Internship Summary

Michael Pettit

May 11th 2015 to July 17th 2015

A Quick Summary• AGW

– Water testing– HiPot testing– Design of spacer– Design of front plate posts– Tip testing

• Lock Box– Chemical testing

• Syringe pump– Performed inspection request– Utilized measurement tools in

the machine shop– Design of holder and front plate– Change seal to channel

• Front Bezel– Rate testing– Data entry

• Other– Exploration of computer chips

with Ted– VBA Programming– Minitab– Use of SolidWorks

• Parts• moving assemblies• technical drawings

– Tour of Manufacturing– Company picnic

Working on the AGW

• The AGW was my first project. While the project was already fully underway I was immediately given the opportunity to participate. The figures on the right are some of the parts that Victor, my mentor, and I altered with the goal of preventing water ingress and achieving IPX2 certification.

AGW Electrical Testing• Working to modify the

AGW was a multi-step process.

1. Assess and alter a part2. Test the alteration in the

IPX chamber in building C.

3. Complete all of the Hi-Pot tests

4. Visually inspect for water ingress

5. Repeat

AGW Success

• Most rewarding for me was that I was able to identify the path of the offending water entry and then design a part to solve the problem. This resulted in a trip to Intertek where we received a preliminary pass on the IPX2 rating!

Added rib to prevent water entry.

AGW Side Project• While the water ingress testing

was underway, I was also investigating how water was leaking through the front plates. I conducted tests using several shapes and sizes of structural posts looking for the best solution to stop the small amount of water that was leaking through. While I found a viable solution, this part of the project was set aside due to the insignificant impact that this water leak had on the overall test.

Rate Testing

• After Intertek I was assigned to complete some preliminary rate testing for the new Bezel. I ran multiple series of 90 second flow tests and was able to acquire statistically significant data. I also entered all of the data from the official rate testing into the provided excel spreadsheet and manually marked all of the failed tests until I wrote a program to do this automatically.

Lockbox Chemical Testing

• For a period of about a week and a half I was given the task of testing whether hospital strength cleaning chemicals would damage or shorten the lifespan of a variety of lockbox parts. This involved wiping the chemicals on the parts every 15 minutes for a total of 200 exposures. While this was not the most glamorous job, it helped me to see how an engineer must consider every aspect of the construction and use of a product.

Syringe Pump Change to Valox• A Valox front cover for the

syringe pump arrived from the supplier and the shape of the new part needed to be validated.

• I disassembled an older pump to remove the FR-110 front plate and replaced it with the new Valox front plate

• Preliminary inspection showed that the part did not match the FR-110 part at the top right corner.

• Accurate measurements of the part were conducted by the inspection team in order to create official data on the part.

Fixing things on the Syringe Pump• Since the manufacturing tool for the

front plate of the syringe pump is going to be changed, this is the ideal time to fix any additional issues with the design.

• The team found a location where cleaning chemicals currently pool and decided to look for a solution. This was done because the chemicals could compromise the integrity of the material over time.

• The proposed solution involved widening the path where the seal is installed.

• To completely protect the parts from cleaning chemicals, a re-do of multiple parts would have to be done, and that was deemed too costly.

Syringe Pump Waterproofing

• These were my ideas on how to fix the button holder so that liquid could not pool in the extruded cut under the button.

• Filling in the extruded cut would prevent the capture of liquids.

• This solution would:– Use the same amount of

material– Eliminate two screws and two

sonically welded threadings

Syringe Pump Waterproofing

• Another issue was the nonconformance of the button holder. This creates unneeded stress on the face plate and may compromise the water tightness around the button.

• This nonconformance was investigated by myself and documented by the inspection team. The decision whether to act on it will be made at a later date.

What I Have Learned• The real world is nothing like the classroom.

– Seeing first hand how material properties, manufacturing and production processes, service, and cost are all critical and interrelated is an aspect of engineering that I simply hadn’t been exposed to until I was faced with it in a real world setting.

– Integrating all these factors effects each aspect of the design process. A product can’t just “work”, it must also be optimized with respect to these other criteria.

• Engineering is not only design.– Engineering involves numerous trial and error tests to determine if a design works

as intended. And the design can’t just work as it comes off of the assembly line, it must continue to work consistently and reliably over the course of its lifetime.

– Engineering must also strive to be able to see the entire scope of the product and its market, so as to be able to produce the best product to help the most people.

• New Skills:– Read electronics diagrams (thanks Ted)– Program in VBA– The basics of Minitab– Beginner through advanced use of SolidWorks

Thank You

• Thank you for having me as an intern this summer and for allowing me to observe and participate in the real world of engineering. I appreciate how the people that I worked with were always willing to help and to share their extensive experience and knowledge. I know that my engineering classes at Notre Dame will be much more meaningful knowing how the material will eventually be applied. I really enjoyed my time at CareFusion/BD and I hope to see you again next summer.

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