Previous ASME Award Winner
Recent Departmental Runner Up Awards
Capstone Design Projects
Adjustable Head Mount for Augmented Reality Facial Motion Tracking System
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 15
Augmented Reality is used for face-to-face conversations with another digitally projected person in a shared virtual space. A crucial element for this experience is the ability to digitize the users’ facial expressions and body motions authentically. The Augmented Reality Head Mount serves as a self-contained, wearable system for facial and body tracking. It consists of two cameras, IMUs, a battery and a StereoPi attached to a Microsoft HoloLens 2 main frame using 3D-printed component mounts.
Smart HVAC System
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 2
Team Members
Madeleine Joseph
William Evernden
Tyler Ellison
Colton Mullican
There is a need to actively measure, model and predict mass (air with particulates) flow in large buildings such as Atkinson Hall at the University of California, San Diego. Such a system can aid in controlling flow that produces desired environmental conditions and/or reduces the transport of unwanted harmful particles such as viruses.
Tracheostomy Support System
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 7
Nearly 85,000 Americans receive a tracheostomy annually. Amongst them, about 12.5% develop skin deteriorations and pain due to prolonged contact with ventilation tubing. Our project addresses this issue through the use of an inflatable silicone support that can automatically adjust based on force sensor readings. This device aims to tackle an unaddressed global problem in the hospital with a novel design idea centered around biocompatible materials, control automation, and air flow mechanics.
Sole Survivors
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 12
This project focused on creating a solution to reduce the amount of stingray stings for a user, which could be achieved by either a footwear item that is puncture proof or a deterrent that scares away stingrays before they are able to be of harm. The team created a footwear item named “Sole Survivors” that is puncture resistant in key areas on the sole, top, and back of a user's foot to protect the user from the stingray’s venom.
Ultrasound Transducer Guide for Dental Imaging
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 16
The ultrasound transducer guidance system was designed to aid the process of scanning the oral cavity while collecting necessary position data for 3D image reconstruction. The manually operated device has a patient position their head on a chin rest while the operator manipulates the transducer. An axial encoder and a linear encoder gather the position data of the transducer tip during the ultrasound scanning process which will be used by our sponsor to reconstruct 3D images of the oral cavity.
Mice Vapor Control
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 21
The Hnasko Lab aims to investigate the effects of opioid addiction using mice. This project sought to design an airtight and automated study chamber that allows mice to voluntarily intake drug vapor and enables the researchers to send behavioral cues using LEDs, speakers, and food pellets.
MRI Safe Hybrid-Fluid Actuator
2020-2021 - Winter
Team: 9
The design and manufacture of a hybrid air-water actuator system, which provides mechanical power transmission over a distance and enables usage of electric motors in robot-assisted intraoperative CT & MRI surgeries.
Formula SAE Traction Control
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 12
UC San Diego’s Formula SAE team, Triton Racing, has been improving the power output of their engine year after year, making it difficult for student drivers to control the car. A traction control system was implemented to assist amateur drivers in maximizing the car’s performance by electronically controlling the engine output to ensure tire wheel grip remains in the optimum range throughout various driving scenarios.
Articulet: An Articulating Endotracheal Tube Stylet
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 36
A lightweight, single-use stylet that gives users real time control of an endotracheal tube, ARTICULET can bend up to 90 degrees on its distal end to reduce intubation time while minimizing complications.
Solar Turbines: Ancillary Quick Disconnect
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 16
A vacuum test platform was designed and manufactured in order to test both installation/removal times of clamps and bolts as well as ensure the connection solution maintained a vacuum of up to 4 in Hg. Undermount toggle clamps in combination with a neoprene foam gasket is a proposed solution to replace the current use of bolts and Sikaflex.
Improving Automated COVID-19 Testing Workflows: Pipette Challenge
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 32
The goal of this project was to optimize COVID-19 testing workflows, allowing for more daily testing and faster results. The problem was boiled down to test tube orientation. The status quo at the EXCITE Lab was for technicians to manually align the test tubes' barcodes in a rack before placing them into a machine that scans the tubes. This wasted about two hours daily. Our solution is a detachable piece that forces the correct alignment of each tube, removing the manual alignment step entirely.
Hamud Universal Upright Vehicle Rack
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 29
The purpose of this project was to develop a universal vehicle equipment rack that could accommodate various types of sporting equipment. The problem statement was to design and manufacture a modular rack that was: versatile with many types of equipment, durable to withstand a maximum load of 430 lbs, and cost-efficient to be less than current competitors.
Precision Hydrogel Injector
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 10
We focus on a biomedical device that creates a suction mechanism to grip onto a rat intestine model and is built with an insertion tunnel that allows a hydrogel syringe to inject the fluid at the intestinal site. The 3D printed device successfully gripped the rat intestine underwater, through which 1 μL water with red dye was injected. Red staining of the intestinal wall indicated successful delivery into the submucosal layer.
Dermal Cooling Vest
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 33
Active outdoor workers exposed to hot and humid environments face the threat of developing heat related illnesses. The dermal cooling system uses thermoelectric cooling in the form of battery powered Peltier devices to cool circulating fluid throughout a network of tubes surrounding the user’s torso. The system is completely portable and can deliver more than 200W of heat removal from the user.
MRI Compatible Hydraulic Arm
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 21
Sponsored by UC San Diego’s Advanced Robotics and Controls Lab, this project focused on the development of a MRI compatible hydraulic arm, which serves as a base for future research and development. The project’s motivation was to develop a system that can robotically perform needle biopsies to enable physicians to diagnose and operate on medical conditions without requiring line-of-sight to the anatomy.
Cell Growth Bioreactor for Tissue Regeneration
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 19
Peter Chen, PhD. a stem cell researcher from the Biosciences Institute has engaged student engineers to construct a prototype bioreactor chamber that has the ability to stimulate a target cell population with: magnetic stimulation, electrical stimulation, static compression, and exposure to laminar shear stress. The completed bioreactor test chamber provides researchers with the tools to evaluate the effects of electromechanical stimulation on stem cells in a reproducible manner.
FSAE Composite Anti-Intrusion Plate
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 11
Team Members
Norman Chen-Liaw
Dante Khandelwal
Amy Liang
Saketh Madamala
Efran Martinez
The design, manufacturing, and testing of a composite anti-intrusion plate for the front impact structure of a Formula SAE vehicle.
Thermal Switch
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 24
The thermal switch project, sponsored by Professor Carlos F. Coimbra and Gregory Specht, studied the effectiveness of a gas-filled expansion switch design. Specifically, the focus of the project was to prove or disprove the possibility of a gas powered thermal switch to be used on rovers in Lunar and Martian missions.
NIWC Drag on Inline String of Spheres
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 26
An empirical characterization of the drag coefficient of on a line of multiple spheres as number and spacing between spheres changed. This was primarily done for two in-line spherical floats at various separation distances between floats; tests were also preformed on a single float to set a baseline, and 2-5 floats with zero separation distance.
Wearable Countermeasure Device
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 30
Team Members
Nicholas Ashforth
Nathan Burdick
Keva Chin
Nathan George
Mario Miguel
This project seeks to create a working prototype for a flexible and mobile Lower Body Negative Pressure (LBNP) device for use in extended microgravity environments, the purpose of which is to partially simulate the effects of gravity to mitigate the deleterious effects of prolonged microgravity exposure on human physiology. Such systems have already been flown on orbit, but all have been stationary. A mobile and flexible system is necessary to maintain the astronauts' operational schedules.
Hair Snag Project
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 28
Researchers studying animals in the wild often use “hair snags”, devices placed in a habitat to collect hair samples when animals interact with them, to collect and study animal DNA. More often than not, current hair snag designs capture hair from more than one individual animal, which makes it harder for researchers to inspect the DNA samples. To correct this issue, we have created a prototype for a single-sampling hair snag that successfully collects and isolates a sample from a single animal.
DIII-D DiMES Port Rod Ablation System
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 17
Team Members
Michael Hanson
Jason Escalera
Hadith Taheri
Daniel Zubovic
Caitlin Villareal
We present the design of ATJ graphite rods developed for ablation experiments under high heat flux (up to 50 MW/m2) in the lower divertor of the DIII-D tokamak.
UCSD MED - Autoinjector for Ultrasound Guided Nerve Blocks
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 31
This project focused on the development of a medical device to streamline and improve ultrasound guided nerve blocks. These procedures currently require two medical personnel, an anesthesiologist and an assistant. Ideally, this procedure would be performed by the anesthesiologist alone as the forces felt throughout the injection provide valuable sensory information about the state of the operation. Thus revealing the need for an Auto-Injector device enabling this desired one-person operation.
Endoscope Torque Applicator
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 35
The objective is to design, build, test, and document a device that can reduce the stress on a doctor’s body when performing an endoscopy by applying mechanical advantage while exerting the necessary forces to perform a colonoscopy. The device must be a cheap, disposable tool or a durable, easy to clean tool that can replace the current hand and towel combination. Finally, the device must not alter the overall procedure as that will impose a training cost on the hospital.
UCSD Medical - Blood Pressure Cuff
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 9
Team Members
Austin Chung
Albert Hernandez
Jeffrey Onuma
Jordan Wong
Three mechanical shields have been designed to prevent external forces from affecting blood pressure readings during surgery.
Bicycle Theft Detection
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 22
Our device, which can be attached nicely underneath a saddle like a saddlebag, is capable of sensing movement of a bike and sending an alert to the user via text messages. To achieve long operation period, the device is equipped with four solar panels which are capable of not only running the system but charging the battery whenever possible.
Brain Organoid Advanced Research Development in Space (BOARDS) Launch Acceleration Simulation Tool
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 14
The pursuit of space as the next frontier of human exploration raises the question of how space microgravity affects the human brain. To study these effects, brain samples will be sent to the International Space Station aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. However, the high G-forces of a rocket launch may damage the samples. As a result, an acceleration centrifuge simulator was designed to simulate a rocket launch profile to account for these high G-forces.
Optimization of COVID-19 Testing Workflow
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 6
This project provided two solutions for automating the decapping of COVID-19 sample test tubes in UC San Diego's EXCITE Lab. The goal of the project was to increase overall testing throughput by decreasing decapping time and circumventing limitations on certain equipment.
ATA Smart Animatronic Figure Breakaway Joint
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 1
The primary goal of the project is to refine the functionality of an animatronic figure that ATA will use to enhance their analytical design, robotics, and controls capabilities. The project involves: (1) designing and implementing a breakaway mechanism at the upper arm segment of the animatronic figure, (2) creating a dynamic model that predicts arm breakaway under different motion profiles, and (3) developing a control strategy that safely operates the arm in the event of a breakaway.
Solar Turbines Alignment Mechanism
2020-2021 - Spring
Team: 5
Team Members
Nigel Coseip
Alberto Guardado
Vicente Lopez-Espinosa
Daniel Lopez Villa
Nicholas Pereyda
The purpose of this project was to investigate a new mounting foot design for a Solar Turbines Titan-250 turbine. Our solution would need to incorporate an actuation method which can produce precise movement, and a locking mechanism capable of arresting the feet under all conditions. The team identified two actuation solutions: a set of jacking bolts, and a worm gear screw jack. Both designs have their own advantages such as cost, maintenance, and ease of operation.
