Skills utilized: Electrical / Wiring, CAD, Machining, 3D Printing, LT Spice Simulation, Spreadsheet Calculators, Team Leadership and Funding
For my B.A. in Mechanical Engineering, my senior project team was selected to research and develop a full-scale energy system for a future public transit network. This is an ongoing research project which involved multiple disciplines of engineers for a future “podcar” public transit network titled “SPARTAN Superway” (Solar Powered Automated Rapid Transit Network).
My main responsibility was to research and develop Supercapacitors (A.K.A Ultracapacitors) to replace traditional Li-Ion cells for a full-scale power delivery system. I conducted electrical simulations in LTSplice to determine the optimal Supercapacitor series-parallel configuration and current/voltage requirements delivered to the electric powertrain.
I was also in charge of acquiring energy cells and other hardware through professional sponsorships as well as managing the entirety of each project’s financials (by allocating budgets and requesting school funds).
A spring loaded mechanism was designed to harness wayside (DC) power using a carbon brush interface repurposed from a DC motor.
Copper bus bars were laser cut to connect +/- terminals of parallel Supercapcitors.