Team of undergraduate engineering students secures 1st place at international conference

June 4, 2013 - A team of undergraduate engineering students secured a first place win in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Region 4 Student Paper Contest held at the 2013 IEEE International Conference on Electro/Information Technology (EIT) from May 9-11 in Rapid City, S. Dak.

Electrical engineering majors Steve Fenton, Jiao Liang, Brian Olszewski and Brian Tworek presented their research, "RFID Positioning Robot: An Indoor Navigation System." Assistant professor of electrical engineering Kumar Yelamarthi served as their mentor.

The students all graduated last month and have since moved on in their careers: Steve Fenton is a college graduate-in-training at 6M Power Train in Pontiac, Mich.; Jiao Liang is off to the west coast and to graduate school, pursuing an M.S. in electrical engineering at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles; Brian Olszewski has taken a position as a staff engineer at Design Systems, Inc. in Farmington Hills, Mich.; and Brian Tworek is working as a systems engineer at Schrader Electronics in Auburn Hills, Mich.

IEEE, an association dedicated to advancing innovation and technological excellence for the benefit of humanity, is the world's largest technical professional society with more than 425,000 members in over 160 countries. It is designed to serve professionals involved in all aspects of the electrical, electronic and computing fields and related areas of science and technology that underlie modern civilization.

Team Chippewa Performance places 2nd best in state and 29th in world at Baja SAE 2013 Collegiate Design Series competition

May 13, 2013 - CMU's Baja Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) team recently placed second best in the state at the Baja SAE 2013 Collegiate Design Series competition held at Tennessee Tech University from April 18-21 in Cookeville, Tenn.

One hundred teams from across the globe gathered at TTU's 300-acre Shipley Farm - where courses and events were set up over woods, creeks, hillsides and other obstacles - to challenge each team's best design.

Team Chippewa Performance - consisting of recent CMU graduate Tony Bolek, seniors Ryan Brew, Travis Bussell, Michael Grundner, Derek Hoffman, Megan Leonard, Garrett Mancillas and Daniel Matash, and sophomores Derek Donovan, Michael Gollin, Nicholas Nelson and Jesse Smith - placed second best in the state (just over 200 points behind the University of Michigan) and 29th in the world.

Baja SAE consists of three regional competitions that simulate real-world engineering design projects and related challenges. Engineering technology students are tasked to design and build an off-road vehicle that will survive the severe punishment of races that cover rough terrain and sometimes water.

The object of the competitions is to provide SAE student members with a challenging project that involves the planning and manufacturing tasks found when introducing a new product to the consumer industrial market. Teams compete against one another to have their design accepted for manufacture by a fictitious firm. Students must function as a team to design, build, test, promote and race a vehicle within the limits of the rules. They also must generate financial support for their project.

Mechanical engineering technology major Eric Fisher makes history in the 2013 NFL Draft, picked No. 1 overall by Kansas City Chiefs

April 25, 2013 - CMU offensive tackle and mechanical engineering technology major Eric Fisher was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 National Football League Draft, selected by the Kansas City Chiefs.

A native of Rochester, Mich., Fisher was among a trio of offensive linemen - including Texas A&M tackle Luke Joeckel and Oklahoma tackle Lane Johnson - that were projected to go within the top 10 picks. Fisher was a first team all-MAC selection as a senior and was a part of two bowl wins at CMU - the 2010 GMAC Bowl and the 2012 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl.

In December 2012, Fisher was considered one of the top-32 players available in the 2013 NFL Draft. He joins Joe Staley (selected at No. 28 in 2007) as the only Chippewa ever to be picked in the first round of an NFL Draft. With his No. 1 status, Fisher becomes the highest selection in CMU and Mid-American Conference history.

Hear more about Fisher's academic career from CMU engineering and technology associate professor Dru Wilson - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnKOxDCl0Ro

CMU engineering students harvesting pedestrian energy to produce electricity

Electrical panel to provide renewable energy to power temperature display

March 4, 2013 - Central Michigan University engineering students are constructing an electrical panel that will serve as a vibrational energy harvester to create renewable energy for powering a temperature display. The panel, which will be located in the entrance of CMU's Engineering and Technology building, will generate electricity by using the vibrations of pedestrian footsteps as they walk in and out of the facility.

Assistant professor of engineering Tolga Kaya says the student-led project could lead to the development of self-sustainable electric systems to be used in settings highly populated by pedestrians like subway stations or settings that experience heavy vehicle traffic like highways.

"This project is about generating energy through human steps and using that energy to sustain a system without batteries," Kaya said. "This is a small prototype. If this works, similar panels could be installed in train stations and other high traffic areas so that these facilities can be self-sustainable and generate their own energy."

The panel is being constructed as part of a senior design project for engineering students with a budget of $1,500.

The panel is scheduled for completion in April. If the project is a success and the panel is self-sustainable, Kaya imagines it will remain at the entrance of the building in the future.

The project began in the fall with four students conducting the research that would make the second-semester design phase successful. For the students who created the project, there's a genuine interest in the technology that goes beyond the requirements of the course work.

"I have always had an interest in energy harvesters like wind turbines and power dams," said White Lake senior Robert Balma. "It's fun to see something being powered from nothing."

Canton senior Justin Scaparo says the project has been challenging, but the experience he's getting has been very valuable.

"We've had to use a lot of our own research to be innovative in what we're trying to do," Scaparo said. "We're working together, bringing together pieces of our own expertise, to develop new applications using the technology that is out there. It gives me the opportunity to bring what I learn in class to life."

Media Contact: Danny Goodwin Jr., 989-774-1072


Students race cardboard boats across Rose Ponds in annual Homecoming event

October 21, 2012 - Thirty five boats set sail for the 15th annual Cardboard Boat Race at this year's Homecoming. The event, sponsored by the School of Engineering and Technology, took place at the Rose Ponds before the CMU football game and featured 28 teams from the Introduction to Engineering class, as well as student groups who participated in the open competition.

The purpose of the race is for engineering students to apply the basic elements of engineering to build the best boat they can. Teams were only allowed to use certain amounts of duct tape, cardboard and liquid nails in the construction of their vessels. After the teams crossed the first pond, they had to carry their boats to the second pond and sail around the statue in the water before reaching the finish line, a total distance of 300-400 yards.

More than 200 participants competed in seven heats. Nine boats sank before reaching the end of the second pond.

Floating Titanic won the first heat and also took first place with a time of 5 minutes and 45 seconds. The record for the fastest time in the history of the event was set in 2010 by the ASME with a time of 4 minutes and 58 seconds.

National Science Foundation grant at CMU impacts high school curriculum

August 23, 2012 - Thanks to a $450,000 National Science Foundation grant awarded to Central Michigan University, a handful of high school teachers will return to their classrooms this fall with new ideas and lesson plans that will incorporate more engineering into the curriculum.

The teachers - from Alma, Bay City, Saginaw and Midland - spent the past six weeks researching at CMU where they were paired with CMU engineering faculty and CMU engineering and teacher education students. CMU's Center for Excellence in Education - an entity that provides professional development for teachers - also assisted as coaches during the program.

"Our research theme is smart vehicles, robotics and even the biomedical sciences," said Tolga Kaya, a CMU assistant professor of engineering. "We are very excited to have this great collaboration with engineers and teachers."

CMU teacher education students also will be taking new lesson plans into their student teaching experiences.

The NSF grant will continue over the next three years with CMU teaching coaches and engineering faculty who will be visiting the classrooms of those teachers and teacher education students who are involved in the program.

"There is a lot of excitement and energy related to this NSF program," said Raymond Frances, interim director of CMU's Center for Excellence in Education. "We're looking forward to getting into the classrooms this fall. They've expanded their knowledge base in a lot of areas and it's going to be interesting to see how it progresses into the school year and beyond."

To learn more about the grant and this program, visit their blog at https://sites.google.com/site/cmunsfresearchproject2012.

CMU engineering undergraduate studies ACL injuries at the University of Michigan

July 25, 2012 - CMU School of Engineering and Technology undergraduate student Kathryn M. Van Ham recently participated in the 2012 Summer Research Opportunity Program. A mechanical engineering major, Van Ham worked with Dr. David Lipps at the University of Michigan Biomechanics Research Laboratory, studying mechanisms of anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

Van Ham plans on continuing her research over the next year and possibly using it for her CMU Honors Senior Research Project.

>> View a video about her research experience.

Petsch receives President's Award for Undergraduate Research and Creative Accomplishments

March 28, 2012 - Electrical engineering major Kevin Petsch was recently nominated by Dr. Ian Davison, dean of the College of Science and Technology, for the Provost's Award for Undergraduate Research and Creative Accomplishments.