable energy source to power the entire system. The goal of SPADE is to optimize aquaponics as a potential food source for a permanent or temporary base on Mars by testing how fish food and nutrient delivery affect the quality of the system. SPADE is aiming to provide 35% nutrition for 4 astronauts through vertical aquaponics where flow, nutrient levels, and water quality are monitored via Raspberry Pi.

The current strip cleaning method in use by Atkore poses significant economic, environmental, and ethical problems. A series of four, caustic filled tanks worked to remove oil and debris from a continuous feed of steel strip. This project requires investigation and preliminary testing for alternative strip cleaning methods.

This project presents initial research findings for popular strip cleaning alternatives as well as preliminary experimental findings and wide scale implementation plans.

Included in the implementation plan for the alternative method that was found to be “best” for the company, were all the other necessary components and equipment to ensure safe and effective operation. The strip cleaning process is one part of a larger, continuous manufacturing process and compatibility with the rest of the process was analyzed and approved for the recommended method.

Heat transfer test bed to test cooling flowrates for electronics

A mobile photovoltaic system that provides shade to agriculture and grazing animals