3,079 research outputs found
Toray\u27s Touch Roll Manipulator
No full textThe goal of Easily Manipulated (EM) is to design and build an apparatus to effectively and efficiently manipulate a touch roll from a cart on the ground to the mounting chucks on a J6 slitter at Toray Plastics. The current process is long and involved, something that Toray is not happy with. EM has worked with the University of Rhode Island (URI) and Toray to come up with a solution that will minimize the amount of time needed to switch out the touch rolls and will only need one operator to make the process more efficient. the design had to satisfy Toray\u27s requirements of being lightweight, structurally sound, non-permanently a fixed to the slitter, and have the ability to be utilized at anytime. The design that EM has created complies with these parameters and also is a simply and easy to use design. The design being used combines a slide and a sleeve concept to be easily mounted to the winder arms on the J6 slitter and provides a bridge over the rotating floor to the mounting chuck. Because this design will be used while the winder arms are in an upright position, and the floor of the slitter rotates with the arms, a single operator will be able to push the touch rolls across the slides directly into the mounting chucks. The slide is fixed on the sleeve to not allow any rotation and maintain the simplicity of the project. The design has gone through multiple iterations and has continued to evolve over the past months. Right now the current build includes a wooden sleeve that has three sides that will fit snuggly around the winder arm, and a slide built out of 80/20 aluminum to demonstrate the overall strength of the design. The concept designed by EM will match the requirements set forth by Toray
On the Equilibrium-State Roll Vortices and Their Effects in the Hurricane Boundary Layer
No full textIn this study, the authors numerically simulate roll vortices (rolls) generated by the inflection-point instability in the hurricane boundary layer (HBL). The approach is based on embedding a two-dimensional high-resolution single-grid roll-resolving model (SRM) at selected horizontal grid points of an axisymmetric HBL model. The results from a set of idealized experiments indicate that the mixed-layer height is an important factor affecting the magnitude of the roll velocities and the structure of the internal waves triggered in the stably stratified layer above. This study reveals the important difference between the roll-induced cross-roll (nearly radial) and along-roll (nearly azimuthal) momentum fluxes: while the cross-roll momentum flux is well correlated to the cross-roll mean wind shear, the along-roll momentum flux is typically not correlated with the along-roll mean wind shear. Therefore, the commonly used K theory in the boundary layer parameterizations cannot reasonably capture the vertical distribution of the roll-induced along-roll momentum flux. Moreover, the authors find that the rolls induce more significant changes in the mean radial wind profile than in the mean azimuthal wind profile. Specifically, rolls reduce the inflow near surface, enhance the inflow at upper levels, and increase the inflow-layer height. Based on a linear dynamical HBL model, the authors find that the impact of rolls on the mean radial wind profile is essentially due to their redistribution effect on the mean azimuthal momentum in the HB
Rogers Corporation -- Roll Manipulator
No full textTeam 17 was challenged with designing a solution for material handling of rolled goods within the Rogers Corporation facility, located in Narragansett RI. The material handler must give operators a safe, ergonomic method to load and unload rolls from paste extrusion. Then transfer the material to mobile storage or slitting operations while avoiding damage to the rolls and reducing handling times.
In accordance with the objectives of this project, the preliminary design followed by the build and testing detailed in this report provides an elegant, ergonomic, and safe method of transferring rolled material up to 250 lbs from production to various operations in the facility. The Roll Manipulator includes a vertical lift driven by a hand winch; it handles the material rolls by the inner core avoiding any damage to the rolled material. An accessory has been added to accommodate the simply supported machining operations. It is then trans- ported via a u-shaped base. To achieve a product that satisfies the design specifications, the team saw fit to research different methods of transporting material which are currently used. From this, the goal was to extract key characteristics from various devices to conceive a total of 92 concepts. Three of the most relevant concepts were selected and a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) analysis was performed. The QFD provided the team with valuable information regarding the relevance of the customer requirements and the engineering characteristics Upon completion of the Critical Design Review presentation, insightful comments and questions were posed to the team which furthered the advancement of the three designs being considered. With the help of this new information and the QFD analysis the three designs were narrowed down to one. The next step in the design process was to use this single design to compute engineering analysis on the tower, material handler, dynamic stability, weld points, and the accessory. The analysis aided in attaining the final geometry of each component while ensuring the absence of failure. A bill of material was then created and prices were evaluated to ensure the budget was not exceeded. Throughout the spring semester the team focused on building a prototype which met the design specifications of the project. At the start of the semester the components and stock materials were ordered. The build occurred shortly thereafter. The entire rolling prototype frame was built in house by the team. The device was tested via the test matrices included in this paper, to ensure product functionality. The prototype was completed prior to the Build and Test presentation and was displayed at the Capstone Design Showcase in April. As a result, this product can prove to be an invaluable tool to Rogers Corporation, who is striving to meet on time delivery at competitive prices
The Humanities in Action: A Writer\u27s Perspective on the Border
No full textUrrea will deliver the keynote address at URI’s annual Spring Humanities Festival, an event that brings together the community across disciplinary boundaries to celebrate the importance and relevance of the humanities. The event, which starts at 4 p.m., will be streamed live on College of Arts and Sciences social media sites.
Hailed by NPR as a “literary badass” and a “master storyteller with a rock-and-roll heart,” Urrea is a prolific and acclaimed writer who uses his dual-culture life experiences to explore greater themes of love, loss, and triumph. A 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame, Urrea is the critically acclaimed and best-selling author of 17 books, winning numerous awards for his poetry, fiction, and essays.
Into the Beautiful North, his 2009 novel, is a Big Read selection by the National Endowment of the Arts and has been chosen by more than 50 different cities and colleges—including URI—as a community read. The Devil’s Highway, Urrea’s 2004 nonfiction account of a group of Mexican immigrants lost in the Arizona desert, won the Lannan Literary Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Pacific Rim Kiriyama Prize.
Born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and American mother, Urrea is most recognized as a border writer, although he says, “I am more interested in bridges, not borders.” His fictional and nonfiction accounts of the borders, and bridges, between Mexico and the United States make him uniquely qualified to comment on immigration and identity in the Americas
Bending Collapse Of Rectangular Section Tubes In Relation To The Bus Roll Over Problem
No full textThe thesis is concerned with the theoretical determination of the overall
and local effects on the collapse behaviour of bus structures in a roll
over situation. The aim is to enable an early selection of structural
components, so that the finished body can absorb enough energy and
preserve sufficient strength to meet the roll over safety requirements.
Chapter 1 gives an introduction into the bus roll over problem, discusses
the present safety legislation and reveals that there is very little
information on the performance of buses in real accidents and that no
collapse analysis of the complete structure or bending collapse of its
details had been undertaken.
The investigation into 21 bus roll over accidents, summarised in Chapter
2, showed that structural safety relies on both the overall collapse
modes and hinge properties. Theoretical determination of the overall
collapse mechanism and maximum strength of a typical British coach is
carried out in Chapter 3 using the CRASHD collapse program. Some
peculiarities of the finite element modelling are demonstrated and the
analysis indicates that the collapse mechanism can be controlled by
careful selection of various structural components. Chapter 4 emphasises
the importance of a better understanding of the hinge behaviour in
vehicle structures.
Bending collapse of rectangular section tubes is investigated in Chapter
5 for hinge rotation angles up to 30-50 degrees. The analysis starts
with determination of the maximum strength of sections which may buckle
within elastic range. Repeatability of local collapse mechanisms
enabled the definition of the appropriate theoretical model. Kinematic
theorem of the limit analysis is then applied to derive the formula for
the hinge moment-rotation curve. Particular attention is paid to the
selection of the appropriate material properties. The agreement with
experimental evidence (Chapter 6) was very good for the complete range
of tubes tested. This range includes practically all the standard
sections that are used in the general structural design.
The theory is used in Chapter 7 to optimise sections from the safety
point of view and, in combination with the CRASHD program, to predict
the collapse behaviour of beams, bus rings and complete structure entirely
on the theoretical basis. Static and dynamic tests of bus rings gave
good agreement with theory.
The practical aspects of the work have been emphasised throughout the
thesis. Detailed explanation of all the major decisions has increased
the volume of the text, but the author believes that this will prove
useful for practicing engineers. People interested in essentials only
are referred to Chapter 8 where all the most important conclusions are
given
Roll Waves in Overland Flow
No full textRoll waves are frequently observed in overland flow, especially in rill flow, which has an important effect on the development of soil erosion. Using one-dimensional St. Venant equations, this paper investigates the dynamics of periodic roll waves based on Dressler’s and Brock’s work. Under the assumption that the average flow depth equals the uniform flow depth, expressions of the roll-wave speed and roll-wave profile were obtained. Testing with the results observed by Brock (1970) for wave properties shows that these expressions can approximately describe the characteristics of periodic permanent roll waves. Numerical solutions of roll waves under specific conditions are found, which show that when a roll wave appears, the shear stress of flow increases, and the soil erosion accelerates
Species conservation in the era of digital big data
No full textThe Earth is in the midst of a global biodiversity crisis. Populations of plants and animals are declining dramatically, and thousands of species are predicted to go extinct in the coming century. This thesis explores how a new technological resource, digital ‘big data,’ can help conservationists combat this challenge. Big data has led to revolutionary advances in multiple fields but until recently has received limited attention in conservation. I focus on one aspect of big data, the data generated by people’s activity online, and on one type of conservation, the conservation of species. I develop methods to access and interpret data related to people’s interest in species using a prominent online platform, Wikipedia, and identify methodological challenges associated with this. I highlight the ability of Wikipedia pageviews to address questions of public interest in species across broad social and geographic scales and over vast numbers of online interactions. After developing methods to access and interpret relevant Wikipedia data, I explore patterns that these data reveal. I identify the biological traits of species that influence public attention and highlight the importance of seasonal and geographic patterns in determining public interest in species. I find that the presence and abundance of a species in a region is a significant predictor of its public interest across temporal and geographic scales. I conclude by identifying ways in which the insights revealed through these methods can be applied to conservation. Specifically, I argue that online data can provide awareness as to why people prefer, and thus are more inclined to conserve, some species rather than others; be used to systematically identify species of high interest at global and regional scales; monitor temporal and spatial variations in public attention; and, in some cases, track the distribution and abundance of species. I conclude that online big data are a valuable compliment to existing conservation methods. Knowing how to access and interpret these data should be part of every conservationist’s tool kit in the twenty-first century
Roll-to-Roll Fabrication of Solution Processed Electronics
No full textThe production of electronic devices using solution based (“wet”) deposition technologies has some decisive technical and commercial advantages compared to competing approaches like vacuum based (“dry”) manufacturing. Particularly, the potential to scale up production processes to large areas and high volumes by introducing continuous roll-to-roll (R2R) methods on flexible substrates has been the topic of intense studies from both applied research institutes and industry already for some years. Decisive steps forward have been achieved during that time, resulting in the dawn of commercial applications for a number of processes, while additional development work is still needed in some other fields. This review summarizes the work published during the last few years on the R2R printing and wet coating of electronic devices. An overview is presented of the basic operational principles for the most commonly used R2R printing and coating methods and techniques for proper web handling in R2R lines. Then, the most commonly used types of flexible substrate materials are introduced, followed by a review of the work published in the application areas of transparent conductor materials, printed electric connections, light emitting devices, photovoltaic energy generation, printed logic, and sensing.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Novel Aerospace Material
Film Cut Down Device
No full textTeam 23, sponsored by TORAY, Innovation by Chemistry, is asked to find a solution to their scrap film roll problem. The problem is that at TORAY, there are times where a film roll doesn’t meet the expectations of their clients. This can happen for many reasons, such as unevenly applied film that bunches up in certain areas or quality not being up to par. Their current solution for this problem is to have someone utilize a box cutter, and work by hand on cutting the roll until all 10.8 meters of roll have been taken off the roll core. This process creates many problems for the company, such as safety risks and wasting man hours. Toray is looking for a solution that will drastically lessen the time it takes to cut the film down, with safety being paramount. Team 23, which includes John Halloran, Stephen Herchen, Josh Taylor, Yorke Pretorius and Will Sheldon, have successfully created certain parameters for this design to fit into. This required extensive research and dedication. The team has generated a wide range of possible solutions and narrowed down the most efficient design. With the design proving to work, the stages of a prototype are looking promising
On the Generation of Roll Vortices Due to the Inflection Point Instability of the Hurricane Boundary Layer Flow
No full textHorizontal roll vortices, or rolls, are frequently observed in the hurricane boundary layer (HBL). Previous studies suggest that these rolls can be generated by the inflection point instability of the HBL flow. In this study we investigate the formation of rolls due to this mechanism in the axisymmetric HBL using a numerical approach that explicitly resolves rolls. The effects of mean HBL wind and stratification distributions on rolls are evaluated. We identify two important factors of the mean HBL wind that affect the characteristics of rolls. The dynamical HBL height affects the wavelength of rolls, and the magnitude of the mean wind shear affects the growth rate of rolls. As a result, under neutrally stratified HBL, the wavelength of rolls increases with the radius (out of the radius of maximum wind), while the growth rate of rolls decreases. The stratification also plays an important role in the generation of rolls. The stable stratification suppresses the growth of rolls because of the negative work done by the buoyancy force. Nonuniform stratification with a mixed layer has less suppressing effect on rolls. Rolls can trigger internal waves in the stably stratified layer, which have both vertically propagating and decaying properties. We derive analytical solutions for the internal waves, which relate the properties of the internal waves to the boundary layer rolls. We find the properties of the internal waves are affected by the mixed-layer height
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