(Press-News.org) CLEMSON — Clemson researchers redesigned and modified a mobile drill press to retrofit a section of a runway that halts overrun aircraft, ultimately minimizing aircraft damage and passenger injury.
The process of retrofitting the end of a runway at Greenville Downtown Airport required more than 80,000 holes to be drilled in the concrete. Pace Pavement Technologies Inc. recognized that manually drilling the holes was not an option and there needed to be a more efficient and accurate way to drill.
"We visited several machine shops and pneumatic suppliers and received minimal assistance in the design and build of a mobile drill press," said Carl Pace, president of Pace Pavement Technologies Inc. "Clemson University stepped up to the challenge and enjoyed taking on this project."
Seven Clemson University student researchers and their faculty adviser met with representatives from Pace Pavement Technologies Inc. to discuss the design problems and challenges related to their mobile drill press.
"We needed to reduce the weight of the machine by half so as to not cause any damage to the pavement underneath," Pace said.
The students began by redesigning the undercarriage and modifying the wheels to evenly spread the weight of the machine and reduce ground pressure.
"Clemson University student researchers truly went above and beyond their call of duty by not only reducing the ground pressure of the mobile drill press, but also improving the machine's overall performance and maneuverability," said Gregory Mocko, an assistant professor in Clemson's mechanical engineering department.
The students improved the overall performance of the machine by altering the plumbing, developing a gauge to adjust each drill simultaneously and adding a device that allows the operator to better control drill depth. They also published an operations and parts manual.
"I was overjoyed to have young minds really focused on this project," said Pace. "They gave this project the attention that it deserved and I truly hope we have the opportunity to work with Clemson again."
INFORMATION:
Mechanical engineering researchers Gregory Mocko, Mark Connelly, Curtis Duckett, Brock Fitschen, Shane Reid, Samuel Smith III, Chris West and Austin Wise completed the mobile drill press project.
Clemson researchers transform machine to make runways safer
2012-07-25
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Mindfulness meditation reduces loneliness in older adults, Carnegie Mellon study shows
2012-07-25
VIDEO:
For older adults, loneliness is a major risk factor for health problems -- such as cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's -- and death. Initial attempts to diminish loneliness with social networking...
Click here for more information.
PITTSBURGH—For older adults, loneliness is a major risk factor for health problems — such as cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's — and death. Attempts to diminish loneliness with social networking programs like creating community ...
GPS can now measure ice melt, change in Greenland over months rather than years
2012-07-25
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Researchers have found a way to use GPS to measure short-term changes in the rate of ice loss on Greenland – and reveal a surprising link between the ice and the atmosphere above it.
The study, published in the early online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, hints at the potential for GPS to detect many consequences of climate change, including ice loss, the uplift of bedrock, changes in air pressure – and perhaps even sea level rise.
The team, led by earth scientists at Ohio State University, pinpointed a period in 2010 ...
Wayne State develops better understanding of memory retrieval between children and adults
2012-07-25
DETROIT — Neuroscientists from Wayne State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are taking a deeper look into how the brain mechanisms for memory retrieval differ between adults and children. While the memory systems are the same in many ways, the researchers have learned that crucial functions with relevance to learning and education differ. The team's findings were published on July 17, 2012, in the Journal of Neuroscience.
According to lead author Noa Ofen, Ph.D., assistant professor in WSU's Institute of Gerontology and Department of Pediatrics, ...
A new route for tackling treatment-resistant prostate cancer
2012-07-25
Scientists have identified what may be the Peyton Manning of prostate cancer. It's a protein that's essential for the disease to execute its game plan: Grow and spread throughout the body.
Like any good quarterback, this protein has command over the entire field; not only does it control cell growth in tumors that are sensitive to hormone therapy, a common treatment for men with advanced disease, but also in tumors that grow resistant to such treatment – a dismal development that leaves men and their doctors with no good options to turn to.
In a study published in ...
Carnivores: Beware of ticks
2012-07-25
If you are a steak lover, enjoy your meat while you can. An article by Susan Wolver, MD, and Diane Sun, MD, from Virginia Commonwealth University in the US, and colleagues, explains why if you have been bitten by a tick, you may develop an allergy to red meat. Their article1 elucidates this connection and discusses the journey of the discovery. Their work appears online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine², published by Springer.
Delayed anaphylaxis - a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction - to meat is a new syndrome identified initially in the southeastern ...
Blue Ribbon Panel unveils findings on logistical improvements to support Antarctic science
2012-07-25
Today, the 12-member U.S. Antarctic Program Blue Ribbon Panel, commissioned by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) released their report, More and Better Science in Antarctica through Increased Logistical Effectiveness. The report is a comprehensive document based on several months of research, containing numerous specific recommendations for the U.S. logistics system for improved support of scientific research in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean.
"The Antarctica Blue Ribbon Panel encourages us to take ...
QM historians discover medieval banking records hidden under coats of arms
2012-07-25
A rare accounting document, half-concealed beneath a coat of arms design, has revealed the activities of Italian bankers working in early 15th century London, decades before the capital became a financial powerhouse. The discovery was made by economic historians at Queen Mary, University of London.
Among the pages of a bound collection of traditional English crests held at the London College of Arms - the headquarters of British heraldry - are several papers belonging to a book of debtors and creditors for Florentine merchant-banking company, Domenicio Villani & Partners.
The ...
Internists say physician-led quality initiatives could be solution to Medicare payment problems
2012-07-25
(Washington) – "Repeal of Medicare's Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) is essential, but repeal by itself will not move Medicare to better ways to deliver care," David L. Bronson, MD, FACP, president of the American College of Physicians (ACP), today told the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health. "We need to transition from a fundamentally broken physician payment system to one that is based on the value of services to patients, building on physician-led initiatives to improve outcomes and lower costs."
Dr. Bronson described how physician organization's efforts and ...
Satellites see unprecedented Greenland ice sheet surface melt
2012-07-25
WASHINGTON -- For several days this month, Greenland's surface ice
cover melted over a larger area than at any time in more than 30
years of satellite observations. Nearly the entire ice cover of
Greenland, from its thin, low-lying coastal edges to its 2-mile-thick
center, experienced some degree of melting at its surface, according
to measurements from three independent satellites analyzed by NASA
and university scientists.
On average in the summer, about half of the surface of Greenland's ice
sheet naturally melts. At high elevations, most of that melt water
quickly ...
Ecopsychology -- a major new area of study
2012-07-25
New Rochelle, NY, July 24, 2012—Hundreds of colleges and universities around the world are offering courses and even graduate degrees in ecopsychology and other forms of environmentally focused psychology. Ecopsychology examines the psychological, spiritual, and therapeutic aspects of human-nature relationships, concern about environmental issues, and responsibility for protecting natural places and other species. Educators are increasingly recognizing the value of integrating psychology and environmental content to help students appreciate the link between their own well-being ...