New Approach to Inflated Solar Aerial Vehicles, Self-Powered Dynamic Systems, Bio-inspired Micro Air Vehicles (Energy Independent Electric Vehicles 2017)

Self-Powered Dynamic Systems

The energy that is needed for operating a self-powered device is provided by the energy excess in the system in the form of kinetic energy, renewable energy, or a combination of regenerative and renewable energy. This research addresses the energy exchange issues pertaining to regenerative and renewable energy in the development of a self-powered dynamic system. A rigorous framework that explores the supply and demand of energy for self-powered systems is developed, which considers uncertainties and optimal bounds, in the context of optimal uncertainty quantification. Examples of regenerative and solar-powered systems are given, and the analysis of self-powered feedback control for developing a fully self powered dynamic system is discussed.

 

Self-powered and Bio-inspired dynamic systems: Research and Education

Animals are products of nature and have evolved over millions of years to perform better in their activities. Engineering research and development can benefit greatly by looking into nature and finding engineering solutions by learning from animals' evolution and biological systems. Another relevant factor in the present context is highlighted by the statement of the Nobel laureate Richard Smalley: "Energy is the single most important problem facing humanity today." This research focuses on how the research and education in the area of Dynamic Systems can be geared towards these two considerations. In particular, recent advances in self-powered dynamic systems and bio-inspired dynamic systems are highlighted. Self-powered dynamic systems benefit by capturing wasted energy in a dynamic system and converting it into useful energy in the mode of a regenerative system, possibly in conjunction with renewable energies. Examples of solar-powered vehicles, regenerative vibration control, and energy harvesting are presented. Particularly, development of solar-powered quadrotor, octocopter, and tricopter airships are presented, a self-powered vibration control of a mass-spring system using electromagnetic actuators/generators, and piezoelectric flutter energy harvesting using bi-stable material are discussed. As examples of bio-inspired dynamic systems, flapping wing flying robots, vertical axis wind turbines inspired by fish schooling, propulsion inspired by jellyfish, and Psi Intelligent Control are given. In particular, various design and developments of bird-inspired and insect-inspired flapping wings with the piezoelectric and electromagnetic actuation mechanisms, a scaled vertical axis wind turbine farm consist of 4 turbines and the corresponding wind tunnel testing, jellyfish-inspired pulsing jet and experimenting the increase in efficiency of energy consumption, and a multi-agent/robotic based predictive control scheme inspired by Psi precognition (event or state not yet experienced). Examples of student projects and research carried out at Brunel University and the experimental rigs built (in all the mentioned areas) are discussed, as an integrated research and educational activity. For the analysis and understanding of the behavior of self-powered and bio-inspired systems, Optimal Uncertainty Quantification (OUQ) is used. OUQ establishes a unified analysis framework in obtaining optimized solutions of the dynamic systems responses, which takes into account uncertainties and incomplete information in the simulation of these systems.

 

Self-powered Solar Aerial Vehicles: Towards Infinite Endurance UAVs

We have developed Novel solar-powered multi-rotor electric unmanned aerial vehicles. The aerial vehicles include quad-rotor, tri-rotor, and octo-rotor configurations which take advantage of buoyancy force for lift, and solar energy for the power demand. Self-powered scheme is explored in achieving long endurance operation, with the use of solar power and buoyancy lift, towards "infinite" endurance capability in correspondence to the dynamics, control and maneuvering, and duty cycles of UAVs. Non-dimensional power terms are obtained which can be used in design of self-powered aerial vehicles. Such aerial vehicles can overcome the limited flight time of current electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicles with the promise of fulfilling the great demand in this area with many applications. https://sites.google.com/a/mail.fresnostate.edu/khoshnoud/

Farbod Khoshnoud is an associate professor of mechanical engineering at California State University, Fresno, USA. His current research areas include Self-powered Dynamic Systems and Biologically Inspired Dynamic Systems. He was a Lecturer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Brunel University London, UK, 2014-16. He was a senior lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire before joining Brunel, 2011-2014. He was a visiting scientist and postdoctoral researcher in the Industrial Automation Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada, 2007-2012. He was a visiting researcher at California Institute of Technology, USA, 2009-2011. He carried out postdoctoral research in the Department of Civil Engineering at UBC, 2005-2007. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Brunel University in 2005. He has worked in industry as a mechanical engineer for over six years. He is an associate editor of the journal of Control and Intelligent systems.

California State University Fresno (Fresno State) has roots dating back to 1911, when the doors of the Fresno State Normal School opened to 150 hopeful students. Today, the student population is more than 24,000 and the University has garnered national attention for its rise in college rankings.

 

About the college of Engineering:

Engineering education first began at Fresno State in 1922.

 

The Lyles College of Engineering is the only publicly supported engineering college in the San Joaquin Valley offering a wide-range of undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering and construction management. The mission of the college includes developing each student's potential to the greatest extent possible, provide a quality engineering education to all students and to serve students from groups that historically have not participated in a university education.

Civil, Geomatics, Electrical, Computer, and Mechanical Engineering are nationally accredited through the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) at the same standards applied to all other engineering schools and colleges nationwide. Construction Management is accredited by the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE).