MSU Research Activities   Robb Larson Assistant Professor Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Montana State University rlarson@me.montana.edu 406-994-6420 Phone 406-994-6292 Fax

Applied Research

The term “applied research” usually indicates that a solution to a specific problem is needed, in contrast to basic research which tends towards open-ended investigations of various phenomena. Applied research offers a good fit with my teaching role in the MET program and provides many opportunities for student participation. Nearly all of my applied projects have required the design and fabrication of equipment to serve a particular purpose or need, often with tight timelines for completion.

Projects

Over the past 15 years at MSU I’ve participated in a variety of projects, both in solo efforts and in collaboration with other researchers from my MIE department, other departments in the College of Engineering, other colleges across campus, and external agencies, individuals & companies. I've done plenty of consulting in the areas of design and product development along with some product liability & forensics work. Past research activities include: composite materials performance evaluation; instrumentation projects ranging from spacecraft exercise equipment to Antarctic research apparatus; transportation systems studies; snow science work; and reverse engineering projects. But presently  most of my research efforts land in two areas of study: Wind Applications, and Snow Science investigations.

Wind Applications Center

My proposal to develop a program focus in wind energy applications was recently funded by a grant from the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, establishing the Montana Wind Applications Center.

    See story at  http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=6135

The "Center" designation comes with big expectations - but there are big opportunities for growth and for beneficial outcomes in this area. Its exciting to get involved in the development of renewable energy educational programs in the College of Engineering.

Good progress is occurring on this front: During the 2007/2008 academic year, I advised the first MET "Wind" Capstone group as they investigated site selection for the Montana Wind for Schools projects and designed residential wind tower tilt-down mechanisms, and I'll have more students involved this fall as new coursework comes on-line and new Capstone projects are undertaken. I'm working to get MSU's first on-campus wind turbine in the ground this fall, and we should be getting anemometers and towers this fall that will help build the WAC infrastructure.

I'm pursuing collaborations with researchers who are already established in the wind industry, and hope to develop good working  relationships with educators and researchers from other institutions, and with existing wind proponents like MSU's Extension service. Together we can really make a difference, and it is rewarding to watch MSU students step up to help Montana become a major player in wind energy as the United States works to develop alternatives to oil.

    United States Wind Resource Map                   Judith Gap Wind Farm                Montana Wind Resource Map

Snow Science

On the Snow Science front, I’ve been formally involved in avalanche and snow science work for about five years, and informally as a skier and winter recreationalist for as long as I can remember. Winter avalanche field work has somewhat unique demands: It requires decent skiing and mountaineering skills, a good attitude about putting in long winter days in the field, and the ability to work productively in a frozen winter mountain environment. So growing up in Montana skiing at Bridger Bowl certainly helped make this work seem like fun - well most of the time anyway. My snow science project tasks have included instrumentation development for measurement of various avalanche parameters like velocity, density and temperature, and I’ve served on graduate committees for several students working on snow-related projects. My main snow project at this time is the “Avalanche Dummy.”

“Avalanche/Crash Dummy” Project.  In 2005 I began working on a new project using an automotive-style crash test dummy to investigate the loads and forces experienced by a person caught in a snow avalanche.  This work is being performed in collaboration with the management & ski patrol at Bridger Bowl Ski Area. Funding comes from MSU's NASA EPSCOR office, COE Dean Dr. Robert Marley, from some MSU 'startup package' funding, and from out-of-pocket. The project goal is to provide a correlation between injuries and impacts suffered by victims of snow avalanches, through the use of an anatomically accurate, full-sized, instrumented crash dummy. This work may contribute to better sports and safety equipment and rescue procedures, with an ultimate goal to save the lives of folks who work and play in avalanche-prone mountain areas such as the mountains of Southwest Montana where so many MSU students and faculty enjoy recreational time.

The instrumentation demands of this work have been quite intense: Successful implementation requires computer-controlled sampling dozens of parallel data channels at rates fast enough to catch impact phenomenon. That task is challenging in a lab environment, but in this case the venue is a cold, dangerous winter mountain landscape. A simultaneous effort involves the measurement of  snow velocity, load and depth using equipment designed and built by student groups as part of ME and MET Capstone Design and by summer research interns. This setup also operates with a stand-alone, battery-operated, remote-activated computer-controlled system that (hopefully) remains in-place while the slide passes.

The avalanche dummy project is an ambitious  approach to the development of biomechanics research capability within the Mechanical and Industrial Engineering department. The advantage of this "swing for the home-run" tactic is that all the bases must be touched on the way around: The project team has already acquired the basic dummy infrastructure, researched available background information, fabricated/installed/calibrated sensors,  developed sophisticated data acquisition methodology, created remote-control power management systems, and is now finalizing assembly of a self-contained, autonomous dummy system. Many possible studies in sports, health care, and industrial environment applications are now possible and would use just a portion of the capabilities already in-hand.

Loading the dummy on the Bridger Chair for a round of testing.                     Avalanche Dummy test in-progress: The North Bowl, Bridger Bowl Ski Area, April 2008

Snowmelt Study Project. This demonstration project investigated the process of localized seasonal snowmelt in a high alpine environment, from late winter (snow pack near seasonal maximum) until late spring (snow pack melted.) The diurnal response of snow pack to atmospheric and solar inputs was recorded. Results may provide a link between local climate conditions and snow pack response. Specific goals include gathering data regarding the influence of contamination on snow pack reflectivity, melting, and structure (including faceting, 'sun-cupping', density change, etc.) Data could be useful to ground-truth satellite- or aircraft-based measurements, and demonstrated the ability of available MSU instrumentation and systems to perform meaningful research applicable to global warming studies, transportation issues, climatology, snow pack & hydrology research

The study utilized the WTI Mobile Lab as a base station to provide power, house data acquisition systems and sensors, and to provide secure on-site accommodations for equipment and researchers. A suitable site near the Ophir school in Gallatin Canyon was selected based on significant snow pack, adequate view parameters, accessibility, security, aspect, and elevation: Proposed sites for follow-on studies include access roads on or near Big Sky Ski Area or Yellowstone Club Ski Area in the Northern Gallatin Range of Southwest Montana, or Bridger Bowl Ski Area in the Bridger Mountain Range.

The sensor package included a continuous record of Air Temperature, Humidity, Wind Speed and Direction, Snow Pack Temperature, Time lapse video, Direct Solar Radiation,  Reflected Solar Radiation. Sensors developed for detection of Presence of liquid water in snow pack and Snow Depth were not installed on this demonstration run. Also omitted from this test sequence was a planned, periodic full-spectrum measurements of snow pack reflectivity that would have been used to determine local reflectivity ratio (albedo) in order to validate bulk measurements obtained with the pyranometers.

Funding assistance for summer student and faculty salary support was provided by MSU's EPSCOR office.

Other Research:

Western Transportation Institute Collaboration. I’ve been affiliated with Western Transportation Institute (WTI) for ten years, and have participated in a number of interesting projects.

Vehicle-Based Sensor Technologies
In 2006 I was among several WTI researchers who, along with several graduate students, prepared an exhaustive report on Vehicle-Based Sensor Technologies for Winter Maintenance. The report along with a paper described cutting-edge technologies that can make maintaining winter roadways more efficient, safer and less costly. Numerous vehicle-based technologies, including automatic vehicle location (AVL), surface temperature measuring devices, on-board freezing point and ice-presence detection systems, salinity measuring devices, visual and multi-spectral sensors, and millimeter wavelength radar sensors were investigated. Conducted through the NCHRP Project 20-7/Task 200, the paper synthesized information obtained from a comprehensive literature review and agency surveys on the state of development of these advanced technologies. Of these technologies, AVL systems, road surface temperature measuring devices and FAST systems are the only ones that have matured and become fully operational, while the remainders are still in the development and testing phases. The information offered by this paper was provided to encourage maintenance agencies to implement better winter maintenance practices with respect to providing safe, reliable winter highways in a cost-effective and environmentally responsible manner.

Mobile Laboratory
In 2000 while working on other WTI projects, I proposed development of a mobile testing laboratory for transportation field research. Over the next several years, the Western Transportation Institute Mobile Laboratory was born. Bringing the concept from a paper design to a complete, working field unit took three full years, and the vehicle continues to evolve as new research project uses are found. In its present state, the 1-ton 4WD box van contains three computer systems, an advanced modular data acquisition system, an extendable pneumatic boom upon which twin traffic cameras or a field weather station can be deployed, GPS and radio systems, and a number of other elements to make transportation field research productive and efficient. Thus far the mobile lab project has employed over 15 student workers, as research interns. Several student Capstone Design projects were also sponsored, resulting in innovative equipment for transportation research. The van has been used by WTI researchers (including myself) for projects sponsored by the Montana Department of Transportation and other agencies. Tiered agreements provide for its use by MSU and non-MSU entities.

               WTI Mobile Laboratory Vehicle                             Weather Station Deployed                               Video Traffic Cameras