Engineering and Technology Thread

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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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^ Just FYI, it's working for me, I just tested it. It's the site I use for all the F1 photos/charts I post.
http://www.shrinkpictures.com/
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Flying taxi startup Lilium nabs $90m investment boost
The German firm is developing a zero-emission, 300km/h flying taxi that can carry up to five people

On-demand air taxis just got one step closer to becoming a reality. Lilium, the German startup whose flying taxis can go from vertical takeoff to horizontal flight, has announced $90m (£69.59m) in funding, a big leap from the $10m it had already raised from London VC Atomico and Freigeist. The latest round of funding was raised by Tencent, LGT, Atomico and Obvious Ventures.

Lilium remains tight-lipped on timelines for the commercial launch of its flying taxi, but chief operating officer Remo Gerber says the money will let the firm focus all its “time and efforts on a five-seater version of the jet and build a prototype for the certification process”.

The company was founded two years ago. What seemed like a fantastical idea at the time – launching a fleet of on-demand, 300km/h, zero-emission flying cabs into the skies – now feels almost realistic.

Transport 20 Apr 2017
Lilium has already been working with regulators to ease the path for aviation certification. “We’re not waiting for the very last day to find out if we passed or failed,” Gerber says. “Regulators work with you very closely,” he adds, explaining that many elements of the novel jet taxi design might speed up regulatory approval. For instance, the electric, carbon fibre vehicle has fewer parts than an ordinary aircraft, so there are fewer parts to certify.

“If you look at the aircraft, there is no tail rudder,” Gerber says. This is thanks to its three electric engines, which in turn have just one moving part each. There are also 12 identical flaps that are used to exact direction and stability. “You are not looking at a variety of different flaps on parts of a wing; you have several components that are repeated,” Gerber says. Of course, he adds, there are no shortcuts in aviation. “It’s a strict process, and rightly so.”

Earlier this year the company completed a two-seater test-launch, confounding those who feel its flying taxi dreams remain some way off. “This is a hardcore engineering effort and we need the very best engineers out there," Gerber says. "There are still some very interesting engineering challenges to be solved; on the other hand, once you have a proof of concept the rest takes off from a physics perspective. We have already shown it is possible. The challenges where physics is involved don’t change as such – they just get bigger.”


Those challenges, though significant, would deliver something impressive: a zero emission, 300km/h vehicle (a 19km trip from Manhattan to JFK Airport could take five minutes, the company claims) that cuts out congestion and plugs frustrating holes in regional and national infrastructure – for the cost of land travel. Lilium plans to keep the cost down through ride sharing and fuel efficiency. Thanks to a lack of air traffic, Lilium claims it would also be able to complete four or five journeys in the same time it would take a regular cab to complete one.

The issue of space and charging infrastructure also isn’t insurmountable, according to Gerber. “It could land on a shopping mall, such as Westfield in Shepherd’s Bush or east London; or the top deck of a car park could become a landing deck. The space you need isn’t actually that huge so it’s entirely possible.”

Gerber envisions a distributed network of London ports. One located at City Airport or the Isle of Dogs would allow people to pick up on the many connections in those areas to continue their journey. Lilium doesn’t see itself as competing with hubs such as City, but complementing them. It could, for instance, help plug gaps in infrastructure left by HS2, which is only connecting major hubs.

Before any of that, Lilium will have to convince the public to hop aboard its eerily quiet, affordable urban jets. “It’s too early to have that conversation,” Gerber says. “At this point there are two types of people. Those that say, ‘Mmm... that’s interesting, but I’d like a few people to do it before me’. And others that jump on it. It will have to go through commercial aircraft certification – that’s the same regulator that tells you it’s safe to fly with British Airways. From our side, there’s a lot more work to be done."

http://www.wired.co.uk/article/lilium-a ... ng-atomico

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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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World's first passenger drone makes maiden flight in China
12:53pm Feb 8, 2018

[youtube]https://manifest.prod.boltdns.net/manif ... 3D/youtube]
The world’s first passenger drone, capable of speeds up to 100kms/h, has made its first public flight in China.

The electric-powered vehicle made by Chinese tech manufacturer EHang Inc can carry a single passenger weighing up to 100 kilograms.

Known as EHang184, it is operated by an automated flight system, leaving the passenger to simply fasten their safety belt and enjoy the ride, reports euronews.

On Tuesday, it was shown off to the world in a test flight over the southern city of Guangzhou.

The drone can fly for 23 minutes and reach speeds of 100kms/h.

"None of the traditional flying vehicles can achieve the goal of fully autonomous flying, so they are still far away from common people. But our successful flight today means the scenes that we used to only see in sci-fi movies are now very close to common people," said Hu Huazhi, CEO of EHang, Inc.

The company says the drone has the potential to be used in emergency rescues, hospital transfers and tourism.
Last year, EHang and Dubai began talks on developing self-flying taxis.


https://www.9news.com.au/world/2018/02/ ... light-test
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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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Go behind the wheel of Fortescue Metals Group’s driverless trucks at its Solomon mine site

https://thewest.com.au/business/mining/ ... b88750957z

There’s a variety of jobs and titles at Fortescue Metals Group’s Solomon iron ore mine site in the Pilbara — but truck driver isn’t among them.

“Mine controllers” sitting behind computer screens with complex maps and signals are running the mine’s fleet of 56 autonomous trucks across three main pits.

Each 160-tonne truck carries 240t of iron ore — that's 400t of metal moving across the mine site at 60km/h.
Since the first driverless trucks were introduced to the mine in 2013, the machines have moved more than half a billion tonnes.

But safety remains paramount. The trucks have onboard sensors on the front that allows it to see what’s in front of it. If obstacles approach — vehicles, people, birds — they will slow down and come to a complete stop.

“(A controller’s) intervention into the system is by exception only, so when a truck stops it's really up to them to troubleshoot why that truck has stopped, sort the issue out and allow the truck to proceed on its way,” says Jeelan Amin, FMG’s autonomous haulage systems implementation project manager.

“When we have wet weather or we’ve had a bit of rain we can apply global speed limits or traction control limits on the trucks but generally the trucks will decide how fast they want to take roads and corners themselves.”

And it’s not just the trucks going full auto. Huge drilling machines at Solomon used to be individually operated but as of late last year they too are now driverless, with two drill controllers monitoring three rigs each using remote cameras and a wall of screens.

When they need to manually control one of the drills, they do it using a standard xbox controller.
But before you get too worried about computers and robots taking over the workforce, Fortescue insists it has not slashed staff.

FMG deputy chief executive Julie Shuttleworth says the switch has not left anyone out of a job.
“There's absolutely been no redundancies through that whole process,” she said. “We’ve planned this well in advance, we've made sure that all our people have been either upskilled, relocated to other operations, had opportunities for new jobs.”

Mr Amin said the driverless fleet and new drill rigs had lead to huge benefits.
“We're about 30 per cent more productive than a manned fleet, so we’re moving the same amount of material with less trucks than we typically would with a manned operation,” he said.

With the Solomon success, the autonomous fleet will soon expand to the Christmas Creek and Cloudbreak mines.
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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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As a person that drove those giant trucks when I graduated high school, this sucks. Driving something as big as a house is a huge kick for a young person.

But, as long as nobody loses a job, it's a great idea.
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As with the following, modern cars are also subject to this, although there does appear to be more pirate software available for road vehicles:
.................................................................................................................................
Tractor-hacking farmers in the US fight for right to repair under equality law

http://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-0 ... rticleLink

The days of home tractor repair are coming to an end with machinery technology and tightening intellectual property restrictions meaning farmers are forced to pay big bucks to fix their machinery.

When Nebraska farmer Tom Schwarz bought a tractor he did not realise he would be bound to his John Deere dealer who holds onto intellectual property rights to fix it.

"When you paid the money for a tractor, you didn't actually buy the tractor … because all of the intellectual property is still theirs," Mr Schwartz told tech journalist Jason Koebler in a documentary released earlier this month.
"You just buy the right to use it … for life."

Farmers and independent machinery repairers across the United States are now campaigning for the right to fix their own machinery.

Mr Schwartz had always bought second-hand parts to keep his machinery going, but is now forced to call a dealer because of its software.

"We will put components on tractors. As farmers we don't like to spend a lot of money so we buy used components if we can," he said.
"It used to be we'd mount them ourselves and we'd utilise the tractor from that point on.

"Now we can't get the component and the tractor to talk to each other. So you literally have to bring Deere out to do all this or your tractor is not going to operate."

Farmers hacking their own tractors
In Nebraska, a "fair repair" law is being proposed to allow farmers to repair their own tractor.
If successful, the Right to Repair Act would make it mandatory for companies to disclose their diagnostic software and sell parts.

Journalist Jason Koebler told the ABC that farmers are using software downloaded from Ukraine to avoid the onerous restrictions.

"Farmers are hacking their own tractors. In places like Ukraine and Eastern Europe the software is sold to farmers without the encryption they have in other countries like the United States," he said.

"So what people in Ukraine are doing is uploading these versions of the software for free online, and people in Nebraska are pirating it and hacking their tractors with it.

"They're essentially able to have access to the same technology the John Deere dealerships have in order to fix their things."

The risk for these farmers is that they will break their warranty.
John Deere declined the ABC's interview request but provided this statement:

"John Deere recommends against unauthorised modification of the embedded software code.
The embedded software code is designed and tested to ensure a positive and safe experience for customers.
Manufacturers have invested in developing embedded software code to ensure the equipment operates safely and accurately.
Allowing untrained individuals to modify equipment software may result in equipment that no longer complies with industry and safety standards, or environmental regulations."

Australian farmers 'don't get a choice'

Mr Koebler said the fair repair issue extends beyond machinery companies, with firms like Apple and Microsoft taking interest in the Nebraska case.
"It's also your iPhone. Apple doesn't sell parts to your iPhone," he said.

"Companies have been moving towards this model where they sell you something and you end up having to go to a manufacturer for service on that."

It is already happening to your car in Australia.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-10/c ... wn/8792258

Australian farmers, who have always fixed their own machinery, are keeping a close eye on the US case.

Western Australia farmer Paul Green said Australia might be in even greater need for a "right to repair" movement than the US.
"Australia doesn't get a choice in the types of engines we get. We just get what the Americans and the Europeans build because the Australian market is just too small," Mr Green said.
"If you buy a tractor, you buy a tractor and it's yours. And the big companies are now trying to say if you buy a tractor, it's not yours."

"You have the right to use their tractor and that's the issue I think."
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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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US Navy Launches First Jet with Electromagnetic Catapult

https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/253 ... c-catapult

For decades, the US Aircraft Carrier fleet has been hurling planes into the sky with the aid of steam. However, a new generation of ships are about to launch with the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS).

The catapults used on most aircraft carriers divert steam from the ship’s nuclear reactor to operate the system. This is a “quick and dirty” way to generate the mechanical power necessary to accelerate a 30,000-pound plane to about 170 miles per hour across just a few hundred feet of runway. The only viable alternatives thus far have been shorter, ramped runways.

But they are not alone:

China claims breakthrough in electromagnetic launch system for aircraft carrier

https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2017/ ... ch-system/

MELBOURNE, Australia — China has reportedly achieved a breakthrough on a conventional propulsion system for its next carrier, which would allow it to operate advanced catapults for launching aircraft without necessitating the use of nuclear propulsion.

Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post newspaper, quoting sources close to China’s People’s Liberation Army, reported that a team led by China’s top naval engineer, Rear Adm. Ma Weiming, has developed a medium-voltage, direct-current transmission network to replace an earlier system based on alternating current.

Forming part of an integrated propulsion system, the new system would allow a conventionally powered aircraft carrier to operate an Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, or EMALS, which conveys a number of advantages over traditional steam catapults that include increased efficiency, precision and shortening aircraft launch cycles.

The source also said the Central Military Commission, chaired by President Xi Jinping, had wanted China’s next aircraft carrier to be fitted with EMALS, but designers had up to now been stymied by the power requirements of the system and whether a non-nuclear-powered ship will be able to generate enough power to operate it.
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Worlds biggest cruise ship made its maiden voyage just last week.
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Symphony of the Seas measures 1,188 feet (362 m) in length and has a gross tonnage of 228,081 across 18 decks. She is able to accommodate 5,518 passengers at double occupancy up to a maximum capacity of 6,680 passengers, as well as a 2,200-person crew.[6]

Facilities include a children's water park, a full-size basketball court, ice-skating rink, and two 43-foot rock-climbing walls.[15][16] There is also a 'central park' which contains over more than 20,000 tropical plants.[17]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Symphony_of_the_Seas

Installed power: (AC generators)

4 × 14,400 kW (19,300 hp) Wärtsilä 12V46F(57,600 Kw) common rail diesels
2 × 19,200 kW (25,700 hp) Wärtsilä 16V46F(38,400 Kw)

total generation capacity= 96,000 Kw (96 Megawatts)

Propulsion:
3 × 20 MW (27,000 hp) ABB Azipod, all azimuthing propellers

4 × 5.5 MW (7,400 hp) Wärtsilä WTT-55 bow thrusters

Titanic by comparison:

DC generators: 4 x 400 Kw = 1.6 Megawatts total(100 volts dc), which at the time was more than most land power stations!

Propulsion
Also had 3 propellers
Two reciprocating steam engines driving outboard propellers
One steam turbine driving centre propeller
Total propulsion power around 37 Megawatts, 50,000 horsepower
All coal fired boilers
royal-caribbean-symphony-of-the-seas.jpg
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Re: Engineering and Technology Thread

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An interesting comparison in (propulsion) power between Symphony of the Seas and the Titanic considering the difference in size!

One thing that I would say regarding these "Monstrous" Cruise Ships would be the difficulties caused with the number of passengers - 6,680 in this case. My cousin and her husband took a cruise a few years ago - whilst a large vessel, it was nothing on this scale. That said, it still took them some 4 hours to board the damn thing.....not for me!

Regardless, SOtS (tad ominous) is an impressive vessel from an engineering point of view.

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FIRST TRANS-ATLANTIC DRONE TAKES OFF FROM US, LANDS IN UK
A remote-controlled aircraft, also known as a drone or unmanned aerial vehicle, took off from North Dakota in the United States and touched down at the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford in Gloucestershire, England. The aircraft, belonging to General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. flew 3,760 nautical miles over the Atlantic and touched base 24 hours and 2 minutes later after lifting off on July 10.
https://citizentruth.org/first-trans-at ... nds-in-uk/
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Wind energy's big disposal problem
Germany has more than 28,000 wind turbines — but many are old and by 2023 more than a third must be decommissioned. Disposing of them is a huge environmental problem
https://www.dw.com/en/wind-energys-big- ... a-44665439
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Don't know where to post this as there are several "solar power" threads. The idea has some merit from what I have read, but I hope they allow some experienced "Farang" input, or they may just sink!
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Thailand to build world's biggest floating solar farms

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/ne ... olar-farms

Thailand plans to build the world’s largest floating solar farms to power Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy and to boost the country’s share of clean energy.

State-run Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) will float 16 solar farms with a combined capacity of more than 2.7 gigawatts in nine of its hydroelectric dam reservoirs by 2037, said Thepparat Theppitak, a deputy governor with the utility. Several of the proposed projects are more than double the size of the world’s largest floating system now and the venture dwarfs the 1.3 gigawatts of generation installed globally as of October.

The plan represents an ambitious bet for Thailand on floating solar, which tends to be more expensive than the ground-mounted units that dominate the sector. If EGAT builds all its proposed projects, the company says floating solar will account for one tenth of the country’s clean energy sources, compared to just 1% of global solar capacity by 2050, according to BloombergNEF.

“As the cost of solar equipment comes down, many developers are looking at water with grid connection,” said Jenny Chase, head of solar analysis for BloombergNEF in London. “This seems to be a great combination of long-term and well-structured planning, with individual projects identified already.'

Locating the plants at existing hydropower reservoirs means the utility won’t need to spend as much on infrastructure tying it into the grid and the system will improve the overall output of the hydropower plants, according to Mr Thepparat. In the future, the company will also use lithium-ion batteries to store electricity produced by the floating plants.

Thailand has been moving towards generating more electricity from renewable sources in recent years. It has set the goal that renewable energy will make up 27% of overall capacity by 2037, according to its latest power development plan.

The bidding for the first floating solar project will begin in two months and will be open to international companies, Mr Thepparat said, with the budget set at 2 billion baht ($63 million) for a 45 megawatt farm at Sirindhorn Dam in northeast Thailand. That plant is expected to come online next year.

Floating systems are considered about 18% more expensive than land-based ones because of the need for floats, moorings, and more resilient electrical components, according to the World Bank. However, the projects bypass land use in forests and farmlands and water can also help to cool the solar panels, increasing the efficiency by 10%, Mr Thepparat said.

Eight of EGAT’s 16 planned floating plants would be larger than what is now the world’s biggest, a 150-megawatt system floating above a collapsed coal mine in China. Thailand’s biggest will be the 325-MW farm at Sirikit Dam in northern Thailand, scheduled to be completed in 2035.

'The hydro and solar power will be working in synergy in this project and using our existing assets and resources,' Thepparat said in an interview on Monday at EGAT’s head office near Bangkok. 'We have studied and planned this project very carefully.'
A floating solar farm is shown at a pond at SCG Chemicals’ plant in Rayong’s Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate. (Photo supplied by SCG)
A floating solar farm is shown at a pond at SCG Chemicals’ plant in Rayong’s Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate. (Photo supplied by SCG)
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Rolls-Royce tests hybrid power system

https://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2 ... er-system/

The evocative start-up howl of the Rolls-Royce M250 gas turbine will be part of the future of aviation, even if the aircraft it powers are utterly unlike anything flying now. Rolls-Royce is testing an electric hybrid drive system for urban air vehicles and other aircraft using distributed electric propulsion.

Rolls-Royce says the system will be used across a range of aircraft, including EVTOLs (hybrid electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles), general aviation aircraft and hybrid helicopters. It follows up on the Rolls-Royce EVTOL concept unveiled at the 2018 Farnborough airshow.

The company said, ‘We successfully tested the hybrid version of the M250 gas turbine in a ground demonstration setting in three operating modes: series hybrid, parallel hybrid and turbo-electric. The M250 hybrid is planned to be used as a propulsion plant with power ranging from 500 kW to 1 MW and has the potential to transform aviation power.’

The hybrid systems integrate a gas turbine engine with a battery, electric generators, power converters and an advanced power management and control system. Rolls-Royce tested three system configurations:

Series hybrid: Where the engine operates as a turbo-generator that charges an on-board battery system and does not contribute to thrust directly. All power required for thrust and other onboard systems is supplied by the battery.

Parallel hybrid: Where the platform thrust is supplied by a combination of the engine (mechanical thrust) and the electrical system (electrical thrust), while the other power needs of the aircraft are met by the battery.

Turbo-electric mode: In this configuration, the battery system is redundant. The engine operates as a pure turbo-generator supplying electric power for thrust and any other power needs on the aircraft.

Rolls-Royce is aiming for experimental flights of the system in 2021. The company is also developing a larger 2.5 MW system, using the AE 2100 turbine, that is being tested with Airbus on the E-Fan X demonstrator platform.

The Rolls-Royce M250 was originally produced by Allison and powers more than 170 aircraft types, including the Bell 206 and Sikorsky S76.
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KLM to fund development of fuel-efficient Flying-V plane

Scale model testing as early as September this year.

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More concept photos and story at link. https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/ ... index.html
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Power flows through Maxwell electric prototype aircraft

https://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2 ... prototype/

The electric motors and propellers for the X-57 Maxwell were powered up and spun together for the first time. And NASA took delivery of the aircraft’s replacement wing from contractor ESAero.

The X-57 Maxwell is an ambitious project that combines electric power with distributed propulsion based on the airframe of a Tecnam P2006T light twin. In its final form the X-57 will use 12 electric motors over the span of the wing and two ‘cruise’ electric motors mounted on the wingtips.

The project is proceeding in a series of modifications or mods, in NASA parlance. Mod II includes the replacement of the P2006’s two Rotax piston engines with electric cruise motors. Mod III includes the replacement of the aircraft’s wing with a new, high-aspect ratio wing, and moving the electric cruise motors to the wingtips.

NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Centre is now testing the wing to verify its specifications, components and structure match NASA’s structure and design models.

The next step will be for the wing to have its 12 nacelles fitted. These will eventually house 12 small, electric high-lift motors and propellers, which will be featured on X-57’s final phase, Mod IV.

That aircraft is named Maxwell, after the Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell, who, along with Michael Faraday, developed the theory of electromagnetism that paved the way for innovations ranging from electric power to fibre-optics.

Former project chief Mark Moore told Flight Safety Australia in 2016 that distributed propulsion would enable efficient high-speed flight over longer distances than would otherwise be possible for a given battery capacity.
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