Hinged Crane

This course, MAE 321: Engineering Design, introduced the fundamental principles of mechanical design. In this project-based course, students would design a lightweight crane structure for the midterm project and a locking-hinge mount for the final project. Success in this class relied on adequate design & testing as well as successful hands-on manufacturing of components using manual mills and lathes. Gear stock was provided, but other than that, all parts were designed, built, and assembled by the group

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Requirements:

• Crane:

  • Structure weighing less than 3 lbs​

  • Capable of lifting 220 lbs (100 kgs) at a distance of 22 inches from the base

  • Mountable to a rig 6 inches wide using 0.5-inch diameter pins at 2 inches vertical spacing

• Hinge Mechanism

  • Allow the crane to pivot 20 degrees​

  • Lock into place at the 20-degree position

  • Unlock and return to the first position

  • Lift a 130lb load when at a 20-degree angle

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For this project, I personally modeled the skeleton model of the crane design to optimize the cutouts. I also helped with various parts of the manufacturing and assembly processes. I further developed Creo models for the internal mechanism, validating the design in CAD so that it would work when manufactured.