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Aerospace engineering students frequently encounter difficulty in their upper division courses because the course material is not only advanced but strongly specific to aerospace technical details, compared to the general engineering content of the lower division courses. Consequently students must learn many concepts and analysis techniques which are new to them. The objective of the work described in this paper is to improve student understanding and mastery and retention of specific technical theories, concepts, and methods as defined by specific ABET outcomes. The approach is to develop a series of Khan Academy style videos which are specific to aerospace engineering topics which students historically find challenging to understand and master. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Apple of Discord or The Fruit of Salvation? A Dialogue on the Practical and Legal Aspects of Safety Zones on the Lunar South Pole: Call it like you want but humanity will soon witness an incredible flurry of activities on the Moon. From governmental plans like the ARTEMIS Program or the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) to several commercial missions laying the foundations for the development of a lunar economy, more and more actors are targeting our celestial neighbour for future human and robotic exploration. Buzz Aldrin once defined the Moon as a "magnificent desolation". While this was certainly the case until now, we can be relatively sure that the next individuals to walk on the lunar surface will witness a rather different scenario. Differently from the past, these new missions will not be finished with planting a flag as they seek to establish an unprecedented network of lunar assets and infrastructures. Due to the physics of the lunar environment, the level of interdependence among actors operating on its surface will grow exponentially with the progressive increase of their number. Most likely, none of them will have the luxury of operating in the "magnificent desolation" witnessed by the Apollo 11 astronauts. In fact, it is becoming more and more apparent that lunar actors will face an unprecedented risk of potentially harmful interference. Even nominal operations such as landing and taking off hold a disruptive potential that might seriously damage or disable assets located in a wide range within the lunar surface. In recognition of this issue, the international community has recently started to debate the concrete usefulness and potential legality of area-based measures to prevent and manage the risk of potentially harmful interference among lunar operations, commonly referred to as "safety zones". This paper discusses the practical and legal aspects of safety zones through a dynamic dialogue between an aerospace engineer and a space lawyer. Moving from the current situation for lunar activities, the paper discusses the risks of potentially harmful interference that might be faced by a lunar habitat operator, and consequently assesses the concrete usefulness of safety zones in neutralising them. Building upon these operational considerations, the paper considers fundamental legal aspects of safety zones including their boundary conditions, procedural aspects and substantive legal effects. Merging practical and legal considerations, the paper draws some preliminary conclusions on the potential of safety zones as a policy tool to meet the safety needs of lunar operators in accordance with international law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decade unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have become increasingly popular, affordable, and technically capable. No longer are UAS considered to be simply for recreation and hobby, today's relatively inexpensive UAS offer significant capabilities for flight and recording of imagery. Combined with the easing of previously onerous Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules governing the use of UAS for commercial/professional purposes, these platforms now provide a viable option for scientists and engineers to apply these as tools to conduct remote sensing missions around the world. While basic operation of UAS may not be considered a major challenge for those willing to learn and practice their skills, this level of training is not always sufficient. For universities or businesses vying for lucrative grants, oftentimes these teams may not be considered competitive without having some level of formal education and experience with UAS/sensor suites. Engineers and scientists may desire to serve as Program Investigators (PI) for grants or as Mission Directors for team flight operations, but often lack practical experience. Likewise, newer UAS pilots may lack requisite technical expertise in UAS/sensor capabilities. In the academic world, students are also looking for ways to gain practical aerospace engineering, remote sensing, and UAS missions experience. University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) course, AERO 658, UAS Operations, provides students with the opportunity to gain this expertise while solving a real-world mission requirement in arctic research, public service missions, or supporting critical infrastructure. The course provides students with the knowledge and tools needed to serve in the role of Mission Director for UAS flight operations for remote sensing missions, and to successfully compete for technical grants involving UAS operations. In the inaugural offering of AERO 658 during the spring of 2021, students tackled several real-world mission sets, including watershed drainage, support for mining exploration, and the environmental and safety impacts of glacial melt in nearby Juneau and Valdez glaciers. Students came away from the course with a grounded understanding of the capabilities and limitations of UAS, how UAS/sensors could best be applied to mission campaigns, how tradeoffs in capability/cost can affect mission planning, experience with data analysis and rendering tools, experience liaising with professional UAS flight operations teams, hands on experience with consumer-grade UAS, and in creation of technical documents and multimedia capturing their results. This paper details the course organization, how it has been structured to satisfy the diverse interests of our student population in tackling important contemporary issues with modern technology (while doing so with limited university resources), how this body of experience is expected to help them in their own careers and endeavors, and how that experience ultimately strengthens the university program for future students. The paper is authored by the course instructor and coauthored by students who took the course (participating in the Juneau/Valdez glacier studies), providing perspectives from both a personal and institutional point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During times of local and national quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic, universities had to close campuses and expediently convert operations and services from face-to-face to virtual learning environments, including virtual classrooms, learning communities, offices, and meeting/advising rooms. Many engineering faculty and students experienced personal, technical, and psychosocial challenges associated with this dramatically altered reality, which may have significant and unprecedented effects on their personal and academic lives. The current study presents results from a needs assessment survey examining the perceptions of 157 engineering students majoring in mechanical and aerospace engineering about the strengths and challenges exhibited by their professors/instructors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, we describe the instructional efforts and approaches taken by faculty to resolve the practical challenges because of the pandemic. Student perceptions of faculty effectiveness and support were examined by analyzing means and frequencies of survey items. Results revealed that on average, engineering students were positive in their perceptions of the effectiveness and resources/support provided by their professors/instructors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative data from an open-ended question where coded and quantified. The theme that emerged most frequently reflected engineering students' need for professors/instructors to demonstrate flexibility/leniency with assignments, quizzes, exams, and deadlines. This short paper provides critical assessment of the gaps in institutional services and resources and provide the required feedback, while informing the institution and the research community about the ways to develop a resilient support network for engineering students in the times of crisis. Future work will consider how student responses change under the altering societal and work/academic conditions with or without COVID-19 pandemic being present at that time. Results from the current study also provide recommendations for effective online instruction in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerospace engineering requires a broad foundation of skills students are to develop throughout their educational careers. Beyond the physics and mathematics fundamentals, it can be beneficial for students to explore more specialized topics or platforms that interest them. For some students at Saint Louis University, this specialization can appear as late as their final capstone projects where they are to design (and in some cases, build) a system such as an aircraft, rocket, or spacecraft. This paper offers a reflection from alumni of an aerospace engineering undergraduate program on the impacts of the required course track (fundamentals) for their degree on the success of their final capstone projects (specialization). Within some engineering programs, a disconnect can occur when the specialized interests of the student do not align well with the required or offered course material. This paper identifies some areas where students had gaps in their knowledge and experiences, as well as what they had to do to fill in those gaps. The methods used to gather the reflections included a survey of alumni as well as expanded case studies provided by the authors. The findings suggest that required course-tracks are lacking hands-on engineering experiences such as learning about manufacturing or the use of specialized software programs. Further, some course-tracks focus on particular topics in aerospace engineering and students interested in other areas are left to fill their knowledge gaps on their own. Though the primary course-tracks for engineering programs may be lacking in structured routes for specialization, capstone projects are seen to provide students with the opportunity to augment coursework knowledge with specialized skills and to explore different aspects of the design process before graduating. The findings suggest this is done by applying skills learned from extracurriculars or internship experience. In addition, input from mentors--either those who work in industry or professors--can also prove to be a valuable asset. The capstone also affords students the opportunity to cooperate and communicate with other engineers--another aspect of engineering not taught explicitly--to achieve more successful results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(BYOE) This paper presents the design, fabrication, and implementation of a flywheel system for an advanced feedback control course. The flywheel setup can be used either in person or in remote lab capacities. Feedback control is a course taken by most electrical, mechanical, and computer engineers. In such a course, students learn to design feedback control systems, i.e. the classical PID controller, often from models developed using first-principle techniques. Since systems theory is mathematical in nature, students are often limited in what implementation and system identification is performed. The flywheel system was created to first allow students to gain a tactile understanding of classical feedback control, but also to be used in an advanced control systems course. This setup allows students to see the limitations of PID control, and to implement higher mathematical models along with gaining experience in performing system identification on an unknown setup. The flywheel setup was chosen as a laboratory testbed since it shares a multidisciplinary interest between several different branches of engineering and the underlying dynamics can be used in a wide variety of applications in aerospace, electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering. In this BYOE presentation, we present the design, fabrication, and implementation of a system along with 1) design and fabrication insights, 2) fundamental equations and learning objectives, and 3) recommendations for remote lab applications. Tags: Flywheel, sensors, transducers, actuators, laboratory, multidisciplinary, instrumentation, STEM, experiment, equipment, online, best-practice, controls, testbed, apparatus, hands-on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will provide the first-year results of the impact of implementing the flipped approach in lower level math and aerospace engineering courses. A quasi-experimental between-groups research design was used for assessing the effectiveness of this methodology. The control group consisted of students who were in the same course but in sections with traditional teaching delivery while the intervention group consisted of students who were registered in the sections with the flipped approach. All students were from underrepresented groups. A positive impact on the students' attitudes and learning strategies was observed as a result of the flipped classroom with active learning. Data pertaining to the effectiveness of the flipped classroom pedagogy is shared in this paper. Analysis of students' cognitive engagement and their attitudes towards flipped classroom is discussed. The paper also includes best practices, their impact on student performance, and challenges in implementing a flipped classroom pedagogy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four pillars of learning identified in the UNESCO report in 1996 include four “L”s: Learning to know, Learning to do, Learning to live together, and Learning to be. Since then educators have been discussing how four pillars of learning can affect 21st century’s curriculum. Evidently, space-related education is based on traditional type curriculum. Therefore, integration of new approaches in aerospace engineering and science curriculum is often challenging. This paper argues that transdisciplinary and project-based approach can be used in building innovative aerospace engineering and other space-related disciplines core curricula. The paper proposes using SDTP/MSIP projects as foundation for creating multi-disciplinary curricula in different universities and countries. The proposed methodology includes pilot team projects performed during two-week summer workshop, task diversification between participating universities, comprehensive individual studies (analysis), and joint findings reports (synthesis). Such approach is proposed to be tested during SDTP-2017 and in 2017-2018 academic year in Russia (MGTU) and USA (University of Houston). The paper concludes with an analysis of potential opportunities and complications for the development and integration of presented academic strategy to increase adaptability of diverse hands-on experiences into already established educational programs in Russia and the US. In a summary, a platform for further inquiry into multi-disciplinary academic strategies is discussed for more in-depth investigation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As systems become more complex and ever more tightly integrated, the engineer who must innovate solutions faces an ever-increasing plethora of disciplines to understand. The central problem considered in this paper is how to prepare learners to innovate in such an environment. The context is set in a School of Aerospace Engineering with a large student throughput. The guiding philosophy behind this paper is that the breadth across disciplines, needed for such innovation must be accompanied by uncompromising depth of understanding. Three years of progress are summarized on EXTROVERT, a project designed to build and use resources that help aerospace engineers learn to innovate across disciplines. Experience from several courses and projects is summarized on how engineering student learn using different resources. The approach of this effort is to enable learners to gain confidence in solving problems, using with their own preferences in determining the learning sequence. Concepts implemented include a portal to aerospace engineering centered on conceptual design of flight vehicles, vertical streams of in-depth technical content, engineering case studies of historically significant vehicle systems, a library of solved problems, integrative concept essays, and a module-based assessment approach to measure learning in near real time to provide feedback and modification during the learning process. Assessment has been conducted across a spectrum of courses. Compact e-books have been developed for several subjects including advanced concept development projects. The EXTROVERT resources have been exploited in courses ranging from a freshman engineering introductory course to upperclass and graduate courses. An inspiring metric is in the quantum jump in the capabilities of most of the students, and their very thoughtful reflections on what they have gained. These new capabilities are significant enough to warrant a reconsideration of traditional course structure, in order to facilitate much more student participation and iteration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Aviation English is unique in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) because in the aeronautical field, language is inseparable from safety. The passengers’ lives and safety depend on the accurate communication between pilots and air traffic control officers (ATCOs), on the precision of their language. My paper puts forward the suitability and effectiveness of using audio-visual aids (video clips, photographs, diagrams, maps, authentic audio recordings of voices with a variety of accents and pronunciations encountered in international flights) in aviation English teaching. The use of audio video digital technologies helps the students (especially aerospace engineering majors and air force academy students) to become familiar with the operational environment of aviation, to obtain a ‘feel’ for the conditions in which pilots and controllers communicate. Properly selected and relevant digital video or photographs “introduce” the students into the airport architecture (taxiways, runways, hangars, cargo areas etc.), in the control tower or in the pilots’ cockpit, into the world of pilots and ATCOs, of technicians and aerospace engineers. I will show that what matters even more is the teacher’s passion for the field and his/her consequent ability to devise the best and most motivating pre-and post-watching activities and discussions to stimulate the students to debate the aviation incidents presented, to practice the vocabulary they are likely to encounter in an aviation context, the standardized coded phraseology used in pilot-controller conversations to communicate clear, concise, unambiguous, internationally recognized messages of a routine nature, and the spontaneous, non-coded “plain” English which is crucial to master in non-routine, unexpected or emergency operational situations. The paper proposes a content-based, communicative approach to teaching Aviation English, supported by audio-video technology – which Generation Y students in particular find engaging and challenging. Technology properly embedded in the course and relevant to projects or seminar activities maintains the attention of today’s visual learners focused on the subject matter and inspires and motivates them to research and discover more about the communication in the aviation field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Making up most of today's students, "Generation Z" demands learning specific and applicable methods for problem-solving. This need for application and case study-based learning stems from the wide availability of technology throughout their entire lives, making them digital natives [10,11] Experiential learning satisfies these desires and has proven to impact students' long-term learning and perceived learning [7]. In this work, a hands-on computer numerical control (CNC) manufacturing course is developed in collaboration with Autodesk Inc. to address the growing demands of Gen Z engineering students. For this course, students use a series of online videos to learn the concepts and theory of CNC machining, followed by a series of smallgroup, self-paced, hands-on lab assignments. Lab assignments are machined on a five-axis Pocket NC and/or a 4-axis Haas VF3 CNC milling machine. The hands-on labs are structured such that students have one "guided tour" of the CAM process followed by an open-ended assignment on the same machine and concludes with students designing and manufacturing a double-sided maze. The course is a cross-departmental collaboration between Industrial and Systems Engineering and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Enrolled students come from both departments and are encouraged to form cross-disciplinary groups while working on course assignments. This work in progress paper aims to discuss the outcomes from the pilot semester, Fall 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Important direct outcomes of new engineer socialization include understanding one's roles and responsibilities, learning the knowledge and skills required to perform one's job, understanding one's company culture, and gaining acceptance into one's workgroup. Studies have shown that achieving these outcomes positively impacts job retention, satisfaction, and performance. However, while the proactive behaviors new engineers implement to achieve these outcomes have been a primary focus of recent literature, there is a lack of understanding regarding the challenges new engineers face while attaining these outcomes. It is crucial to understand the challenges new engineers face to mitigate these obstacles and better prepare engineering students to enter the workforce. This research aims to (a) identify the specific challenges newly hired engineers face and the actions they take to overcome these challenges during the socialization period, and (b) identify aspects of undergraduate education that new engineers believe can be improved. Researchers interviewed 26 participants from four of the largest aerospace and defense organizations in the United States, and their responses were analyzed using an open coding method. Coders identified 26 unique challenges and 13 distinct solutions during this study. Challenges included a lack of engineering knowledge, unclear role boundaries, lack of organizational support, and navigating an unfamiliar environment. Of those 26 challenges, 15 significant challenges faced by newly-hired engineers are presented in this paper. Several solutions involved interacting with coworkers, shadowing and observing coworkers, and utilizing available resources. Knowing what challenges newly-hired engineers will face and what solutions they may use is helpful for undergraduates entering the workforce. When asked how undergraduate engineering education could be improved, the newly-hired engineers desired a more significant focus on practical training, more exposure to industry-like environments, and a greater emphasis on soft skills such as technical writing. This study aims to minimize the gap between academia's and industry's expectations for new engineers' required knowledge and skills, help prepare engineering students for the potential challenges they will face during the socialization period, and highlight potential areas of improvement within engineering organizations and undergraduate engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding institutional leaders' perspectives on ethics frameworks can help us better conceptualize where, how, and for whom ethics is made explicit across and within STEM related disciplines and, in turn, to better understand the ways developing professionals are enculturated toward responsibility within their disciplines. As part of an NSF-funded institutional transformation project, our research team conducted interviews with academic leaders about the frameworks of ethics in their home departments, programs, and fields. This paper reports on a series of eleven (11) interviews whose content describes the perspectives of disciplinary leaders from biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, mechanical and aerospace engineering, optics, philosophy, physics, psychology, STEM education, and writing and rhetoric. Contextualizing frameworks through the participants' identification of experience, content, and audience allows us to better understand the landscape of ethics practices and procedures that act as the explicit training and education STEM learners receive in their disciplines. If ethics is an important educational focus for engineering, and the work of engineering relies on interdisciplinary connections, then understanding how ethics is taken up both within and across those collaborating disciplines is an important means of supporting ethics in engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, data-driven decisions have become the core of quality improvements. A new paradigm has been introduced for the digitalization of quality management with “Quality 4.0”. Automatic data and information exchange are the essential steps of the Quality 4.0 paradigm to achieve automation of the manufacturing systems. The goal of this paper is to design and manage the database of the automated system as the first stage of data preparation for quality management. For this stage, we use the Entity Relationship (ER) modeling technique to develop conceptual and logical models. This technique is used in a real case study to organize and manage the database of inspection and repair processes in aerospace manufacturing. The real merit of the developed models is to create a well-structured database that describes the system’s data flow with high data quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid, realistic nondestructive evaluation (NDE) simulation tools can aid in inspection optimization and prediction of inspectability for advanced aerospace materials and designs. NDE simulation tools may someday aid in the design and certification of aerospace components; potentially shortening the time from material development to implementation by industry and government. Furthermore, ultrasound modeling and simulation are expected to play a significant future role in validating the capabilities and limitations of guided wave based structural health monitoring (SHM) systems. The current state-of-the-art in ultrasonic NDE/SHM simulation is still far from the goal of rapidly simulating damage detection techniques for large scale, complex geometry composite components/vehicles containing realistic damage types. Ongoing work at NASA Langley Research Center is focused on advanced ultrasonic simulation tool development. This paper discusses challenges of simulation tool validation, optimization, and utilization for composites. Ongoing simulation tool development work is described along with examples of simulation validation and optimization challenges that are more broadly applicable to all NDE simulation tools. The paper will also discuss examples of simulation tool utilization at NASA to develop new damage characterization methods for composites, and associated challenges in experimentally validating those methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the first three years of a multi-university, multi-discipline, team-based, design-build-test/fly project called AerosPACE. All authors are former students who took the AerosPACE course. The paper does not present a rigorous research approach, but rather, particular focus is placed on the first-hand student experience and consequent translation of learned skills into the workforce. The evolution of the industry-sponsored program is outlined including lessons-learned, student experiences and achievements. A methodology which other industry sponsors could use to replicate and scale similar projects in other fields is discussed. To conclude the paper, the authors (all alumni of the program who are now working in industry) offer their thoughts on how the program has impacted their early careers in industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It may be argued that surface preparation techniques in the aerospace industry with respect to metal bonding applications have not evolved systematically since their origin in the 1970's when the original optimized Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) Etch / Phosphoric Acid Anodize formulations were developed by McDonnell Douglas and the Primary Adhesively Bonded Structure Technology (PABST) Program.[1] In recent years numerous presentations have highlighted the performance of individual components and techniques to aid surface preparation for structural adhesive bonding of metallic substrates. However, each of these studies featured only elements of a structural adhesive bonding surface preparation system, highlighting the performance of, for example, non-chromated bond primers over grit blasted solgelled substrates or comparisons of conventional etch and anodize vs. plasma surface treatments - and failed to present amore systematic comprehensive approach. This paper is the first installment exploring this challenge. In this paper, the systematic performance of several newproducts recently introduced by the 3M Automotive and Aerospace Solutions Division (AASD, St. Paul, MN) will be studied towards presenting state of the art systematic solutions for the metal bonded substrate preparation problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerospace Engineering Department, Institut Teknologi Bandung, recently develops a medical transport drone for distributing medical supplies to remote areas. A hybrid vertical take-off landing (VTOL) fixed-wing drone type is used as the basic design. In the early development process, a commercial of the self (COTS) drone product is used as the platform. This paper discusses the simulation of transition flight maneuver of the drone, specifically in the longitudinal mode. Two different transition scenarios are designed, simulated, and analyzed to obtain the energy requirement for each scenario. The energy requirement is defined as the propulsive energy spent during the transition. Furthermore, the dynamic characteristics of the drone during the transition phase is carefully analyzed to determine whether the maneuver can be performed manually or must be assisted by an automatic flight controller. It is obtained that the climb and fall scenario requires less propulsive energy than the constant altitude scenario. However, the transition requires a proper automatic flight controller since manual input given in the simulation can not make the drone fly in the desired condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the recent years, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) has included smart tags which can monitor the various surroundings of an area. To create such a tag one must have an accurate measurement system. Sometimes, noisy signals are generated because of the surrounding changes. In the following paper we will propose an improved Kalman filter to obtain a better noise reduction and a more precise data acknowledgement. The Kalman filter performance stand in their noise covariance's which are called R and Q variables. These variables are found in the Kalman filter algorithm. Still, to obtain the best results we must choose the correct R and Q variables. More specifically, the main purpose of the paper is to propose an improved Kalman filter to locate an aircraft. The covariance is used only for a simple architecture and could be adjusted using neural networks. Using this method, we can obtain a more detailed database from the RFID tags. In a simulation, the proposed improved Kalman filter will show a more précised location of an aircraft compared to the old gain amplifier, due to the multitude of sensors which are being used. The performance of the Kalman filter will be demonstrated in a simulation program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultrasonic techniques, such as the use of guided waves, can be ideal for finding damage in the plate and pipe-like structures used in aerospace applications. However, the interaction of waves with real flaw types and geometries can lead to experimental signals that are difficult to interpret. 3-dimensional (3D) elastic wave simulations can be a powerful tool in understanding the complicated wave scattering involved in flaw detection and for optimizing experimental techniques. We have developed and implemented parallel 3D elastodynamic finite integration technique (3D EFIT) code to investigate Lamb wave scattering from realistic flaws. This paper discusses simulation results for an aluminum-aluminum diffusion disbond and an aluminum-epoxy disbond and compares results from the disbond case to the common artificial flaw type of a flat-bottom hole. The paper also discusses the potential for extending the 3D EFIT equations to incorporate physics-based weak bond models for simulating wave scattering from weak adhesive bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers an alternative to hydraulic drives – electromechanical drives based on roller screw mechanisms. We consider the ball screw and roller screw mechanism, compare their characteristics, and prove the reasonability of equipping electromechanical drives with planetary roller screw mechanisms. In the western countries ball screw mechanisms have been used in many high-tech applications since the project on developing, testing, manufacturing and operating the supersonic “Concord” passenger airplanes. The Soviet Union also understood the prospects of roller screw mechanisms and planned to create a center for studying, testing and manufacturing roller screw mechanisms in Vladimir in collaboration with scientists of the local Polytechnical Institute (currently Vladimir State University). However, this plan was not implemented due to the economic turmoil of the 1990s; the research on roller screw mechanisms was limited to Vladimir State University. The second center for research on roller screw mechanisms is located in Bauman Moscow State Technical University. These scientists have to catch up with the western producers of roller screw mechanisms. Lately, these scientists have joined their efforts with the leading producers of roller screw mechanisms in Russia: Group of Companies “Diakont”, LLC «Arzamas Instrument Design Bureau», JSC «Arzamas Instrument Plant named after P.I.Plandin», FSUE Production Association «Sever», Group of Companies «Progressive Technologies» and other organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students typically gain exposure to project management (PM) techniques through capstone senior design projects, however, many students would benefit from a greater depth of study. This has been indicated through student surveys and industry feedback. To support this, three departments within The Ohio State University (OSU) College of Engineering have developed complementary courses that cover topics in project management. In addition, students engaged in extra-curricular student projects, such as the EcoCAR 3 project, must practice project management techniques to manage multi-person teams on deliverable-oriented projects. This paper offers a review of these three courses within Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and Integrated Systems Engineering. An overview of the techniques applied by the EcoCAR 3 project are also included as a proxy for the many student engineering projects that are on OSU's campus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of new structural concepts employing composites in primary load carrying aerospace structures in UAVs, MAVs, Boeing 787s, Airbus A380s, etc., necessitates the inclusion of flexibility as well as viscoelasticity in static structural and aero-viscoelastic analyses. Differences and similarities between aeroelasticity and aero-viscoelasticity have been investigated in [2]. An investigation is undertaken as to the dependence and sensitivity of aerodynamic and stability derivatives to elastic and viscoelastic structural flexibility and as to time dependent flight and maneuver velocities. Longitudinal, lateral and directional stabilities are investigated. It has been a well established fact that elastic lifting surfaces are subject to loss of control effectiveness and control reversal at certain flight speeds, which depend on aerodynamic, structural and material properties [5]. Such elastic analyses are extended to linear viscoelastic materials under quasi-static, dynamic, and sudden and gradual loading conditions. In elastic wings one of the critical static parameters is the velocity at which control reversal takes place *** Since elastic formulations constitute viscoelastic initial conditions, viscoelastic reversal may occur at speeds VREV but furthermore does so in time at 0 < tREV ≤ ∞. The influence of the twin effects of viscoelastic and elastic materials and of variable flight velocities on longitudinal, lateral, directional and spin stabilities are also investigated. It has been a well established fact that elastic lifting surfaces are subject to loss of control effectiveness and control reversal at certain flight speeds, which depend on aerodynamic, structural and material properties [5]. Such elastic analyses are here extended to linear viscoelastic materials under quasi-static, dynamic, and sudden and gradual loading conditions. In elastic wings the critical parameter is the velocity at which control reversal takes place ***. Since elastic formulations constitute viscoelastic initial conditions, viscoelastic reversal may occur at speeds VREV *** but furthermore does so in time at 0 < tREV ≤ ∞. This paper reports on analytical analyses and simulations of the effects of flexibility and time dependent material properties (viscoelasticity) on aerodynamic derivatives and on lateral, longitudinal, directional and spin stability derivatives. Cases of both constant and variable flight and maneuver velocities are considered. Analytical results for maneuvers involving constant and time dependent rolling velocities are analyzed, discussed and evaluated. The relationships between rolling velocity p and aileron angular displacement ß as well as control effectiveness are analyzed and discussed in detail for elastic and viscoelastic wings. Such analyses establish the roll effectiveness derivatives ***. Similar studies involving other stability and aerodynamic derivatives are also undertaken. The influence of the twin effects of viscoelastic and elastic materials and of variable flight, rolling, pitching and yawing velocities on longitudinal, lateral and directional are also investigated. Variable flight velocities, encountered during maneuvers, render the usually linear problem at constant velocities into a nonlinear one. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a large amount of overlap in Mechanical (ME) and Aerospace Engineering (AsE) curricula, and yet the student populations look quite different in terms of race and gender representation. This study includes institutional data from 6 institutions, all of which offered ME and AsE over the period 1987-2010. This large sample (over 20,000 first-time-in-college engineering students) allows us to adopt an intersectional framework to study race and gender together. In this paper, we examine the demographics of students in ME and AsE and their sixyear graduation rates. Then we consider the exchange of students between these two similar disciplines and how that affects the graduation rate of each. Overall, ME does not recruit many women, but it retains many to graduation. AsE, however, has recruitment and retention patterns that highlight the intersectionality of race and gender. For example, being a Hispanic female in AsE is more complex than just the superposition of being a Hispanic student in AsE and being a female in AsE. Within each racial/ethnic group, men who start in engineering choose AsE and ME at higher rates than women who start in engineering. In Aero, the gender gaps are small to moderate among White, Hispanic, and Asian students, with a larger gap between Black men and women choosing AsE (9% vs. 4%). Mechanical Engineering on the other hand, has large gender gaps within all racial/ethnic groups with more men than women choosing ME Many students switch from AsE to ME and vice versa. By studying the differences between AsE and ME and the exchange between them, both disciplines can learn from each other about how to improve their recruiting and retention of underrepresented groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development towards the use of composites is rising rapidly to ameliorate the architectural work of space shuttle and army airships became trendy in the previous two decagon of the preceding century. For Progression of any materials cost minimization during manufacturing and operation are the main technology drivers. Nowadays copper and its alloy based composites are gaining importance in upcoming field of engineering. Since several years, copper-based metal matrix composites (MMCs) are gaining importance in production field. The key factors which make copper-based metal matrix composites important are Low density, enhanced fatigue strength, high corrosion resistance and higher specific strength [5]. From time to time Composite materials are gaining importance in the field of aerospace, automobile and transport construction industries as they have certain advantages over other conventional metals [9].Some properties are pooled in Metal matrix composites (MMCs) which include Metallic properties such as toughness and ductility, and ceramic properties, such as elastic modulus and high strength, which bequeath shear strength providing service at high temperatures. Different reinforcements (fibers, particles, flakes, and/or fillers) embedded in a matrix (polymers, metals, or ceramics).for composition of a composite material. During composition MMC's the work matrix is to seize the reinforcement to organize the desired shape while the reinforcement pays attention in enhancing the required mechanical properties of the matrix. Composites is generally made from reinforcements or reinforcing material which are known to be one or more irregular phases and the continuous phase called matrix in which reinforcements are embedded. The material is then characterized by the different types of analysis like tensile, impact, hardness, along with thermal analysis such as XRD and DTA. This paper is aimed to review the theory, experiments and methodology to fabricate copper metal matrix composites (CMMC) and also the characterization of fabricated material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fly ash is a by-product obtained from coal power plants. Over the past two decades, handling this industrial waste has been a great challenge for many developing countries. However, this menace can be used in many industrial applications viz., civil, automobile and aerospace applications. In civil industry, the fly ash has been used in concreate to enhance the porosity that increases the curing time of the concrete. The fly ash has been gaining importance these days as a feedstock material for many thermal spray processes. In automobile sector, the fly ash has been used as a thermal barrier coating in IC engines, whereas in aerospace industry, which demands lighter and stronger materials, the fly ash has been used as a reinforcement material. Hence, so far, fly ash has been used as an either single or a composite feed stock material in thermal spray processes. The fly ash with other materials like alumina, titania and red mud have been deposited using thermal spray processes. These coatings have exhibited higher wear, corrosion and erosion resistance as compared to the uncoated specimens. In this paper, a brief review on fly ash and its use, especially its use as a feed stock in thermal spray coating, is presented. Therefore, the use of fly ash has opened a new frontier of research in thermal spray coating area where economically viable coatings can be produced using industrial waste like fly ash. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerospace engineering students at the Florida Institute of Technology are required to complete a 3-semester capstone design project. In their junior year students propose topics, form teams, and write a proposal for their senior project, then as seniors they complete preliminary and detailed design, then fabricate and test their system. Their efforts culminate in a Student Design Showcase, where industry participants judge the final projects. Many students identify the capstone design project as the most significant event in their academic career. In this paper we describe changes made in the aerospace engineering capstone curriculum during the 2016-2017 season and report results from surveys administered by the School of Psychology during that period. The course modification goals were to improve project quality, increase student engagement, and emphasize "real-world" professional skills like self-management, teamwork, and communication. Students took individual difference and process surveys hosted by the School of Psychology to capture these professional skills. The first student survey measured individual differences that are generally considered relatively stable over time and are predictive of performance; these individual differences include personality traits (e.g., introversion, conscientiousness) and competencies (e.g., political skills, adaptability). Students then completed a series of process surveys designed to gain insight on team behavior and performance over the life of the project. Average student scores on personality traits and competencies were compared to see if there was a change before and after the completion of capstone design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the evaluation with experimental data of an ANFIS based INS/GPS integrated navigator. The experimental model of the INS/GPS navigator has been manufactured in the Aerospace Engineering laboratories of the University of Craiova, Romania, during a research project. This hardware structure was developed around an inertial module (inertial detection unit) incorporating three analogous miniaturized inertial sensors (LPY510AL - Biaxial analog gyro, LPR510AL - Biaxial analog gyro, MMA7361L - Three-axial analog accelerometer), by adding a GPS module (u-blox NEO-6M) and a dsPIC33EP512MU810 microcontroller. The data from inertial sensors were acquired with a sample rate of 100 samples/s, while the GPS receiver provided data once per second. To equalize the sampling rate of the two systems before the data fusion, an ANFIS extrapolator for the GPS lost data has been used. Boarded on a testing car, in a first phase the system provided the experimental data necessary to tune the ANFIS based data fusion algorithm. The training data were provided by the system clock, by the six channels of the inertial detection unit, by the attitude information and by the estimates of the positioning and speed errors obtained at the output of the Kalman filter included in the integrated navigator. The ANFIS structure includes six channels, each one with a Fuzzy Inference System (FIS), estimating the navigation errors for global position components (latitude, longitude and altitude) and for vehicle speed in North, East and Down directions. The navigator has been successfully tested with experimental data acquired in three different scenarios: open sky detection (access to GPS signal all the time), GPS signal interruption, INS detection only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diamond SP-NDE Aircraft's route from 31.01.2018 on the basis of The Aircraft Monitoring System (AMS) was presented. Data were collected by using AMS and navigational parameters were described. Peculiar aircraft route in this paper was presented. W artykule przedstawiono wybraną trasę lotu statku powietrznego. The Aircraft Monitoring System (AMS) uses GNSS technology for Aircraft positioning. Abovementioned system is operational since 2013 in Polish Airforce Academy. Aircrafts can be continuously monitored thus the process of pilot training si more effective. Moreover, AMS deliver an accurate position of peculiar plane. AMS has big database since 2013 up to nowadays. Moreover, it is possible to choose any day for plane's route analysis. Real time data and flight monitoring is also possible. Data loggers start at the moment when plane's engines are turned on and last to the moment when engines are turned off. System's receivers were mount on five planes. - Diamond. Playback of data can be done and navigational parameters can bee further analysed such as: -relative height of an Aircraft, -Aircraft's velocity and course -distance from a touchdown point -Longitude, Latitude, and elipsoidal height. There is an additional advantage of AMS. It is possible to see in the graphical view section what is real-time Aircraft situation on the ILS, and GPS height is instantaniously comparable to the ILS parameters. Moreover, at the Airport map there is a WGS-84 Aircraft's position, and there is a real-time compass with a magnetic course parameter visible in the database system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to measure and quantify the polarization of ultrasonic waves has led to the development of novel non-destructive diagnostic tools, which rely on the sensitivity of polarization to surface roughness, cracks, temperature and residual stresses, among others. In particular, the following paper provides an analytical description of polarized Lamb wave components that yield an elliptical, rotated profile of the particle trajectory. The formulation includes Lamb waves generated by a circular piezoelectric disc, along with descriptions of bi-modal and single mode polarization characteristics. A technique is proposed that utilizes the elliptical orientation as a damage identification parameter for guided wave structural interrogation techniques. The technique is applied to finite element models of aluminum and composite armor-like structures. This analytical formulation is compared to experimental Lamb wave polarization results, where polarized Lamb wave components are extracted from complex, homogenous aluminum specimens using a 3D Scanning Laser Doppler Vibrometry setup. The experimental results show that the proposed technique allows for improved damage characterization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a swept high-frequency eddy current (SHFEC) measurement method developed for electromagnetic nondestructive characterization of residual stresses in shot peened aerospace materials. In this approach, we regard shot-peened surfaces as modified surface layers of varying conductivity, and determine the conductivity deviation profile by inversion of the SHFEC data. The SHFEC measurement system consists of a pair of closely matched printed-circuit-board coils driven by laboratory instrument under software control. This provides improved sensitivity and high frequency performance compared to conventional coils, so that swept frequency EC measurements up to 50 MHz can be made to achieve the smallest skin depth of 80 μm for nickel-based superalloys. We devised a conductivity profile inversion procedure based on the laterally uniform multi-layer theory of Cheng, Dodd and Deeds. The main contribution of this paper is the methodology validation. Namely, the forward and inverse models were validated against measurements on artificial layer specimens consisting of metal films with different conductivities placed on a metallic substrate. The inversion determined the film conductivities which were found to agree with those measured using the direct current potential drop (DCPD) method. © 2007 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need of a continuously increasing size and performance of aerospace structures has settled the composite materials as the preferred materials in aircraft structures. Apart from the clear capacity to reduce the structural weight and with it the manufacture cost and the fuel consumption while preserving proper airworthiness, the prospect of tailoring a structure using the unique directional stiffness properties of composite materials allows an aerospace engineer to optimize aircraft structures to achieve particular design objectives. This paper presents a brief review of what is known as the aeroelastic tailoring of airframes with the intent of understanding the evolution of this research topic and at the same time providing useful references for further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cornell University's Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the College of Engineering's Engineering Communications Program (ECP) have developed a sophomore to senior, communication-across-the-curriculum plan, called the "MAE/ECP Initiative," to meet the needs of students, faculty, the college, and industry alike in their quest to heighten the preprofessional skills of graduating students. At its core, the partnership encourages the students' development of communicative self-efficacy in meeting the complex communicative demands related to performing technical work in mechanical and aerospace engineering. This paper discusses the pedagogical framework, the research paradigm, the foundational concepts (engineering communication: communicative practice, context, communicative design, and engineering identity), communication modalities (written, oral, visual, electronic) and outcomes (including ABET alignments) as collected by our two years of student survey data. The incredible success of Year1's quantitative findings are outlined in full. For example, in response to our communicative self-efficacy survey, the scores across all communicative modalities increased substantially (changing from low-medium to mid-high range) for all the students taking the pilot. In addition, on 17 of the 23 items on the survey, 80% of the pilot students scored in the high range. We believe that it safe to claim that the pilot has had a profound and very positive impact on students' reported communicative self-efficacy in MAE engineering contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purdue University's Aeronautical Engineering Technology (AET) program is engaging in curriculum development to cultivate the commercial space engineering technologists of the future. The engineering technologist is intended to be positioned between the design engineers who create the design, and the technicians who build and maintain the systems. The engineering technologist discipline has long been recognized in aircraft design and support, but is still an evolving area in the commercial space industry. The evolution continues as the new commercial space companies mature into organizational structures like legacy aerospace companies. The existing aviation focused engineering technology curriculum at Purdue prepares students for the needs of the aviation and aerospace industry today; however, the needs of the commercial space industry are different and require a different set of specialized knowledge in addition to the complementary knowledge. In this paper, the case is presented for the importance of the engineering technologist in the emerging commercial space industry. The case is also made for the value of having an engineering technology program that is combined with an external accreditation standard of sufficient standing to provide stability of the curricula in the program. Purdue's AET bachelor's degree program is accredited by the ABET - Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission (ABET-ETAC). Incorporation of the goals of Purdue's IMPACT program are also discussed. Finally, the development of program outcomes of a first sophomore/junior course in a planned minor in space operations program are developed and mapped to the educational outcomes established by the AET program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) offer an exciting platform to teach students about basic principles of aerospace engineering and the systems engineering design process, and to utilize these for investigation of important scientific phenomena. The widespread popularity of UAS, the emergence of affordable and capable systems, and recent advances in policy by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have created a permissive climate where these may be effectively used by students as a means by which to conduct scientific research or may serve as the focus of a systems engineering design project in their own right. UAS-based projects and hands-on courses provide stimulating and relevant learning opportunities many students are seeking today. While rapid prototyping is commonly used in making components for widely popular rotary-wing UAS (generally in the form of 3D printed components), similar technology may be brought to bear on the design and fabrication of somewhat more complex fixed-wing aircraft. In addition to 3D printing, the efficient design of fixed-wing UAS often requires the use of composite materials, larger sizes, complex geometries, and novel fabrication techniques. Additional challenges include the need for precise control of weight and balance, control surfaces, and desired flying qualities throughout the range of flight regimes for fixed-wing UAS. This paper describes efforts being employed within University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) courses, student research activities and clubs to further the design and construction techniques used in fixedwing UAS assets, and how these assets will support UAF's research portfolio. It also briefly outlines existing efforts and potential future activities to offer UAS-related STEM opportunities to local high school and middle school students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of the preparation of the self-study for an ABET accreditation visit is collecting and formatting data on faculty, courses, facilities, and equipment. This part of the preparation can be tedious, but it is not open to interpretation by those preparing the document. It is ABET Criterion 4 (Continuous Improvement) that creates the most confusion and most often leads to problems. Criterion 4 requires creation and implementation of processes for assessment of the degree of student attainment of specific Student Outcomes (SOs) and the use of this (and other) information in a continuous improvement of the program. There is often confusion about what data to collect, how to analyze it, and how to present the results in the program's self-study. The goal of this paper is to provide engineering programs with a workable design-based example of a system that has successfully met the requirements of ABET Criterion 4. The author, an experienced ABET evaluator, developed the system for the aerospace engineering program at the University of Texas at Austin and evolved it during the 2010-2016 ABET cycle. The system resulted in a successful ABET visit in fall 2016 as no program deficiencies or weaknesses were cited by the ABET visitor at the end of the visit. The author's experiences as an ABET evaluator and as a design instructor led to the decision to use design methodology in the satisfaction of Criterion 4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the latest introduction of the dry multiaxial fabrics into Aeronautical applications/programs (wing skins, Vertical Tail Plane [VTP] skins, winglets, bulkheads, cargo doors, etc.), together with the lack of automation for the preform creation and its deposition onto the corresponding molds, this paper will cover different potential solutions for the manufacturing of skins and stiffeners. In all cases, looking to the automated dry multiaxial fabric preform creation, lay-up and forming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]