ME Senior Design Capstone Project: Genset Performance Testing Cart
Location
CSU 255
Start Date
20-4-2015 2:10 PM
End Date
20-4-2015 3:10 PM
Student's Major
Mechanical and Civil Engineering
Student's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Mentor's Name
Sungwon Kim
Mentor's Email Address
sungwon.kim@mnsu.edu
Mentor's Department
Mechanical and Civil Engineering
Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Description
For our capstone mechanical engineer senior design project we worked with MTU Onsite Energy to improve efficiency in genset performance testing. MTU has three locations in Mankato and they specialize in manufacturing gensets, which is the coupling of an engine and a generator. Application engineers at MTU perform a variety of tests to verify that the gensets are operating within specifications. The testing data is acquired from a variety of electronic devices such as thermocouples, pressure transducers, flowmeters and all of it is compiled using the software program LabVIEW. Currently for each test MTU engineers have to collect all the testing equipment throughout the facility and then begin to set up tests on the chosen genset. The majority of the tests included 100 or more individual wire connections and can take a couple hours to set up before data can be collected. Our four member design team took account of all given constraints and objectives and came up with a two cart design as well as other electrical components that can improve testing efficiency. Then the team modeled the cart using 3D software and created manufacturing drawings so the components could be manufactured by Pro Fab, and all the other parts where selected and ordered. Next the team constructed the carts and wired all the electrical connections. Finally, the carts will be implemented to see if more improvements can be made as well as complete time studies so that measureable time and cost savings can be accounted for.
ME Senior Design Capstone Project: Genset Performance Testing Cart
CSU 255
For our capstone mechanical engineer senior design project we worked with MTU Onsite Energy to improve efficiency in genset performance testing. MTU has three locations in Mankato and they specialize in manufacturing gensets, which is the coupling of an engine and a generator. Application engineers at MTU perform a variety of tests to verify that the gensets are operating within specifications. The testing data is acquired from a variety of electronic devices such as thermocouples, pressure transducers, flowmeters and all of it is compiled using the software program LabVIEW. Currently for each test MTU engineers have to collect all the testing equipment throughout the facility and then begin to set up tests on the chosen genset. The majority of the tests included 100 or more individual wire connections and can take a couple hours to set up before data can be collected. Our four member design team took account of all given constraints and objectives and came up with a two cart design as well as other electrical components that can improve testing efficiency. Then the team modeled the cart using 3D software and created manufacturing drawings so the components could be manufactured by Pro Fab, and all the other parts where selected and ordered. Next the team constructed the carts and wired all the electrical connections. Finally, the carts will be implemented to see if more improvements can be made as well as complete time studies so that measureable time and cost savings can be accounted for.
Recommended Citation
Francis, Bill; Aviv Chetrit; Josh Kuehn; and Leighton Gjelhaug. "ME Senior Design Capstone Project: Genset Performance Testing Cart." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 20, 2015.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2015/oral_session_12/2
