Design Engineering Case Studies
Round Trip
In anticipation of the centennial of the Silver Dart’s first flight, a group of volunteers have gathered in Welland, Ont., near Niagara Falls to build a replica of the plane to fly at the ceremonies in Baddeck, N.S., on Feb. 23, 2009. After tracking down a copy of the original drawings of the Silver Dart, ...
Inject a Little Green Design
Sprig Toys CEO Craig Storey (left) and JER Envirotech CEO Edward Trueman with the Sprig Adventure Series of eco-friendly toys. An emerging Canadian environmental technology company has introduced a suite of wood-plastic thermoplastic biocomposite compounds with the potential to outperform and “out-green” both wood and plastic alone. Founded in 1997, JER Envirotech collaborated with the ...
Space-Age Bonding
Based on his doctoral research into polymer MEMS processing, Simon Fraser University PhD graduate Dan Sameoto has developed a new method of creating microscopic structures from plastic. The first application of this new process is the development of a “dry adhesive” that mimics the stickiness of gecko feet. Sameoto’s dry adhesive was created using a ...
Twisting and Bending
When designing a robotic work cell, integrators and end users must take into account many variables and components to ensure its success. Cabling, however, is one element that is often overlooked during the design phase. Without proper planning, cable wear can be one of the first things to cause downtime on a robotic work cell. ...
Best Foot Forward
For every would be engineer who grew up watching The Six Million Dollar Man, the idea of electro-mechanical implants or prosthetics that recreate the function of missing limbs remained a daydream. For one of them, however, it became a profession. In 1998, Stéphane Bédard, at the time a mechanical engineering graduate student at Laval University, ...
Adding Value by Design
GE’s Z-Box stand-alone water filtration unit was enhanced by Toronto-based industrial engineer, Miles Keller, to be more efficient and user-centric as well as easier to assemble and ship. In 1980, Andrew Benedek, a professor of water chemistry in the chemical engineering department at McMaster University in Hamilton, set out to realize his dream. He wanted ...
Throwing it into Reverse
Boucherville, Que.-based Campagna Motors (formerly known as Cirbin Motors) specializes in the development and manufacturing of three-wheeled roadster-type vehicles to provide the automotive market with fun, style and performance. After several years of development and market feedback, co-founders André Morissette and David Neault look to “conquer the world by being creative, innovative, motivated and making ...
DE Salary Survey ’08
Chris Cassidy, the mechanical design leader for Windsor, Ont.-based Valiant Machine & Tool Inc., started out as a toolmaker with Valiant 20 years ago. Since then, he has steadily moved his way up through the international automation company’s ranks to become its lead machine designer. Today, he and his crew design conveyor systems, testing equipment ...
Head On
University of British Columbia researchers have developed a proof-of-concept sports helmet that can reduce direct impact to the neck by up to 56 percent, according to preliminary tests. Such an invention, they say, would be a boon to the approximately 1,000 people who suffer spinal cord injuries in Canada, annually. “Existing helmets are not designed ...
Devil’s in the Details
Since the advent of rapid prototyping roughly 20 years ago, companies like ZCorp, Stratasys and 3D Systems have striven to bring the cost of their equipment down to a level affordable to a wide market. Today, machines once priced in the hundreds of thousands are approaching the sub-$10,000 range. Still, spending thousands on a machine ...
The Virtue of Not Stacking Up
As in many automation challenges, seemingly simple tasks turn out to be the most difficult to solve efficiently. In such cases, it’s all too easy to create overly complex, expensive and inflexible solutions that get a job done but ultimately reduce productivity and negatively impact the bottom line. Take, for example, de-stacking variable-sized sheets of ...
Fearless design
When Drew Pautler leads his team of professional downhill mountain bike racers this summer at the Canada-hosted International World Cup, he’ll be pushing his abilities and his equipment to their limits. Hurtling down the slopes of Mont-Sainte-Anne at speeds up to 80 kph requires quick reflexes to pick a line through the winding, densely forested ...
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