Design and Testing of a Controllable Hinge for a Flapping-wing Micro Air Vehicle

Flying drones have been a well-established field of engineering for many years now. With the wave of bio-inspired design came the idea of flapping wing micro air vehicles (FWMAVs). These drones use flapping wings instead of fixed or rotary wings to generate their lift, giving them the potential for agile movement and application in confined...

Stiffener layout design for thermoelastic spacecraft structures using multi-physics topology optimization

The performance requirements of optical instruments in space telescopes become increasingly demanding. Designing thermoelastic structures is key to account for thermal distortions to achieve the required performance, and modal analysis is required to ensure their survival. This thesis investigates how topology optimization can improve upon...

Density and level-set based topology optimization for structural vibration problems: A comparative study

High performance machines rely on fast moving parts and generally avoid resonance for improved accuracy. To improve the dynamic properties of these high performance machines, their parts are optimized via a lengthy iterative process. Topology optimization for vibrations problems could shorten this time consuming design process and provide a more...

Actuator optimization for flatness correction of deformed surfaces

By 2030, the global semiconductor industry is projected to hit the valuation of becoming a trillion dollar industry. Advancements in electronic devices have gave rise to tougher requirements thereby requiring the manufacturers to push the limits of consistency. This has lead to a need to enhance the accuracy of the chip manufacturing process....

Topology optimization for suppression of vibrations in suspended structures and achieving dynamic global flatness

In a high-precision system that performs measurements or tooling on a workpiece, alignment of the tool and workpiece is of prime importance. To prevent misalignment, which leads to a loss in accuracy and precision, unwanted vibrations in structures must be attenuated. Topology Optimization (TO) is evolving as a mature design tool that provides...

Thermal process modelling of lattice structures during selective laser melting process

As a type of powder-bed-based Additive Manufacturing (AM), Selective Laser Melting (SLM) is widely used for building metallic lattice structures. However, during SLM process, geometrical imperfections and defects, such as strut over-sizing or under-sizing, typically exist in components due to overheating, which strongly influence their...