Dissertation ideas!

[billymose]

Hello all

I'm a keen hobby woodworker who happens to be a 3rd year mechanical engineering university student. This year i have to write a dissertation and i want to base it around my hobby and machines so that i am motivated to work.
My question is, does anybody have any ideas of products or improvements to any aspect of your hobby that doesn't currently exist? I am thinking along the lines of something similar to the sawstop table saw, or an accessory/ improvement for my router/router table.

Any help to get me started would be brilliant because i am at a bit of a loose end.

Bill

 

[Fitzroy]

The ultimate sharpening jig.

 

[Racers]

What do you struggle with when using your router table/saw? stock positioning, holding etc, find a solution to a real problem.


Pete

 

[billymose]

Well, i have a trend t11 mounted in a UJK table. The only thing that springs to mind is the tool included to raise and lower the bit is extremely slow. But this problem is easily rectifiable with a speed brace and not really involved enough to write a dissertation on! I'm leaning towards something safety related. Perhaps a similar piece of technology to the saw stop applied to a router table without copying it. Thoughts?

Bill

 

[MattRoberts]

Well are you looking to invent something or write a dissertation on a topic? Because the saw stop reference was them inventing a solution to a problem.

If it's the latter, you could look at reviewing the history of mechanical joining and its role in the future (going from nails to screws to brackets through to the new domino connectors?

Or is that incredibly boring?!

 

[Fitzroy]

You could come at the problem from the other end, the HSE should carry accident statistics for most industries, is there some data that point to a problem that requires a solution. A literature search is always a good start point for a dissertation.

 

[transatlantic]

This came up on youtube a while ago, but an easier/quicker way to change band saw blades
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yfs6V4emHgw

Some other suggestions :

- A more compact all in one cyclone system (for the single garage)
- Scroll saw type machine suitable enough to be used in medium work band saw scenarios. The idea here being that blades are much easier to change
- Again - another Any Kline idea. Clamps that clamp in both directions for panel glue ups, so you don't need cauls
- A small/portable jig to flatten large boards. So think of the woodworker in their small single garage wanting to flatten a large table top, but doesn't want to use hand planes (too slow, too much effort and requires skill), and doesn't want to use a router sled (again too slow).

 

[Fitzroy]

I'm also and Engineer (Process/Chemical tho) and Mechanically there are a bunch of things I think are interesting, two off the top of my head.
1. The idea of how a saw works, there are a few sites that indicate saw tooth speed should be about 130-170 fps. I'd love to understand why. What are the mechanical properties of the wood being cut, in relation to the edge properties of the saw that make this the optimal speed. If you wanted to rip long lengths faster how could you achieve this?
2. Why are most saw blades of a similar thickness, you can get thin kerf blades but not many. Is this blade thickness the optimal, and has been found by trial and error, or is there an optimum that's been missed.

With regards to a saw stop style feature for another tool. The technology is based on the momentum of the blade, this is what drives the blade away from the users flesh and below the level of the saw table as soon as contact is detected. I'm not sure in a router has enough stored momentum to achieve this nor if it could be directed in a suitable direction to make the tool safe. Having said all that perhaps that's why it would make an interesting mechanical engineering problem, or you could look at the full gamut of workshop tools and ask the same question. How much momentum is stored, what plane does it operate in, what speed of response is required, what weight of tool needs to be moved and therefore on which pieces of kit is a saw-stop style safety feature a potential option.

 

[billymose]

Wow! thankyou so much for the prompt suggestions!
It is actually called a final year project because it isn't just a dissertation. Because of the nature of the degree you can base it around a practical application not just boring word processing. I have selected a design specialist to be my tutor therefore i am hoping to be heavily involved with designing and making something (at uni I have access to a full workshop including milling machines 3d printers etc). I am quite interested in moving into fabrication. I really like the idea of approaching the problem from the research aspect. I notice bosch have brought out a competitor to the sawstop utilising a airbag style mini explosion which does away with the need for the momentum. And thanks for the bandsaw idea! seems like the exact kind of problem i had hoped to find a solution for.

So pleased i asked for ideas! Keep em coming

Bill

 

[lurker]

If someone was to scale down some of the safety features used in industrial machinery to the stuff we use there might be a decent product in it

For example brake presses have been fitted with light guards for a good 20 years to my knowledge.
Electronics being what it is today building something similar to cover the final inch from a ts or bs blade or router bit should be pretty easy but no one has done it.
I guess the limitation is a dc brake

 

[novocaine]

It depends on the path you have decided to take in your 3rd year, however I'd consider looking at automation and possible approaches to improve efficiency in a working environment. Anything you do in your garage isn't going to be relevant to a job on the other side.
When we bring graduates in for interviews we want them to present something relevant to the work, your end of year viva (or what ever you call it now) is pretty much the easiest thing you can present, so make it work relevant.
If you came to me with a Beng (or Bsc as I left with, later to get Msc) and then wanted to talk about your woodwork I'd struggle to employ you (no offence meant by this, I wouldn't be here if it didn't interest me), which is surely the point of the degree, it isn't much good to you in your garage at home, it's in the workplace it matters.

The HSE accident stats is a good idea, it isn't going anywhere, so use it to your advantage, pick a specific field and drill down in an attempt to find root causes then apply basic design principles along with safety approaches in design phase to identify a set of possible solutions, the goal being to finish the year with a full FEED study documenting your ideas and forward avenues for study. If you go on to do your masters (do it while you can) you've now got a perfect starting point.

I'd suggest talking with your lead lecturer (again what ever you call them now) about possible ties with industry the uni has and using it to your benefit too.

edit : sorry I was typing at the same time, you've got a path so the first bit is answered. still, make it workplace relevant if you can. especially if you want to move to design (with a degree, you aren't getting your hands all that dirty I'm afraid)

 

[billymose]

novocaine thank you for your comment. No offence taken in fact i think I needed your advice if I want to find a job!! Your idea to potentially leave my project open ended for a masters is spookily helpfull aswell. I am contemplating studying my masters in Caen france if i find a topic that motivates me enough!

Again really kind and helpful! I am already feeling better about it.

 

[lurker]

I think novo is onto something here.
I am senior h&s manager of a very large engineering company.
I rant at length about the poor awareness of h&s in our engineer's designs
Showing you are aware of the end users problems would be a positive at interviews.
You can utilise your experiences of the hazards and current solutions of your woodworking equipment

 

[novocaine]

I finished uni with a Bsc in mechanical engineering, I went on to work first as a design engineer, then a piping engineer (having taken various welding certs along the way for the hell of it), got an Msc in applications engineering (which has nothing to do with apps, everything to do with mechatronics and computer aided design), moved to structural and did some E and I before moving to safety, now I'm a principal safety consultant in the oil and gas industry and got my second masters (risk and safety) this year (yey the first time I went to a graduation). I hope that it's safe to say I'm coming from experience on this one. (oh and I'm also technically a lecturer in risk and safety at a rather large northwest university but don't tell anyone, I haven't got my elbow pads yet)

 

[sunnybob]

build an accurate and simple bandsaw blade tensioning device and make yourself a small fortune.

 

[No skills]

Sliding compound mitre saw improvements.

1 - lighter stiffer frame (carbon fibre parts?) for improved accuracy and portability.
2 - digital readout on mitre and bevel angles, and possibly for the trenching function.
3 - a real nice angle/bevel adjustment mechanism for infinitely variable angle adjustment that doesn't have standard angle detents messing things up or "will it won't it" hold the angle you want while you cut.

 

[Steve Maskery]

+1 for SCMS improvements.

I have the big Bosch and it is one of the best available on the market. I love it. But even so, the DX is barely adequate and the trenching facility requires me to move the workpiece forward so that the scoop is not in the workpiece itself.

That's two problems that have not yet been perfected.

 

[RobinBHM]

What about designing a track or rail that could be used to guide a saw or router?

Oh no wait a minute, has somebody done that

A good example though of a product with universal appeal, very useful on site and in a workshop for many kinds of wood based trades. Wish Id thought of it!

 

[profchris]

Dont forget the research and analysis element, which is what will get you a good mark!

H&S has been suggested, and your path is design. So how about researching the design of machinery safety devices, focusing on scalability (industrial to hobby) and usability (to reduce risk that operators bypass devices). From that identify the fundamental design principles for a H&S device. Then test those principles by designing and building one for a small woodworking shop application.

 

[custard]

My question is, does anybody have any ideas of products or improvements to any aspect of your hobby that doesn't currently exist? I am thinking along the lines of something similar to the sawstop table saw, or an accessory/ improvement for my router/router table.

Bill

Cutting box/finger joints on a router table as opposed to a table saw has some advantages, for example the diameter of the router bit is a precise and reliable way of setting the kerf width and then achieving the cut in a single pass.

There are already a couple of jigs that attempt to do that job,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc_gvmhamYI

http://gifkins.com.au/wp-content/upload ... 4Oct14.pdf

I've used the Gifkins jig but not the Rockler. They both have a number of problems that could be engineered out. The Rockler seems to have more inherent versatility, but (just off the top of my head) the guarding looks terrible, the jig as it stands seems prone to tipping forwards and backwards, dust extraction isn't great, matching the bit diameter to the spacer track looks hit and miss, and there's an assumption that your router table will have a compatible mitre track.

Just a thought.

Good luck!