Mechanical Automotive and Materials Engineering

UWindsor students use 3D printing to help complete one-of-a-kind muscle car

Not only were they the finishing touches, custom valve covers engineered by University of Windsor students were “one of the nicest touches” on a one-of-a-kind Mustang custom-built by a local auto shop.

“On a car that’s extremely beautiful front to back, the engine compartment we worked on with the university is now the sharpest part of the car,” says Chris Darmon, one of the owners of Xcentrick AutoSports, a shop in Oldcastle that specializes in classic and custom cars for a local and global market.

Darmon said they usually do everything in-house, but they needed outside help to bring to life a Toronto customer’s vision for his 1967 GT500 Mustang.

“The customer wanted the valve cover on a 2014 Ford Coyote 5.0L V8 engine to look like a 1960s design,” said Saad Zafar BASc ’11, who was introduced to Darmon through the university’s EPICentre. “There was nothing like that on the market, so we had to start from scratch.”

UWindsor rocketry team soars in international competition

In its first-ever rocket competition appearance, the University of Windsor Rocketry Team finished third overall out of 82 teams.

Nine senior members of UWindsor’s inaugural rocketry team traveled to New Mexico to compete in the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition’s (IREC) 2017 Spaceport America Cup held June 20 to 24. While first and second place were announced at the competition, the 80 other participating teams had to wait more than a month for competition results.

“We were pretty ecstatic,” says Liza DiCecco, a fourth-year materials option mechanical engineering student. “The results came right before our capstone report was due, when we were stressed out trying to finish. So this news made us pretty happy.”

Students display the latest engineering innovations

A team of students who designed a system to help visually impaired people navigate their surroundings are particularly excited about one aspect of their project: the difference it can make in the lives of users.

“It could help people in the real world,” says Hejir Rashidzadeh, one of three fourth-year students of electrical and computer engineering behind the “Intelligent Blind Man Aid,” which combines a camera and ultrasonic sensors with a voice command system.

The team set up an obstacle course to allow blindfolded guests try the experience for themselves, as part of Capstone Design Demonstration Day, Friday in the lobby of the Centre for Engineering Innovation. It was one of dozens of displays by groups of students in various engineering disciplines: electrical and computer; civil and environmental; and mechanical, automotive and materials.

Dean Saif inducted as an engineering fellow

His lasting contributions to engineering education and research in health, automotive, and aerospace industries earned UWindsor dean of engineering Mehrdad Saif induction as a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.

Dr. Saif was one of 52 new fellows inducted at a ceremony June 26 in Ottawa during the academy’s annual general meeting. His citation noted more than 250 publications, discoveries incorporated into vehicles from the Chevrolet Malibu to the Cadillac Northstar, and innovative interdisciplinary academic programs including the UWindsor master’s program in engineering management (MEM).

Engineering professor wins royal accolade

The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences has elected UWindsor professor of industrial and manufacturing systems engineering Hoda ElMaraghy to international membership.

Founded in 1919, the organization is the world´s oldest academy of engineering sciences, and numbers about 1,000 Swedish and 300 foreign members.

Dr. ElMaraghy is one of only two non-Swedish engineers among 12 new fellows elected this year.

“This is a great international recognition of my scientific and engineering contributions and stature in the world,” she said.

Dean opens door of discovery to aspiring engineer

It’s not often the dean of engineering receives hand-written letters, let alone one printed in pencil describing robots that catch and clean up after litterbugs.

Dean Mehrdad Saif was pleasantly surprised when he received a letter from Masha Dmitrenko, a Grade 4 student at John Campbell Public School. Dmitrenko wanted to know what she should do to become an engineer.

“What is the hardest part of engineering? What is the coolest part of engineering? I always wanted be an engineer. I have a question: can you make art robots?” the eight-year-old asked in her letter.

Student rocketry team readying for lift-off

A team of Windsor Engineering students is having a blast as it prepares for the University’s first-ever entry in an international rocketry competition.

“It’s loud, it involves explosions — it’s rocket science!” says Liza DiCecco. “What’s not to love?”

The fourth-year materials option mechanical engineering student is one of nine senior students completing a 2.4-metre rocket as their capstone project. In June, they will travel to the New Mexico desert to test their skills alongside more than 100 teams from a dozen countries in the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition.

Their entry will be up against 50 other teams in the same category, carrying a payload of four kilograms to an altitude of 10,000 feet (more than three kilometres).

Team captain Patrick Pomerleau-Perron recalls launching rockets with his father, fostering a passion that led him to the aerospace option in mechanical engineering.

Engineering student one of two province-wide to receive scholarship

A University of Windsor industrial and manufacturing systems engineering student is one of two graduate students in Ontario to be recognized by the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers.

In partnership with the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE), The Personal Home and Auto Group Insurance annually awards two undergraduate and two graduate students enrolled in engineering programs across Ontario.

Saeideh Salimpour, a PhD student at UWindsor with a grade point average of 99.25, will be presented with a $2,500 scholarship towards her engineering education during OSPE’s Annual General Meeting on May 4, 2017, at the Chestnut Residence and Conference Centre in Toronto. 

UWindsor alumnus receives Professional of the Year nomination

The Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce has nominated a UWindsor alumnus for its Professional of the Year Award, making him one of only a handful of engineers to receive the honour.

Sean McCann, a professional geological and civil engineer with 28-years of experience under his belt, said it’s not common for engineers to receive nominations in this category even though they play such an integral role in our society.  Only two engineers have won this award in the 27 years the chamber has hosted the event.

“Anything we sit on, touch, look at, go to work in, fly in — an engineer has touched it many times over,” said McCann, who was named Windsor-Essex County’s Engineer of the Year in 2016.