A HYDRODYNAMIC SUMMER

“I was able to practice not only engineering skills and software, but also had the opportunity to give formal presentations on designs and analysis on a weekly basis. “ development of a fully autonomous release and the retrieval of those vehicles. Leonard says he learned a lot from this experience and acquired skills from all fields, including software development, computer-aided modeling, and autonomy integration. He feels it will benefit him in future careers where there’s a need to be adept in multiple fields of engineering. Leonard also made many connections in the Naval Base, teaching him a lot about collaborating as a team as well as how the process of designing and creating systems works.

Naval science and technology (S&T) have a tremendous impact upon defense, world commerce, and energy production. The US Navy is expanding its fleet to the largest size in nearly twenty years, and the number of offshore solar, wind and wave energy installations have continued to increase. The underlying science and technology challenges demand a workforce with a strong foundation in the engineering sciences related to fluid flow, computational and experimental methods, autonomous systems, and control. The Certificate in Naval Science & Technology introduces students to the principles of naval hydrodynamics including propulsion, resistance, maneuvering, and seakeeping, as well as the fundamentals of autonomous systems, including control systems, robotics, and artificial intelligence.

During the summer of 2022, three Mechanical Engineering undergraduate students completed internships at Navy labs through the Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program (NREIP). Dustin Stansberry, a senior earning a bachelors and master’s degree in mechanical engineering, worked as an intern this summer at the NSWC Acoustic Research Detachment in Bayview, Idaho. He spent three months working on Lake Pend Orielle, Idaho’s largest and quietest body of water. According to the NAVSEA website, the “state-of-the-art facilities support a wide variety of research and technology development programs.” Dustin says one of the most interesting facts is that there is only one other facility the navy has that uses models as large as the ones in Bayview.

Another undergraduate NREIP scholar, Ryan Lain, was stationed at The Carderock Division of the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC). The headquarters are in Bethesda, Maryland with the historic David Taylor Model Basin. Ryan talks about the amazing time he had this summer, which he says, “provided a great introduction to ship design and evaluation.” His project included working with other interns, as well as experienced engineers and naval architects to create a concept design for a future surface vessel. He was able to practice not only engineering skills and software but give formal presentations on designs and analysis on a weekly basis. He had many opportunities for networking, participated in tours around Carderock as well as other NAVSEA facilities and bases. Ryan says he learned and practiced many skills that he will be able to use in his remaining time in Iowa as well as in the workforce.

One of the requirements of the Naval Science & Technology certificate is completion of a capstone project. This year, two teams of students are participating in capstone design projects in the Naval S&T curriculum. One project involves the design of a stern plane measurement and control system for a free-running submarine under development at the University of Iowa, where students collaborate with faculty and engineers at NSWC Carderock Division. The other project, sponsored by Mercury Marine, involves the design of a vessel with electric propulsion. To kick off the Mercury project, the student team traveled to the Mercury headquarters in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin on August 30th to meet with Mercury personnel, tour some of the facilities, and initiate project planning. One of the highlights of the visit was an excursion, with Mercury Technical Fellow Dr. John Scherer, on a 42-foot Boston Whaler center console cruiser, powered by three of Mercury’s new 600 horsepower outboards. Students took turns trying out the advanced joystick piloting system.

Undergraduate student Austin Leonard was stationed at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City. He worked with fellow interns on developing a mechanism that both deployed and captured UUVs (unmanned underwater vehicles) from a USV (unmanned surface vehicle). Leonard worked alongside subject matter experts who guided him through the 19