Exploring the use of quick response codes: accessing videos in the laboratory

Bringing the digital world and “digital natives” to hands-on engineering laboratory classes can be a challenge and an opportunity. Videos can be used, but is important that students know exactly what video to watch for each apparatus. That is why the possibility of accessing videos with QR codes is essential to build a bridge from concrete to digital content. The aim of this research is to evaluate the importance undergraduate engineering students attribute to instructional videos that explain the operating procedure of laboratory apparatus, and their reaction to the possibility of accessing them with quick response (QR) codes. Results show students attributed some importance to the videos and the QR codes in the laboratory are very helpful as means to quickly and easily access the videos.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Using Quick Response Codes with Videos in the Laboratory

Using QR codes to access low-cost, educational, short videos in engineering laboratory classes might be a successful way of building a bridge from concrete to digital content. With QR codes placed on the apparatus, students will know exactly which video to watch. The scanned QR codes can be saved, enabling students to watch them again while performing the experiment or at home. Low-cost videos do not require expensive equipment and software, and keeping the videos short assures a minimum download time, making them compatible for use with smartphones and tablets. The aim of this research is to evaluate the importance undergraduate engineering students attribute to these videos and their reaction to the possibility of accessing them with QR codes scanned by a smartphone or a tablet. Results show students attributed some importance to the videos, and that the QR codes are very helpful as means to quickly and easily access the videos.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A Novel Approach to Optimize the Design of Parts for Additive Manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a term used to group the different manufacturing processes that use various techniques, each of which is capable of producing parts made from a wide variety of materials, such as polymers, ceramics, metals, wood, among others. All these technologies allow parts manufacturing by adding successive layers of material which can be liquid, powder or wire. In order to take advantages of the geometric freedom offered by AM, Topological Optimization (TO) is usually used. TO provides the optimal distribution of material for a given request. The main objective is weight reduction, without compromising the original resistance of an existing part produced by traditional processes. Taking advantage of the freedom allowed by the AM process and conciliating it with the CAE features, which allow to simulate the parts behavior when subjected to the expected loads, a new approach methodology was drawn in order to shorten the time needed to optimize parts design for AM. A case study was developed in order to validate the methodology established. The combination of AM and TO revealed promising results, attending to the component efficiency achieved.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assessment of the Use of Solar Desalination Distillers to Produce Fresh Water in Arid Areas

Water is an important resource for human beings, yet there are inhabited places tormented by the scarcity of it. The present study is concerned with places where, seemingly, the best way to get water is through solar distillers. These places should have, typically, high values of solar irradiation and a lack of human and economic resources to build and operate complex equipment. A set of sites scattered around the world was chosen, and then the presumed productivity and thermal efficiency that solar distillers would have if they were installed at these places was calculated. The mathematical model used with this purpose assumes steady-state operation; the values of mass of water distilled and distiller efficiency were calculated for every hour, but the results presented are annual averages. Then, an economic study was made based on local costs of construction materials for the distillers, the workforce, and the prices of water to predict the payback time of solar distillers. Finally, a study on environmental impact, particularly in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, was made to compare reverse osmosis (RO) with solar distillation. For the sites studied, typical values of annual water output are in the range of 414 dm3/m2, for Évora, up to 696 dm3/m2, for Faya Largeau; the minimum efficiency was found for Évora, as 11.5%, and the maximum efficiency was found for Tessalit, as 15.2%. Payback times are very high, regardless of the areas of the globe where solar distillers are implanted. Regarding GHG emissions, solar distillation is preferable to RO.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Minimizing the Adhesion Effects in Food Packages Forming by the Use of Advanced Coatings

The metal packaging industry used for food application has undergone drastic changes in the demands of its final consumers. The raw material for these packages, is a low carbon steel coated with a thin layer of tin (2,0 g/m2), also known as tinplate. The stamping process of these packages occurs at room temperature and is critically influenced by the tin transfer from the steel surface to the tool surface, mainly due to the tin softness. This problem is easily solved using lubrification but the purpose of this study will be the reduction or even absence of lubricants during the process in order to comply with costumers’ requirements. A successful way to minimize the consumption of lubricants is to use tools which are coated with PVD (Physical Vapour Deposition) advanced coatings deposited with unbalanced magnetron sputtering technique. Thin WC (Tungsten Carbide) and CrCN (Chromium Carbonitride) coatings were deposited using PVD on tool stamping steel – AISI D2. Block on ring tribological tests were performed on the coatings against tinplate counterface in order to investigate their wear performance, with particular emphasis on the material transfer (tin) phenomena during the sliding tests. The results allowed for selecting the best coating tested with a view to avoid the tin adhesion to the die.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Influence of the natural additive on natural fiber reinforced thermoplastic composite

Composite materials have a wide range of application in various domains. The fact behind using composite materials is that they give the same almost strength as metal parts in presenting lesser weight. However, the plastic parts are non-biodegradable, and they lead to the polluted environment during the disposal after end-of-life of a particular part. Nowadays natural and easily recyclable composites were preferred due to environmental concerns. The major disadvantage of using natural fibre composites is that they have low strength compared to conventional glass or carbon reinforced composite. To enhance the strength of Natural-Fiber-Reinforced Plastics (NFRP) various techniques have been followed (Chemical treatment of the fibre, post-curing of the composites, sandwiching the composite, adding additives/fillers to the matrix) based on the feasibility and application of the composites. Among those techniques, adding additives to the matrix is one of the simple and effective ways to enhance the properties of the composite. A natural additive is developed in concern to the environmental impact of the composite. Two different types of the composite laminate were manufactured. One is with additive and one is without the additive. It is necessary to validate the strength of the composite with and without the additives by mechanical testing. Thus, tensile, flexural and moisture absorption tests were performed to verify the mechanical property enhancement achieved due to the use of additives. These tests help in characterizing the material to specific applications. The composite with the natural additive showed better mechanical properties. However, the moisture absorption tendency of the composite is increased as well, mainly due to the presence of additives on the surface of the composite along with the matrix.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

How to Become a Manufacturing Cell Fully-Automated Without Robots: Case-Study in the Automotive Components Industry

Productivity is a key factor for companies manufacturing parts and sets to the automotive industry. Automation plays an important role in this matter, allowing development of entire manufacturing cells without the direct need of workers. Even in countries where the labour cost is relatively low, it becomes necessary to improve the level of automation applied to manufacture cells and reduce the dependence of the human labour unpredictability, also increasing the quality and reducing the costs. This case study was developed based on an industrial request in order to improve a semi-automatic cell devoted to seat suspension mat manufacturing. The original cell allows several automatic operations but it needs two workers for two specific operations not considered in the initial design. Thus, new concepts of wire feeding and manipulation were developed in order to allow a better material flow throughout the cell. The new cell was designed and built with success, allowing obtain a fully-automated system, which leads to a better productivity and reliability of the manufacturing process.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A novel concept of a conduit transport system

The automotive component industry has grown steadily in the last decade. The automation of the manufacturing processes has boosted an increase in the production rates of the components, and also contributed to a significant increase in quality. Automation has also contributed significantly to an increase in the production rate, as well as the process flexibility and reliability of the products obtained in the manufacture of spiral tubes used in control cables normally used for the operation of doors, brakes, glass handling, etc.. Currently, the manufacturing process of these components can be performed in a completely automated way, which proves the importance of automation in this sector. This work intends to present the development of a new solution for transporting conduits along an automatic production line, where several operations are carried out on the control cable spirals, namely cutting, deburring, punching of terminals at the ends and insertion of a tube starter, to sample noises during operation. An innovative transport system of the main sub-product (conduits) was developed along the line, which has a much higher reliability than previously recorded, also reducing the setup time required by 97%. The stoppages of the equipment due to problems with the conduits transportation process were also drastically reduced. The solution found is extremely simple and economical, allowing the reuse of numerous parts already used in the previous solution, with the consequent benefits in terms of resources reutilization. As an economical solution, it can be easily adaptable to other similar production processes, inducing very appreciable productivity gains.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Learning in the Laboratory: Accessing Videos with Quick Response Codes

Using QR codes to access videos in engineering laboratory classes might be a successful way of building a bridge from concrete to digital content. With QR codes placed on an apparatus, students know exactly which video to watch, allowing them to view the videos while performing the experiment or at home when writing the report. Low-cost videos do not require expensive equipment and software, and keeping them short assures a minimum download time for use with smartphones and tablets. The aim of this chapter is to evaluate the importance undergraduate engineering students attribute to these videos and their reaction to the possibility of accessing them with QR codes scanned by a smartphone or a tablet, using access statistics and video viewings to support the findings. Results show students attributed some importance to the videos, and that the QR codes are very helpful as means to quickly and easily access the videos.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

On the Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD): Evolution of Magnetron Sputtering Processes for Industrial Applications

Advanced coatings play an important role in a wide range of industrial applications. These coatings are commonly used in machining tools due to their high hardness and wear resistance, but also can be applied in jewellery and decorative purposes. Deposition techniques have seen a strong evolution as result of the directly related devices, control evolution and software. Several variants have been developed around the main techniques: arc evaporation and sputtering. The coatings produced present significant differences in their characteristics, namely in terms of structure, mechanical properties and surface morphology. Depending on the substrate material and application, the deposition process needs to be properly selected, providing the particular characteristics requested. This paper intends to do a critical review of the evolution of the advanced coatings deposition process, mainly focused on the Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) process, particularly in the Magnetron Sputtering technique, which is able to produce smooth surfaces, using lower temperatures, presenting excellent mechanical and tribological properties and having very good adhesion to the main materials used as substrate.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio