Month: September 2012

Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics Graduate Seminar: September 27, 2012; 4:00 – 5:00 p.m., Room 112, ME-EM Building

Dr. Waruna D. Kulatilaka, Spectral Energies, LLC, Dayton, OH
Air Force Research Laboratory, Propulsion Directorate, WPAFB, OH

Dr. Waruna D Kulatilaka is a Research Scientist at and Spectral Energies, LLC working for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Over the years, he has made outstanding contribution towards the advancement of non-intrusive laser-based diagnostics for propulsion systems, using the stateof- the-art ultrafast lasers as well as fiber optic diagnostic systems. Some examples include, femtosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (fs- CARS) and femtosecond two-photon laser-induced fluorescence (fs-TPLIF) for high-repetition-rate one- and two-dimensional imaging of temperature and species concentration in reacting flows and plasmas and numerous fiberbased diagnostic developments using nanosecond and picosecond pulse duration lasers. Such measurement tools are already providing unprecedented levels of experimental data critical for validating complex turbulent combustion models, facilitating improved combustion efficiency and reduced pollutant formation in propulsion and power generation applications. He has published over 30 peer-reviewed journal articles as well as over 100 presentations and posters in national and international conferences along with a numerous of invited talks. Dr. Kulatilaka holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University and has extensive involvement in the Combustion Research Facility at the Sandia National Laboratories including his postdoctoral research work. He is an Associate Fellow of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), member of American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Optical Society of America (OSA), Combustion Institute (CI), and Society for Applied Spectroscopy (SAS). He was awarded the 2012 Outstanding Technical Contribution Award from the Dayton Section of the ASME.

Title: Fiber-Based Optical Diagnostics for Real-World Applications

Advances in nonintrusive laser-based diagnostic tools have had tremendous impact on our understanding of the fundamental physical and chemical characteristics of reacting flows such as flames and plasmas. However, application of such diagnostic methods in practical combustion devices, for example gas turbine combustors, are rather infrequent because of limited optical access as well as performance limitations of traditional laser systems. In recent years, our research group has made significant advances in developing optical-fiber-based linear and nonlinear optical diagnostic techniques such as particle-image velocimetry (PIV), laser-induced fluorescence (LIF), and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS). We exploit the fibercoupled point and planar imaging of temperature and key reaction species using laser sources in the repetition rate range 10–10,000 Hz. The effects of delivering intense visible and ultraviolet laser beams through long optical fibers are investigated, and the system improvements for allfiber- coupled CARS and planar LIF (PLIF) imaging systems are discussed. Furthermore, our research efforts extend to developing pulse-burst laser sources, which have the potential of extending data-acquisition bandwidths to the megahertz (MHz) regime for highly dynamic flow systems. Development of such fiber-based imaging systems and next-generation pulse-burst laser sources constitutes a major step in transitioning laser diagnostic tools from research laboratories to reacting flow facilities of practical interest.

Flyer

Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics Graduate Seminar: September 20, 2012; 4:00 – 5:00 p.m., Room 112, ME-EM Building

Professor Todd Murphey. Mechanical Engineering and Physical Therapy and Human Movement Science Northwestern University

Todd Murphey is an Associate professor of Mechanical Engineering
at Northwestern University, with a secondary appointment in Physical
Therapy and Human Movement Science. He received an undergraduate degree in mathematics from the University of Arizona and a Ph.D. in Control and Dynamical Systems from the California Institute of Technology. His a recipient of a National Science Foundation CAREER award. His research interests include computational methods in dynamics and control and design of embedded systems.

Title: Control Synthesis for Discrete Mechanical Systems

Mechanical systems are typically nonlinear and constrained and are often under actuated with many degrees of freedom. Moreover, the choice of numerical methods for simulation can have a dramatic impact on control synthesis, particularly for high degree-of-freedom systems. Integrated methods that are specifically applicable to mechanical systems, such as variation integrators, can make simulation much more stable at the cost of making control synthesis less intuitive. This talk highlights our recent work on software automation of control synthesis for mechanical systems, including the use of discrete mechanical system representations for nonlinear controller and estimator design. I will discuss animatronics marionettes and walking robots as example applications. The talk will end with a discussion
of the role that mechanical design plays in controlling impacting mechanical systems.

Flyer

Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics Graduate Seminar: September 13, 2012; 4:00 – 5:00 p.m., Room 112, ME-EM Building
Seminar Flyer

Dr. Chris Cotting, Master Instructor of Flying Qualities, U. S. Air Force Test Pilot School

Dr. Chris Cotting is the Master Instructor of Flying Qualities at the U. S. Air Force Test Pilot School in Southern California, where he is responsible for the aircraft dynamics, control, and handling qualities curriculum. He received a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in May of 2010, and has also earned a B. S. and M. S. in Aerospace Engineering from Mississippi State University. He is the recipient of three Project Achievement Awards from the Engineers Council Inc., the BAE Chairman’s Award for Innovation, and the Robert L. Wenning Outstanding Academic Instructor Award at USAF TPS. He was awarded the Best Paper in Atmospheric Flight Mechanics at the 43rd AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting (2005). He is a member of the AIAA Atmospheric Flight Mechanics Technical Committee. Dr. Cotting previously worked for NASA Dryden Flight Research Center as a Project Chief Engineer on both piloted and unpiloted aircraft. He also served as the X-43C chief of flight test and nonlinear control analysis lead for the X-43A Mishap Investigation Board. Before joining NASA, he worked at the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works on the X-33 (SSTO) and X-35 (JSF) programs. His research interests include handling qualities of piloted and unpiloted aircraft, as well as flying qualities analysis of aircraft nonlinear control systems.

An Overview of the USAF Test Pilot School, and A Framework for UAV Flying Qualities

The USAF Test Pilot School teaches flight test engineering with both a theoretical and applied approach. Our mission is to “Produce highly-adaptive, critical-thinking flight test professionals and future senior leaders to lead and conduct full-spectrum test and evaluation of aerospace weapon systems.” This seminar will introduce the Test Pilot School and research opportunities at Test Pilot School. This seminar will also discuss current topics in aircraft flying qualities. Flying qualities metrics were originally created to standardize and predict the performance of the human/aircraft system for a given task. As UAVs have become widely used, tools to predict their performance are also required. A discussion of whether or not piloted standards are applicable to UAVs will be presented as well as a framework for creating new UAV standards.
Dr. Chris Cotting is the Master Instructor of Flying Qualities at the U. S. Air Force Test Pilot School in Southern California, where he is responsible for the aircraft dynamics, control, and handling qualities curriculum. He received a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in May of 2010, and has also earned a B. S. and M. S. in Aerospace Engineering from Mississippi State University. He is the recipient of three Project Achievement Awards from the Engineers Council Inc., the BAE Chairman’s Award for Innovation, and the Robert L. Wenning Outstanding Academic Instructor Award at USAF TPS. He was awarded the Best Paper in Atmospheric Flight Mechanics at the 43rd AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting (2005). He is a member of the AIAA Atmospheric Flight Mechanics Technical Committee. Dr. Cotting previously worked for NASA Dryden Flight Research Center as a Project Chief Engineer on both piloted and unpiloted aircraft. He also served as the X-43C chief of flight test and nonlinear control analysis lead for the X-43A Mishap Investigation Board. Before joining NASA, he worked at the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works on the X-33 (SSTO) and X-35 (JSF) programs. His research interests include handling qualities of piloted and unpiloted aircraft, as well as flying qualities analysis of aircraft nonlinear control systems.

Topic: An Overview of the USAF Test Pilot School, and A Framework for UAV Flying Qualities

The USAF Test Pilot School teaches flight test engineering with both a theoretical and applied approach. Our mission is to “Produce highly-adaptive, critical-thinking flight test professionals and future senior leaders to lead and conduct full-spectrum test and evaluation of aerospace weapon systems.” This seminar will introduce the Test Pilot School and research opportunities at Test Pilot School. This seminar will also discuss current topics in aircraft flying qualities. Flying qualities metrics were originally created to standardize and predict the performance of the human/aircraft system for a given task. As UAVs have become widely used, tools to predict their performance are also required. A discussion of whether or not piloted standards are applicable to UAVs will be presented as well as a framework for creating new UAV standards.