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Team Members

Andrew Christensen - E-mail Andrew
Justin Goins - E-mail Justin
Joseph Gross - E-mail Joe
Email Team

Mentor/Sponsors

Linda Fayler
Dr. Daniel Cox
Donald Heer M.S.

Project Categories

1 Project Overview

The goal of this project is to design a portable wave analysis module that is capable of floating in water for extended periods of time. The module needs to be lightweight and strong. Space is at a premium, necessitating the use of surface mount technology. The module will be battery operated and must be capable of operating for at least 30 minutes on a single charge.

The modules will be used at the Hinsdale Research Lab to provide researchers with additional data on tsunami behavior. By improving the design of a single sensor node and creating a more efficient design, the cost of each module can be reduced. The collection of nodes will comprise a network and will have fast, synchronous communication with the control node. Having more nodes improves the ability of the control node to model the dynamic system. In order to ensure ease of use, the device must provide visual indications of status (including error messages).

After meeting with Dr. Cox and other staff at the Hinsdale Research Lab the following list of requirements was compiled.

  • The module must be contained to protect the internal electronics from the research environment. In particular, being in an air temperature range of 35 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit and water temperature range of 45 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (1.7 to 35 and 7.2 to 23.9 degrees Celsius, respectively).
  • The modules must have neutral or positive buoyancy, but be capable of being submerged 10 feet in water while collecting data for a period of time. The module must also be able to survive 10 Gs of acceleration in the x, y and z directions. Additionally, the device must collect data at a rate of 50Hz or better due to the nature of colliding objects.
  • The enclosure should be 4.7x3.5x2 inches (12x9x5 centimeters) or smaller.
  • The time between the initial TTL start signal and the start of data acquisition must be less than or equal to two milliseconds and must be a fixed duration. The device is used in conjunction with many other sensor assemblies and synchronizing the data samples is crucial.

A wide range of improvements can be made to the modules, including: better range of transmission, increased resolution of the analog to digital converters, smaller enclosures, and improved fortitude. Most importantly, the data transfer from the module to the host platform must be as simple as possible.

2 Needs Identification and Background Research
3 System Requirements and Desired Features
4 Design Solutions
5 Top Level Block Design

5.1 Battery
5.2 Voltage Regulator
5.3 Enclosure
5.4 Power Switch
5.5 Visual Indicators
5.6 Flash Memory
5.7 Transceiver
5.8 Microcontroller
5.9 Microcontroller Firmware
5.10 6 Channel 16 Bit ADC
5.11 High Sensitivity Accelerometer
5.12 Low Sensitivity Accelerometer

6 Testing

6.1 Documentation

7 Project Timeline
8 Budget
9 Expo Material

[1] Frederic, David, "Wave Energy Sensor Network," ''classes.engr.oregonstate.edu'', May 11, 2007. [Online]. Available: http://classes.engr.oregonstate.edu/eecs/fall2006/ece441/groups/g9/index.htm. [Accessed: Oct. 11, 2009].

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