Design of a Hydraulic Press

INTRODUCTION

Hydraulic machines had continued to fascinate me in the third semester and when i was given the oppurtunity to do a design project i pounced at the opportunity to do a hydraulic press

           

Background:

A hydraulic press is a machine using a hydraulic cylinder to generate a compressive force. It uses the hydraulic equivalent of a mechanical lever, and was also known as a Bramah press after the inventor, Joseph Bramah, of England.

Different types of Hydraulic presses are:

1. .      Deep Drawing Press- a flexible press used for advanced deep drawing.
2. .      Blanking Press– a press range for blanking,forming and coining operations, in fully automatic design.
3. .      Multi-Purpose Press-a versatile press for various forming operations.
4. .      Large Bed Press – a Press specially designed for forming of large components.
5. .      Hydroforming Press – forming of tube and sheet parts with the aid of fluid subjected to high pressure.
6. .      Transfer Press–a  compact, modular based press for complete production lines.

Product

The Hydraulic Press is an apparatus designed, built, and used for forging metal. This press was designed to be versatile and capable of producing up to 250 ton of force.

Model

The hydraulic press C250 is shown in Figure 1, ref 1.

LITERATURE STUDY

The Working Principle:

A hydraulic press is a machine that uses pressurized liquid to create force. These machines are composed of a simple cylinder and piston mechanism. The press consists of a large cylinder, with a large piston, and a small cylinder and a small piston. The large cylinder and the small cylinder are connected to one another by means of a pipe. The two cylinders, and the pipe connecting them, are filled with a liquid. At this point, the function of the hydraulic press depends on Pascal's Principle.Pascal's Principle states that when pressure is added to a liquid at rest, there is an identical increase in pressure at all points. Applying this principle to the hydraulic press means that any force that is added to the piston in the smaller cylinder will be transferred to the piston in the larger cylinder, in a proportionally increased level of force. This allows a hydraulic press to produce a great deal of force from the application of a small amount of force to the small piston.

As air enters the booster cylinder, oil is displaced in the hydraulic cylinder above. The displaced oil enters the ram cylinder and drives the ram down. Pressure is maintained throughout the entire stroke. When the valve is de-energized, the ram retracts to its home position.


Advantages:

Advantages of Hydraulic Press over a mechanical press:-

1.  Full power stroke  
2. Built-in overload protection  
3. Much lower original cost and operating costs  
4. Larger capacities at lower cost  
5. More control flexibility 
6. Greater versatility - A single hydraulic press can do a wide variety of jobs within its tonnage range. Commonly seen are deep draws, shell reductions, urethane bulging, forming, blank and pierce, stake, punch, press fits, straightening, and assembly. They are also used for powered metal forming, abrasive wheel forming, bonding, broaching, ball sizing, plastic and rubber compression, and transfer molding. 
7. Quiet  
8. More compact  
9. Lower tool costs  
10. Safety - No manufacturer will (or should) claim that hydraulic presses are safer than mechanical presses. Both types of machines are designed and built to be safe if the controls and safety features built in are used properly.
11. Less Heat.

Improperly used, all machines are potentially dangerous. But the factor of control of the ram movements makes hydraulic presses easy to make safe. Non-tie down, anti-repeat, dual palm button controls are used. The interlocking of guards, as well as other safety devices, is relatively easy because of the nature of a hydraulic press control system.

Isometric view of Hydraulic Press (Fig B):

Exploded view of Hydraulic Press (Fig E):

DETAILING AND MANUFACTURING INFORMATION

The various parts that were created for making the Hydraulic Press along with their manufacturing information are as follows.

1.      Base (Fig 1.1 and Fig 1.2): A base is a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction. It  is a building technique based around vertical structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached. It is made of cast iron.

2. Piston (Fig 1.3): A piston is a component whose purpose is to transfer force from ‘pushed fluid’ in the cylinder to the crankshaft via a piston rod and/or connecting rod ; made of mild steel or cast iron.

     3.Ram (Fig1.4 and Fig 1.5):- It is the component which is used to apply pressure on the die ;usually made of cast iron or galvanised iron

     4.Clamps (Fig1.6):-They are used to provide rigid support to the pipes both in lateral and longitudinal directions, thus relieving stresses caused by unequal movements in the pipe line ; thus made of cast iron or Aluminium.

      5.Cylinders (Fig1.7):-It contains  the fluid, so is made of a rigid and insulating material like composite material.

7.Nuts(Fig1.9):- A nut is a type of fastener with a threaded hole. Nuts are graded with strength ratings compatible with their respective bolts; for example, an ISO property class 10 nut will be able to support the bolt proof strength load of an ISO property class 10.9 bolt without stripping. Likewise, an SAE class 5 nut can support the proof load of an SAE class 5 bolt, and so on. Nuts are made of mild steel.

       9.Pressure Gauge(Fig2.0):- It is used to measure pressure of the fluid. It is an external device.

METHODOLOGY

The Hydraulic Press was modelled using the drafting and modelling software ‘SolidWorks 2012 x64 edition’.

The whole project involves phases namely part modelling of the components of ‘Hydraulic Press’ followed by assembling them. Finally, 2-D drafting of the components was done.

Various tools included in the software which were used while modelling the components were ‘Revolve Base’, ‘Extrude Base’, ’Extrude Cut’, ’Circular Pattern’, ‘Hole Wizard’,

Angular Extrudes were made using tools like ‘Reference Geometry’

Basic motion analysis was done in solid works and animation wizard in Inventor Autodesk.

Conclusion

We were able to understand the structural and functional details of a C-250 similar Hydraulic Press and express it successfully as a SolidWorks project (along with motion analysis).In this process, the manufacturing details of various parts have also been seen.

             Thus, this project has helped to enhance our hands-on interface with the software.

Wooden Air Engine

1. INTRODUCTION

Air engine is a type of motor which does mechanical work by expanding compressed air. Pneumatic motors generally convert the compressed air to mechanical work through either linear or rotary motion. It has existed in many forms over the past two centuries, ranging in size from hand held turbines to engines of up to several hundred horsepower. Some types rely on pistons and cylinders, others use turbines. Many compressed air engines improve their performance by heating the incoming air, or the engine itself. Pneumatic motors have found widespread success in the hand-held tool industry and continual attempts are being made to expand their use to the transportation industry. However, pneumatic motors must overcome inefficiencies before being seen as a viable option in the transportation industry.

2. MATERIAL USED

S. No.	Item	Specifications
1	PLYWOOD	2 metre x .60 m x.10 m
2	ROSE WOOD	.60 m x .20 m x .30m
3	FEVICOL	200 ml
4	SUPER GLUE	10 ml
5	SCREWS	1 INCH-10 Nos
6	Nails	I INCH -1O Nos.

3. FABRICATION PROCESS

1.     CUTTING OF PARTS

Following Parts are prepared using carpenting BOSCH tools like jig-saw.sander,roter etc:

·         Flywheel                                      • Piston rod

·         Control rod

·         Crankshaft

·         Piston Housing

·         Bearing block

·         Cylinder mount

2.     ASSEMBLY OF PARTS

·        We assembled the piston housing using wood screw , super-glue and fevicol.

·        The valve slider was connected to crankshaft such that the control rod moves freely.

·        Fix the bearing block onto the base as per requirement.

·        Then ,we connect the flywheel to the crankshaft such that flywheel rotates with the crankshaft.

·        The connecting arm was attached to the piston such that it moves freely and other arm was connected periphery of the flywheel such that piston moves connecting arm rotates the flywheel.

·        Piston housing was mounted on the cylinder mount and cylinder mount was nailed on the base.

·        The bearing block was closed such that crankshaft was placed between two bearing block and crankshaft axis passing through the holes in the bearing blocks.

Seminar on S.T.E.P

Introduction:

For Students who will further study about modelling languages and file formats this might be a cake walk but we were just stepping into the entrance of the vast world of design hence i was assigned to give a seminar on STEP file formats as part of my project evaluation.





ISO 10303 is an ISO standard for the computer interpretable representation and exchange of product manufacturing information. Its official title is: Automation systems and integration — Product data representation and exchange. It is known informally as "STEP", which stands for "Standard for the Exchange of Product model data". ISO 10303 can represent 3D objects.

STEP can be used to exchange data between CAD, Computer-aided manufacturing, Computer-aided engineering, Product Data Management/EDM and other CAx systems. STEP is addressing product data from mechanical and electrical design, Geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, analysis and manufacturing, with additional information specific to various industries such as automotive, aerospace, building construction, ship, oil and gas, process plants and others

In total STEP consists of several hundred parts and every year new parts are added or new revisions of older parts are released. This makes STEP the biggest standard within ISO. Each part has its own scope and introduction

STEP is primarily defining data models using the EXPRESS modeling language. Application data according to a given data model can be exchanged either by a STEP-File, STEP-XML or via shared database access using SDAI.

3D objects in Solidworks

Introduction:

Like all incipient  mechanical engineers and designers i too was bit by the designing bug when introduced to the 3D Modelling Platform :


Here are just a Few of my First Designs I had submitted:

Other Projects included a football, a car and a skyscraper but i am unable to find those files right now.

“Surely You’re Joking , Mr.Feynman!” - A Book Review

Introduction:
Writing a book review was not something new to me but i have to admit reading this book was new to me. In my second semester i was given the assignment of reviewing the following book.

Summary:

The book involves a detailed description about the incidents and life of the Nobel prize laureate. When one reads the book one can understand the mindset and the motivation of a successful researcher. He gives each incident in his life in detail. He starts out with how science attracted him and continues with his philosophies and his personal experiences. His unique approaches to problems time and again is pointed out here.  

“I used to cut vegetables in the kitchen. String beans had to be cut into one-inch pieces. The way you were supposed to do it was: You hold two beans in one hand, the knife in the other, and you press the knife against the beans and your thumb, almost cutting yourself. It was a slow process. So I put my mind to it, and I got a pretty good idea. I sat down at the wooden table outside the kitchen, put a bowl in my lap, and stuck a very sharp knife into the table at a forty-five-degree angle away from me. Then I put a pile of the string beans on each side, and I'd pick out a bean, one in each hand, and bring it towards me with enough speed that it would slice, and the pieces would slide into the bowl that was in my lap. “

In the above incident tells us how Richard Feynman comes with up with an alternate solution but not necessarily a better solution but then he feels it IS a better solution. His process is not necessarily faster, it just seems faster to a novice like him. The process even after his improvement will be less safer and slower than when a professional chops beans in the usual manner. But psychologically he feels he can come up with a better solution and hence is motivated to work harder.

The incident tells us how Richard Feynman is always thinking of a better way to solve things. I felt this a method by which he seems to tell himself that he is superior to others intellectually. Later he says he feels inferior to everyone else and yearns to learn more from others. I feel he wants to learn from them not only to quench his thirst for knowledge but also to prove himself superior by bettering them in their own trade.

Personal Experience:

I found it an eye opening experience. This is the first time I have actually encountered such an autobiography. I found it enlightening.

 When I read this book I found out what it takes to become a Nobel laureate ,the amount of motivation and hard work involved.

The book might not have been a page turner but each page made you wonder and reflect on the secrets of success and the power of knowledge.

I felt that reading this book has actually improved my knowledge and it will definitely come in handy when I do not know an answer in our college exams.

At times I could relate to the author. Each one of us would have broken something in our lives just to have a look inside. Each one of us would have wondered how the television or radio works and would eagerly look on when the repairmen work on the television box.

Personal Opinion:

I felt the author was not a writer rather a “scientist”. In my opinion the book lacked the creativity or the attractive narratives  that I had seen in other autobiographies.

The book more than being interesting was informative. The plain narration and lack of humour was a major disappointment for me.

Also it succumbed to the stereotype in today’s general public mindset that engineers and scientist are not poetic but rather scientific to their approach to everything in life.

 It also at times made me think how different this person is from other normal people and made me wonder whether all scientist were like this person.

Overall I would not recommend this book to everybody. This book is for those who are ready to dedicate their lives for science, to understand the philosophy of the world or to motivate themselves for a higher goal.