Potential+Project+Ideas

After the visit to Makino, we came up with a list of interesting project ideas for students to work on:

Potential ACE projects:

> How is the metallic waste in the video disposed of?
 * 1) Students can research on the field of precision engineering, and examine how various products they use are made from the start (e.g. handphones)
 * 2) Students can research on the different types of machining centers, and produce a report examining the various types of machining centers and their uses
 * 3) Students can research on what are the smallest degrees of precision used in manufacturing: why are such degrees of precision needed? What could happen if such degrees are not met?
 * 4) As an extension, students can research on the using of axes in machine production: why does Makino only produce 3 axis products? What are 5-6 axis products and why and how are they produced?
 * 5) How to ensure sustainability of making these machines?
 * 6) How the machines are programmed to deliver accurate results and to carry out the machining processes.
 * 7) Video: []
 * 1) Why are such degrees of precision needed?
 * 2) What could happen if such degrees are not met?
 * 3) What are the different types of axes in machine production?
 * 4) How precise the machines can go.
 * 5) How capsules are made.

Potential ideas for Projects Comp (or SMTP Research Projects):


 * 1) Students can examine in detail how cooling systems can work in such machines.
 * 2) Effect of thermal expansion/contraction on the quality of the final product produced.
 * 3) We can determine the best type(s) of metal used for the milling machines. The metal must not be susceptible to large changes in temperatures and it must be physically stable
 * 4) Investigation of materials of low linear expansion coefficient to replace materials currently used in machines since precision is key in precision engineering.
 * 5) Investigation of methods to make use of heat produced by machines instead of dissipating them.
 * 6) An area of research that we could work on would be how precise the machines can go. With advances in technology from optics and lasers, perhaps we can find a way to develop a machine with a precision up to the nano scale. This will definitely open up a new market in terms of products which deal with the nano scale.
 * 7) How to maintain the sustainability of making these machines, and reducing the amount of carbon emission
 * 8) The machining of metallic materials actually produce quite a bit of waste as seen from the video seen above and I am not sure of how this waste is disposed of. Being metal, it is quite possible to actually reuse these waste metallic parts that have been cut away from the original block and then melted and made into another block for use. I believe that sustainability is extremely important and there must be several ways to increase the sustainability in a factory like Makino's.
 * 9) Investigation of other factors that can potentially affect the precision of the machine (besides temperature)
 * 10) How to design a machine which can piece together smaller machines or appliances like microwave oven unmanned, or help to make more precise machines via better computing?