The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : MCEME student officers bag award

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Monday, Dec 28, 2009
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

MCEME student officers bag award

Abhijit Dev Kumar

Design PC Based Motion Platform as part of their course project

— PHOTO: ABHIJIT DEV KUMAR

Big leap: A student officer controls the PC based Motion Platform, a mechatronics project which was showcased at the Military College of Mechanical and Electronic Engineering in Hyderabad recently.

HYDERABAD: Innovation thrives on creativity and need. Perhaps this drove student officers of Military College of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering (MCEME) to ‘rig up’ a computer based motion platform for vehicle simulation training.

Stressing on the need to cut repair and other operational costs incurred when officers learn to drive vehicles, the team of four officers from Mechanical Engineering department, Major D. Chatterjee, Major N.S. Bhosale, Major Ravi Kumar. S and Major M. Choudhary designed the PC Based Motion Platform as part of their course project.

Showcased during the convocation ceremony of MCEME last week, the project was awarded the certificate for Best Project (Mechanical). The setup consists of a metal platform which is powered by three motors, controlled by a Variable Frequency Drive and a Programmable Logic Controller, which are connected to a PC. “The platform can take a payload of over 110kgs and one can mount any sort of setup for the simulation. The aim is to curb vehicle’s repair costs incurred by the Army during driving lessons,” points out Major D. Chatterjee.

Once a simulation setup is mounted, the platform’s movement can be controlled with a joystick. “Apart from cutting costs, the setup will be a safe way to practice driving, prevent loss of life and help trainees get ready for real time situations including rocky terrains,” explains Major Chatterjee.

The platform has been programmed to bend, rise and sway either ways for a maximum of 20 degrees, making it ideal for civil aircraft flight simulations as well. But the team members say there is room for improvisation. “New students of the college can work on the device and upgrade the existing features so that it could be used for simulating different kinds of vehicles in the army,” he added.

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