2018 Parks College Senior Design Symposium Booklet

2018

SENIOR DESIGN SYMPOSIUM APRIL 26, 2018 | 4 - 6 P.M. | BUSCH STUDENT CENTER

ABOUT PARKS

Saint Louis University is a Catholic, Jesuit institution that values academic excellence, life-changing research, compassionate health care, and a strong commitment to faith and service. Founded in 1818, the University fosters the intellectual and character development of nearly 13,000 students on two campuses in St. Louis and Madrid, Spain. Building on a legacy of nearly 200 years, Saint Louis University continues to move forward with an unwavering commitment to a higher purpose, a greater good.

SLU’s Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology has a worldwide reputation for research-inspired, project-based education in engineering and aviation. Parks has a rich history of creating wellrounded leaders in aviation and engineering fields.

For more information, visit www.parks.slu.edu Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology Parks College, Saint Louis University @ParksCollegeSLU 1

SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

FROM THE DEAN The Senior Design Symposium at Saint Louis University’s Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology is the culmination of our undergraduate students’ hard work and dedication to their academic excellence.

Within the pages of this book, you will see student abstracts describing the content and scope of their projects. These abstracts demonstrate how our students are able to execute a project from a concept through the design phase, and ultimately transform that into a poster presentation.

These senior design courses and projects provide our students with experience working on real-world projects – with design constraints, budgets, reviews and deadlines. Students are even encouraged to work in interdisciplinary teams to expose them to the type of work they will encounter in the industry.

I want to thank all our faculty, staff and industry advisors who have collaborated with students to bring these projects to fruition. Our students strive to solve everyday problems and provide sustainable solutions for the future. I am extremely proud to show you the groundbreaking research happening at Saint Louis University’s Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology.

Best Regards,

Michelle B. Sabick, Ph.D. Professor and Dean

2017-2018 Senior Design Projects

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CONTENTS

5 | AEROSPACE ENGINEERING PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISOR:

Ray LeBeau, Ph.D., P.E.

7 | AVIATION SCIENCE PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISOR:

Saul Robinson, Ph.D.

8 | BIOMEDICAL, COMPUTER & ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISORS:

Gary Bledsoe, Ph.D. Roobik Gharabagi, Ph.D.

23 | CIVIL ENGINEERING PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISOR:

Ronaldo Luna, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE

25 | MECHANICAL ENGINEERING PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISOR:

Theodosios Alexander, Sc.D.

29 | PHYSICS PROJECTS

FACULTY ADVISOR:

Irma Kuljanishvili, Ph.D.

ADVISORS

Theodosios Alexander, Sc.D.

Gary Bledsoe, Ph.D.

Professor of Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering

Chair and Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Ray LeBeau, Ph.D., P.E.

Ronaldo Luna, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE

Associate Professor of Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering

Chair and Professor of Civil Engineering

Roobik Gharabagi, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Computer & Electrical Engineering

Saul Robinson, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Aviation Science

Our faculty advisors are an important and vital part of the senior design program.

We take great pride in recognizing their outstanding contributions and excellence as instructors, advisors and mentors.

Irma Kuljanishvili, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Physics

BRINGING THE BILLIKEN TO NEW HEIGHTS TEAM MEMBERS: Ghadah Alhasan William Cusic Kevin Farmer Daniel Reczek Spencer Trefilek

The Bringing The Billiken to New Heights Project is a rocket made to celebrate Saint Louis University’s Bicentennial. The rocket, named BillikenOne, will fly as a demonstration flight at the Spaceport America Cup. An all-aluminum airframe topped with a fiberglass nosecone, BillikenOne will fly on a 37000 Ns O class solid rocket motor to an apogee of 50,000 ft. The motor itself will be mixed and assembled by SLU students. As the rocket flies, two cameras will be recording high quality video as the rocket beats SLU’s previous record apogee of just under 20,000 ft.

DESIGN OF A HIGH-SPEED, STEALTH, SENSOR DEPLOYMENT UAV TEAM MEMBERS: Caroline Belter Ryan Clabots Gerald Dumar

John Engle David Ferragut Joseph O’Neill

Our senior design team this year will be competing in a competition known as Speedfest that will take place at Stillwater, Oklahoma hosted by Oklahoma State University. Our team has designed a high speed, low radar cross section aircraft that will be tasked with completing a range of 10 kilometers in flight, avoiding 34.7 GHz ka band radar, and deploying two bullet shaped payloads that each weigh approximately four tenths of a pound. The propulsion system utilizes a Kingtech k-45 turbine that produces approximately 10.4 pounds of static thrust.

The aircraft has a span of 4.9 feet and a fuselage length of 4.5 feet.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

SAE MICRO CLASS BIPLANE TEAM MEMBERS: Yago Ezcurra Tony Lopez Kimberly Perez Daniel Silva Li Zheng

The purpose of this mission is to design and build a micro unmanned aerial system (UAS) capable of being packed into a 12.125x3.625x13.875-inch box. This UAS must also be capable of being assembled quickly and carry a payload. The Army’s Raven is a UAS that is kept in a portable box and used for reconnaissance of an area before troops head in. Though this UAS has the same concept, the container for the Raven is larger and the wingspan is nearly 2.5 times the wingspan of the team’s design.

The design takes a well know biplane concept and shrinks it down to a quickly assembled payload carrying UAS. Because this UAV has limited package space, a biplane allows greater lift with a smaller wingspan, allowing more weight to be carried. With this concept, the SAE micro biplane design team hopes to pull an aircraft concept from the past into the future.

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FILLING THE PILOT SHORTAGE: GENDER DIFFERENCES IN CAREER CHOICE TEAM MEMBERS: Will Aksamit Will Gygi Brady Labuda Mary Lisante

Jon Martin Abby Miller Dan Tropp

According to Boeing’s 2017 Pilot Outlook, within the next 20 years 117,000 pilots will be needed in North America alone. Without the necessary pilots to fulfill increasing demand and replace those retiring, the aviation industry is facing significant challenges. In an effort to interest more people in professional piloting, a survey instrument was developed to identify the factors most relevant to interesting people in a career as a pilot. The survey also captures demographic information, such as sex and ethnicity. All of this data could be used to interest more women and minorities in the aviation industry as a whole.

THE IMPACT AN EDUCATION CAN HAVE TEAM MEMBERS: Creed Chambers Thomas Holmes Greg Farnsworth

Jared Liebman Jim Moseley Jason Walchle

Education and training is an essential component in the development of a productive and safe environment in aviation. The goal is to help answer the question, “does the type of education influence a pilot’s managerial style.” This project is attempting to measure how formal training in ethics, team/crew resource management, and safety management systems impacts the cockpit environment. Utilizing the Blake-Mouton Managerial Grid survey instrument, surveys were distributed to pilots across a range of experience levels and compared with these factors. Additional questions were asked to determine if type of aviation training received has an effect on managerial style. This research provides valuable feedback on the importance of ethical education for pilots and how the public benefits from it.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

A MULTIWELL CO-CULTURE PLATFORM TO EVALUATE HYDROGEL-CELL INTERACTIONS IN VITRO FOR HYDROGEL-BASED DELIVERY APPLICATIONS TEAM MEMBERS: Alexandra Blanco (BME)

In vitro studies of hydrogel-based delivery systems are of great importance before moving onto in vivo testing. Current in vitro models to evaluate cellscaffold interactions are mostly limited to the use of permeable supports or inserts with microporous membranes, which were originally designed for studying anchorage-dependent and anchorage-independent cell lines. However, these have been shown to have a non-homogeneous and uneven distribution of pores, which results in great variance among experiments. Thus, the use of permeable membrane inserts for specifically evaluating a hydrogel-based delivery system in vitro is not ideal. Considering these limitations, we designed a co-culture multiwell platform consisting of an array of individual baskets with tiny holes along its walls. We propose that this device will overcome several limitations of the current methods and will thus be ideal for studying interactions between a hydrogel-based delivery system and a monolayer culture of cells.

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CHARACTERIZATION OF A CRYOGEL-HYDROGEL COMPOSITE FOR BURN WOUND APPLICATIONS TEAM MEMBERS: Cailin Eckhart (BME) Sreejith Panicker (BME) Meghana Pendyala (BME) Eileen Robertson (BME)

The skin is one of the largest organs of the human body. Causing damage to it, especially in the manner of a burn wound, can lead to a number of problems: lack of protection from bacteria, moisture retention, and even thermoregulation depending on the severity of the wound. Our scaffold is a gelatin cryogel with alginate hydrogel infused with Manuka honey. It is intended to treat third degree burns. Gelatin is being used for its mechanical properties to strengthen the cryogel and provides a structure that cells can proliferate into. The alginate hydrogels that will be imbedded into the cryogel provide a slow release of the antimicrobial properties of Manuka honey. This dressing will be a low-cost alternative to current treatments of 3rd degree burns.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

CRYOGEL SCAFFOLDS EMBEDDED WITH HOLLOW MICRO-CYLINDERS FOR PROMOTION OF SKELETAL MUSCLE CELL GROWTH TEAM MEMBERS: Jonathan Fuchs (BME) Matt Magee (BME) Sydney Neal (BME) Ravi Tyagi (BME)

This project focuses on creating a cryogel that will provide a scaffold for muscular tissue differentiation within it. A 3-D printed structure will be modeled via CREO software and used as the mold for the cryogel formation.

The cryogel’s physical characteristics, such as its biocompatibility, porosity, biodegradability, and durability will then allow for its application in tissue regeneration, specifically in muscular tissue. Satellite stem cells will be cultured and seeded within the formed cryogel, thus giving it an acceptable environment to proliferate into myotubes. Cells will be monitored by a combination of staining and DAPI imaging to ensure proper cell infiltration and longevity.

Mechanical testing of the proliferated muscular tissue will ultimately be carried out and compared with properties of normal human muscular tissue. This final product will then be implanted in the body to aid in the regeneration of skeletal muscle tissues.

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DESIGN & CHARACTERIZATION OF BIOCOMPATIBLE CHEMICAL CROSSLINKERS FOR TUNING THE DEGRADATION IN PEG HYDROGELS TEAM MEMBER: Stephanie Kroger (BME)

Biodegradable hydrogels are becoming increasingly important in the fields of tissue engineering and drug delivery, yet, degradable hydrogels of controlled degradation and fully biocompatible degradation products are not readily available. The goal of this project was to develop a library of hydrolytically degradable and biocompatible crosslinkers to tune polyethylene glycol (PEG) hydrogel degradation from hours to months. Synthesis of the crosslinkers was done by an esterification reaction, and each crosslinker was characterized for percent modification from 1H NMR data analysis. The resulting hydrogels were characterized for rate of degradation - determined by changes in swelling ratio, gelation time - determined by the inverted tube method, stiffness - determined by rheology, and biocompatibility - determined via dose-response experiments with fibroblast cells. Five crosslinkers were synthesized with their degradation times varying from ~20 hours to 6 days. To control hydrogel degradation via the chemical structure of the crosslinkers, we followed two strategies: steric hindrance of the ester moiety and electron-donating or withdrawing groups near the ester moiety. Overall, steric hindrance and electron-donating groups decreased degradation time and electron-withdrawing groups increased it.

For all crosslinkers, it was found that swelling ratio increased as degradation time increased. Swelling ratios varied across the crosslinkers, with the highest ratio reaching 65. Storage moduli for the crosslinkers ranged from 1 to 5 kPa. The crosslinkers with higher storage moduli were found to degrade more slowly than those with a lower storage modulus. All crosslinkers were found biocompatible.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

EASEHAND TEAM MEMBERS: Marissa Carletta (BME) Chad Chapnick (EE) Joao Lopes (BME) Margaret Mitrovich (BME)

We propose a glove-like device to facilitate and restore hand movement for individuals suffering from paralysis or a loss of dexterity. The design will implement artificial tendons through the use of electronic actuators to impart a force on flexible and resilient filaments to perform extension or flexion of the hand. This will be realized through a combination of hardware and software.

Our goal is to provide a voice interface to the device in order to maintain the device functionality independent of the user’s muscle strength.

ENHANCED CARDIAC MONITOR TEAM MEMBERS: Kaan Raif (BME) Noah Read (BME) Bao Thai (CpE)

A device that captures the details of an ECG wave (such as different interval times) and compare to a standard time depending on the characteristic of the individual to check for abnormalities in the heart

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FEETBACK SENSOR TEAM MEMBERS: Luke Herbst (BME) Ameer Khan (EE) Paul Klarich (BME) Sierra Knighten (BME)

The feet back sensor is meant to aid in the improvement of a runner’s form and help prevent injury. By measuring the balancing of the contact forces in runner’s foot a feedback system will allow them to adjust their form after every run, insuring that the runner doesn’t supinate, pronate, or strike ground in traumatic fashion. An array of 12 sensors (3x4) will be implanted in a shoe sole to read the disbursement of forces across the foot. With these force readings important metrics like force distribution and ground contact time can be relayed to the runner and ultimately correct inefficiencies in form.

FORE EYES PUPIL DETECTION TEAM MEMBERS: Cree Foeller (BME) Jimmy Romero (BME) Matt Roseen (BME) Claire Stonner (EE)

The Fore Eyes product is intended to be a diagnostic tool for individuals who are suspected of recently sustaining minor head trauma that could have possibly resulted in a concussion. Individuals participating in activities that put them at risk for sustaining multiple head injuries are in greatest need for a reliable diagnostic tool since the observable symptoms of minor head trauma are subtle. The method of diagnosis for this tool is using computer vision to detect anisocoria (unequal dilation of pupils) when exposed to a controlled radiation source and measuring their response relative to each other. To make the product widely accessible to the general public, the diagnostic tool will be integrated into an Android smartphone application.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

IEEE ROBOT COMPITITION TEAM MEMBERS: Yiming Dong (ECE) Ge Lu (ECE) Bryan Seefeld (ECE) Ke Sun (CpE)

The objective of the competition is to construct an autonomous robot to operate in a known 8’x8’ surface which could pick up colored tokens and placed them into corresponded color boxes.

IN VITRO ULTRASOUND STIMULATION OF OSTEOBLASTS IN A CONTROLLED, 3-DIMENSIONAL ENVIRONMENT TEAM MEMBER: Jacob Crapps (BME)

A current method of stimulating osteoblasts with ultrasound in vitro has many air-liquid boundaries, at which ultrasound reflects and causes signal interference. This makes it impossible to compare the effects of different parameters of ultrasound on the cells, and leads to high variability from experiment to experiment. This project seeks to reduce the variability in this experimental setup, as well as eliminate all air-liquid boundaries where ultrasound reflections occur.

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LOW-COST MYOELECTRIC PROSTHESIS TEAM MEMBERS: Nick Abraham (BME) Joshua Collins (BME/EE) Andrea Mejorada (BME) Riley Neuville (BME)

The goal of this project is to create a low-cost myoelectric forearm prosthesis that continuously monitors electrical signals from the muscles responsible for hand movement, and moves the prosthetic hand accordingly. Principles of electromyography are used to receive and translate the muscle signals and 3D printing is used to create the shell of the prosthesis. A Myo Armband is placed on the proximal muscles of the forearm and relay information through a computer to an Arduino MEGA within the prosthetic arm. There is a need for this technology because current affordable prosthetics function through hooks, clamps, and immovable hands and the only FDA approved bionic arm is speculated to cost approximately $100,000 USD. Current hand prostheses in the market are not affordable and insurance policies cover a fraction of the cost; the presented design aims to address these issues.

LOWER BACK BRACE WITH HEATING MECHANISM TEAM MEMBERS: Andrea Fischer (BME) Gabe Garcia (BME) Vaidehee Shah (BME) Kevin Stapleton (BME)

There are millions of people worldwide suffering from lower back pain, whether it’d be from scoliosis, to pregnancy, to a back injury. Oftentimes, braces can help keep the back in a correct posture to prevent further damage and discomfort. The aim of this design project is to make a back brace that alleviates pain and supports the lumbar vertebrae. This will be accomplished by designing a comfortable lower back brace that has structural support and a heating mechanism. The heating mechanism will be powered by a rechargeable battery. The heating mechanism will also have multiple heat settings to allow for a personalized experience.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

MACROMOLECULAR CROWDING DEVICE TEAM MEMBER: Joseph Krebs (BME)

Current cell culture techniques require improvement because they do not maintain cells in an environment that represents their biological niches.

Cellular environments prove challenging to replicate for many reasons, only one of which will be addressed in this study: the difficulty of promoting collagen deposition. Cells in vivo are heavily reliant on a stable, supportive network that provides structural integrity, biochemical and biomechanical cues.

This is the job of the collagen-containing ECM. Inclusion of macromolecular crowders (MMCs) is shown to improve cell’s deposition of collagen, but most research has neglected use of these molecules. We believe that dispersion into culture media causes clumping of the MMCs and smothering of the cells, leading to inhomogeneous collagen deposition. My project focuses on creating a device used within cell culture wells that provides cells with desired crowded environments, thereby preventing this drawback of use in solution, and improving fibrillar collagen deposition.

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MOBILE 3D LAB TEAM MEMBERS: William Higgins (CpE/Music) Andrew Oliver (BME) Ryan Plunkett (BME)

This project is a wearable motion capture sensor device that will be used for monitoring baseball pitching in real time. This will replace the standard biomechanical pitching analysis of using a motion capture lab. This device will connect to a mobile device for data collection and analysis with immediate feedback. The information will be used to draw conclusions about proper pitching mechanics and injury prevention. Joint angles will be monitored throughout the motion of delivery and this will allow the user to receive feedback about pitch efficiency and flaws in the mechanics, so that corrections can be made rapidly. Ultimately, we want the coach to be able to watch an athlete pitch and quickly analyze and correct their pitching motion, so they avoid injury without compromising performance.

NAVI - NAVIGATION ASSISTANT FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED TEAM MEMBERS: Amanda Banks (BME) Aime Nunez (CpE) Jakeh Orr (BME) Sam Schrader (EE)

The NAVI device will verbally assist visually impaired individuals with daily navigation by detecting various objects and their distance. We intend for our device to be efficient, scanning a larger range for a low cost. Operation of the device will be made more user friendly with Braille labeling and support for multiple languages. A camera will be placed near each shoulder to capture the user’s environment and feed into image processing software. NAVI will thus be able to identify certain objects, such as a person, a table, a chair, stairs etc. and their distance from the user and will then speak to the user via an earpiece or speaker, enabling the user to navigate their environment.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

PERFUSION DECELLULARIZATION DEVICE TEAM MEMBERS: Krishna Patel (BME) Muhamed Talovic (BME)

The goal of our project was to create a perfusion decellularization device.

Decellularization is the process of removing resident cells from tissues, while keeping the three-dimensional extracellular matrix (ECM) structure intact.

Decellularized muscle ECM (D-ECM) will be used to provide a therapy for volumetric muscle loss (VML). VML accounts for a loss of 20% or more muscle at the site of injury. This injury is prevalent in victims of bomb blast trauma, gunshot wounds, and vehicular accidents. Due to the critical size defect, regenerative capacity of muscle of decreased. The team hopes to use native muscle ECM to provide the necessary proteins needed for regeneration and a three dimensional framework for the satellite cells to proliferate, increasing regenerative capacities of the injury site. The presented design will allow for large scale and automated decellularization of muscle, while using supplies economically and reducing the manual labor associated with decellularization.

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PERSONAL TEMPERATURE REGULATOR TEAM MEMBERS: Hayden Hussey (BME) Ajdin Ibrisagic (EE) Dan Parker (CpE)

A personal temperature regulator jacket will continuously heat or cool the subject wearing it. Resistive heating and forced air cooling can be used to regulate the temperature of the body. Resistive wiring and Peltier coupled fans will be dispersed throughout the jacket so heat and cooling air from the resistors and Peltier coupled fans will be evenly distributed. Sensors within the jacket will record data, determining what temperature that part of the body is at. If the temperature for that specific part of the body is higher than the specified threshold, cooling fans will engage to lower the skin temperature at that part of the body. If sensors pick up a skin temperature that is lower than the specified threshold, resistive heating elements will slowly heat until the temperature is back to normal.

POWER WALK: ROBOTIC KNEE BRACE TEAM MEMBER: Owen Behrens (BME) ` Laura Catherine Feamster (BME) Debra Gomez (BME) Molly Meyer (BME)

Knee weakness and stiffness is an extremely common problem as people age, and is also an issue for many people due to past surgeries or injuries. We propose an improved knee brace that will actively aid in the daily motions of walking and standing up by integrating a variety of mechanisms to achieve a natural gait. The brace will be intended to support the knee while taking on the strain from gait motions to remove it from the knee. Potentially, pressure sensors could be integrated to interpret stages of the gait cycle so that additional mechanical aid could be added at necessary times. Knee brace supports will be made with nylon straps in addition to 3D printed plastics for additional stability. The electronics will include an actuator controlled by Arduino in conjunction with the pressure sensors.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

ROBOTIC PEDICLE SCREW PLACEMENT TEAM MEMBER: Jacob Chapin (BME)

The goal of this project is to develop a fully automated procedure for spinal fusion surgery. The robot is equipped with force and torque recording system which will be used to develop a state recognition algorithm that will traverse the outer cortical bone, cancellous bone, and stop at the inner cortical bone.

This would permit the surgical procedure to be completed with higher accuracy than that performed by a surgeon. There is a need for such a technology because the current method of spinal fusion surgery is by using the surgeon’s hand feel to determine the screw’s location as it traverses the spine. The surgeon is often required to place up to 20 screws in a procedure, which could lead to tiredness and a hand tremor that could result in lower surgical accuracy.

The presented design will improve the current technology by providing continuous-time data, higher accuracy, minimal wounds, and less time in the operating room.

SMARTPHONE BLOOD PRESSURE MONITOR TEAM MEMBERS: Jose Quiles Franquet Kamran Madatov (CpE) Tom Schulte (CpE)

The Smartphone Blood Pressure Monitoring System will wirelessly measure the client’s blood pressure and store the resulted measurements in an associated application. The objective of this system is to help clients keep track of their health and blood pressure results over the period of usage. The application will display the current measurement and also give an average analysis of the client’s previous blood pressure measurements. This will help patients or customers make better decisions on the basis of their health by understanding their body and body’s response to meals, medicine, or activities. Thus, Smartphone Blood Pressure Monitoring System will help to improve overall health and quality of life of patients.

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UV RAY DETECTOR TEAM MEMBERS: Linda Cammarata (EE) Nell Kristie (BME) Natalia Ziemkiewicz (BME)

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a major risk factor for many skin conditions affecting individuals globally. The greatest source of UV radiation is sunlight and there is a lack of devices which quantify UV radiation exposure. A device which measures real-time UV radiation exposure is necessary. YouV Rays will be a small, portable device with an accompanying smartphone application capable of notifying the user when they are at risk, allowing the user to take appropriate measures.

YouV Rays will use a photodiode and microprocessor to collect and sample data, which may be accessed using an Android. The device will connect to the smartphone using Bluetooth connection, and an accompanying application will display the user’s exposure to UV radiation. Depending on the user’s skin type, which will be determined using the Fitzpatrick scale, a notification will be sent to the user’s smartphone when a certain amount of UV exposure is reached.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

WIRELESS AUSCULTATION DEVICE TEAM MEMBERS: Angela Alarcon De La Lastra (BME) Matthew Boss (EE) Evan Hrouda (CpE) Vyshnavee Reddlapalli Venkatesh (CpE)

Auscultation is an act of listening to the internal sounds of the body usually using a stethoscope. The current methods of auscultation used in health care today are either the mechanical or electrical stethoscope. However, there are several limitations in these stethoscopes. Mechanical stethoscopes deliver faint sounds and are meant to be used individually. Electrical stethoscopes have the choice of amplifying and sharing data; however, these stethoscopes can be expensive. Therefore, this device proposal targets all the drawbacks present in the current methods and produces a more economical option for students and mentors. This project presents a new method of listening and analyzing acoustic properties of the heart and lung sounds using a wireless stethoscope.

The main advantage of this device is the possibility of amplification, recording, storing and transferring or sharing the auscultation data in real time between physicians and medical students/residents.

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AN URBAN FARM FOR BETTER FAMILY LIFE TEAM MEMBERS: Cullen Harris Mary Beth Hugenberg Leah Preslicka

Better Family Life is a nonprofit organization that more than 50,000 people a year rely on to provide housing, education and employment opportunities.

SLU department of Civil Engineering was approached by Better Family Life in order to address their community’s cry for easier access to healthy food.

Three students collaborated with Better Family Life to mediate this problem through designing an urban farm across the street from Better Family Life’s headquarters. The site will feature a greenhouse, teaching gardens, a bioretention basin, a water feature, and a pavilion for community events such as weddings or farmers markets.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

OAK DRIVE BRIDGE REPLACEMENT TEAM MEMBERS: Cory Dikos Brandon Gillis Carl Jackson Claire McLaughlin Joe Wendl

Oak Drive Bridge is located in the City of Des Peres, Missouri. It is a residential bridge crossing Two Mile Creek and is a necessary connection for 14 houses.

The bridge is located in the Gray/Morris Subdivision and is the only way out for those 14 houses. The current bridge was built in the 1950’s and has been repaired many times over the past years. The bridge has two lanes and is 42 feet long. Many parts of the bridge are starting to deteriorate a a fast pace and it is becoming unsafe for the public. JBC3 aims to create a new bridge that is safer than the current conditions and aesthetically pleasing at the same time.

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AUTOMATED SOFTBALL TEE TEAM MEMBERS: Aida Bukvic Jillian Gallagher Abbey Jones Allie Macfarlane Henry Schmitz

In baseball and softball, especially at highly competitive levels, hitting tees are frequently utilized in practicing batting techniques. The tee is set up at a particular location for the hitter, a ball is placed on top, and the athlete hits the ball. The process is repeated manually multiple times. This project aims to eliminate the inconveniences of traditional hitting practice by designing an automatic baseball/softball tee that loads a ball from a ball bay onto the tee and moves to a preset location of the batter’s choosing.

OAK DRIVE BRIDGE REPLACEMENT TEAM MEMBERS: Brandon Bakewell Robert Hubert Ryan Noonan Ben Seitzer

Our project is the design and manufacture of a combat robot to physically compete against other battle robots. Our robot will meet standardized safety specifications and design considerations outlined in the RoboGames 2018 regulations. This design consists of a rotating drum robot entered in the 60 pound weight class. The robot is two-wheeled, remotely controlled, and constructed from steel. It is powered by 2 lithium-polymer batteries that control 3 internal motors.

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SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

FSAE SUSPENSION SYSTEM TEAM MEMBERS: Joseph Craven Matthew Gall Thomas Menteer Marc Mezzacappa Chenhao Yu

This design group worked with the SLU FSAE Team, Parks Racing, to develop the suspension system for the 2018 season car. Several performance requirements were to be met by this system in accordance with the 2018 FSAE rule-book while simultaneously fitting into existing chassis geometry. The most notable of this year’s suspension design aspects is the transition from direct acting to push and pull rod actuated springs and dampers. This allows for the largest components (springs and dampers) to be moved inside the chassis, thus generating less aerodynamic disturbance. More importantly, the utilization of rocker arms in a push/pull rod type suspension allows the designer to have greater control of how far the springs and dampers actuate with relation to vertical wheel travel.

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MAN OVERBOARD SAFETY SYSTEM TEAM MEMBERS: Laura Bultas Christopher Ernst Kevin Green Richard Roberts

The cruise ship industry caters to several million customers, yet every year there is a significant number of passengers that fall off the boat and drown.

This project is centered around addressing this need in this global industry. Our motivation came from the recent cruise ship passenger drownings over the past year. These unfortunate events have motivated our group to develop a product that addresses the issue. Our device aims to jettison assistance, in the form of a single man life raft, to those that fall off these ships into often cold and perilous waters. Overall, this product will provide a means of getting out of the water, which will greatly increase the chances of survival in colder conditions in addition to preventing the possibility of drowning.

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Saint Louis University Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

ROBONALDO TEAM MEMBERS: Rob Heckman Nikko Koutas Michael Ou Zach Wright Christian Youtn

The Robonaldo soccer robot, and his trusty defender Roboto Carlos are being entered into the ASME Student Design Competition. The goal of this competition is to win a soccer based game against at least four other teams.

These robots must be able to be controlled remotely and run on rechargeable batteries. Both of the bots are controlled by a Wii Nunchuck, and run on 14V rechargeable batteries. Robonaldo features a spin feeder as its primary attacking function, and moves using a combination of wheels and ball casters. Roboto Carlos is truly a wall of a defender, blocking all shots with his wooden plate design. Team Robonaldo will have already been in competition at the time of this symposium, and will hopefully have brought home the cup!

UNIVERSAL MOTOR MOUNT FOR SHIFTER KARTS TEAM MEMBERS: Brandon Newton Mehmed Omerovic Bowen Qian Jason Raifsnyder Tristan Thomas

Our design team worked together to create a universal motor mount for the popular sport of shifter kart racing. Our universal mount solves the problem of having to choose specific motors and kart frames to fit the available mounts on the market today. Using the mount we have created you can easily combine any standard size kart frame with a wide variety of 125cc motors from different manufactures from a large range of manufacturing years.

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ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY STUDIES OF DNA AND DNA BINDING PROTEINS TEAM MEMBER: Nozima Aripova (Physics and Biology) Sergey Korolev (Biochemistry) Irma Kuljanishvilli, Ph.D. (Physics Faculty)

Interactions between proteins and DNA provide the mechanisms for the cell processes such as DNA replication, homologous recombination and DNA repair. We study mechanism of DNA Binding by recombination Mediator Proteins which initiate homologous recombination to repair broken chromosomes. RMPs replace single strand (ss)DNA binding protein (SSB) on ssDNA with recombinase.

The goal of this research is to implement Atomic Force Microscopy(AFM) method to study conformations of protein-DNA interactions with the resolution of individual molecules, and, potentially, to combine AFM with single molecule fluorescent microscopy. First, we will developed and implement protocols for ‘direct- write’ patterning methods for deposition of DNA-protein complexes onto the mica and silicon dioxide surfaces. Second, we will optimize AFM measurements and analysis of plasmid DNA and short oligonucleotides with SSB, RMPs and recombinase.

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Saint Louis University Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

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2017-2018 Senior Design Projects

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SLU.EDU/PARKS