Importance of a Mechanical Engineering - Essay Example

Mechanical Engineering Mechanical engineering is an engineering discipline applying the principles of material science and physics in designing, analysis, maintenance and manufacturing of mechanical systems. This discipline of engineering encompasses the use and production of heat and mechanical power in the design, production, manufacture and operation of tools and machines. It is recognized as one of the largest, oldest and broadest disciplines of engineering. Mechanical engineers generally use the principles of materials, energy and mechanics in the design, and manufacture of devices and machines of various types (careercornerstone.org par 1-2). The engineering discipline possesses characteristics such as flexibility, individuality, and breadth. In terms of career paths, the individuals determine which category of mechanical engineering they are to deal with or engage in. This is as a result of its breadth and wide boundaries. This is especially advantageous to the current changing society therefore one can satisfactorily decide which career path to follow and not moving out of the core career. Mechanical engineering is found on the basis of mathematics, design, mechanics, heat and energy, engineering sciences and manufacturing. The mechanics discipline of mechanical engineering includes fluids which may range from water to hypersonic gases and motion of particles. Engineers in this field are involved in research, manufacture, development, design and testing of machines, engines and other mechanical devices. They usually work on various devices in particular power producing devices like internal combustion engines, gas turbines, steam turbines, and electric generators. This is just but to mention a few. They are also involved in power consumption machines like air conditioning and refrigeration, material handling systems, escalators, robots to be used in the manufacturing industry, elevators and industrial production equipment. This field of engineering requires core skills and expertise in structural analysis, kinematics, thermodynamics, material science and mechanics. It is through the use of these core concepts that the mechanical engineers are able to achieve their objectives in work. The engineers use various tools like product life cycle management and computer aided tools for the design and analysis work of the heating and cooling systems, motor vehicles, robotics and medical among others. This engineering discipline emerged during the European industrial revolution in the 19th century however its development can be traced to earlier times. The dynamic nature of technology has forced mechanical engineering discipline to evolve in order to accommodate the technology. The mechanical engineers of today are exploring various fields like nanotechnology, mechatronics and composites. The engineers in mechanical engineering collaborate with other engineers from other engineering disciplines to deliver services to the final consumers of their products. During class work, mechanical engineers undertake subjects like thermodynamics, material engineering, mechatronics, mathematics like calculus and differential equations, hydraulics, drafting and control theory. Mechanical engineering concepts go hand in hand with chemistry, physics, civil, electrical and chemical engineering, and statistical analysis concepts. To work as a mechanical engineer, one has to be registered by the engineers’ body in the particular country. Just like any other profession, mechanical engineers have to be licenced to work as professional engineers. This is to ensure that they possess the prerequisite technical knowledge of the legal system and real world experience to practice professional engineering. once registered and licensed the mechanical engineer becomes a chartered engineer as per the Uk regulatory rules and professional engineer as per the US regulations. The professional engineers are tasked with the approving various engineering works like design of bridges and chemical plants. They have to certify that the designed engineering products meet the regulatory body’s guidelines. Mechanical engineering has embraced technology and is now using computer aided tools to ease their design work. There have a lot of integration of technology in the mechanical engineering discipline with major improvements being recorded in 3D and 2D CAD. The method has brought more exhaustive and easier visualization of engineering products, virtual assembly of engineering products and easier designing of mating tolerances. The engineering discipline has also integrated product lifecycle management responsible for product complex simulations. Through use of analysis tools, the engineers are able to predict the load a product may sustain and manufacturability (memtuedu par 3-6). The other modern tools used by mechanical engineers are computer aided manufacturing, computer fluid dynamics and finite element analysis. Through used of modern tools the mechanical engineers can quickly and cheaply carry out the design work that best meets the cost and performance constraints. With the modern tools the engineers are able to forecast a problem in future and able to resolve before the actual outcome. The modern tools have enabled the engineers to be able to reduce the development and manufacturing costs as they give a prototype that resembles the actual outcome of the product. Through use of modern tools the engineer will estimate the strength of the materials used by testing the strain and stress caused by varying weights. As mentioned earlier, mechanical engineering just like any other engineering discipline has a variety of sub disciplines. The field is a collection of different mechanical disciplines usually taught at the undergraduate education level. Some of the disciplines are unique in nature while others are a combination of mechanical engineering with other engineering discipline. The technical skills used mostly by mechanical engineers have roots in the various sub disciplines and the specialized sub disciplines therefore it is very necessary for us to understand the sub disciplines. This will enhance our understanding of what mechanical engineering is as an engineering discipline. Robotics is has become more and more part of the currently living population. The robotic industry has automated most of the activities carried out by the human population making it easy to perform various technical activities. Through the robotic industry, a car can be assembled without human contact from the start to the end of the process (Domaine p24). Robotic engineering is the use of technology and science in the manufacture of robots. The field involves design, application, manufacture and structural disposition. The application of robots varies from one area to the other but generally the field tries to emulate the functions performed by living human beings. This field has integrated computer technology and therefore the engineering products can perform tasks with minimal human supervision. This area of mechanical engineering highly uses artificial intelligence and expert systems to realize the end results (Murphy p. 211). The products of robotics engineering have made manufacturing of products easy and efficient. Also the products have ensured accuracy in measurements and low labor costs to manufacturers. Robots may be equipped with functionalities equivalent of human senses like touch, vision and sensitive to pressure changes. Some have the ability to reason and make viable decisions. The future of the robotics industry is aimed at ensuring a considerable degree of self sufficiency permitting mobility and decision making in any unstructured environment. The sub discipline is involved in particulars pertaining to robots like application and development and integration of computer systems in control, information processing and sensory feedback. The other field of mechanical engineering is biomechatronics which is concerned with contraction of mechatronics and biomechanics. The field aims to integrate electronics and mechanical elements with the biological systems. In this field the integration of mechanics, electronics and bioliogy is a common practice and encompasses the robotics and neuroscience fields. The goal of this sub discipline is to come up with devices that will that will aid in human motor control impaired or lost through trauma, birth defects and terminal diseases (ocwtudelft par 3). Biomechatronic engineering have come up as a rapidly changing field but faces a hindrance in research work as there a few labs. Mainly the field is concerned with the study of human motions, electronic devices and testing. This sub discipline studies ways in which the electronic devices are to be interfaced with the nerve center in human beings. The analysis of human motions are aimed at ensuring that a better understanding of the human body have been achieved which will aid in designing of the biomechatronic devices. Testing is all about discovering ways in which the human living muscle tissues for attaching the electronic devices (McBrewster, Miller, Vandome p 43). It is the responsibility of the biomechatronics engineers to make devices that will interact with the human skeleton, nervous system and the living muscle tissues to assist or aid in human motor control. The other field of mechanical engineering is marine engineering. It involves the design installation, operation, construction and maintenance of equipments and systems controlling and propelling marine vessels and systems making a marine vessel or structure habitable for passengers, cargo, and crew. The modern marine engineer has to have knowledge in pneumatic, electrical, electronic, chemistry, control engineering, nuclear technology and gas turbines among others (Taylor p231). Marine engineers are concerned with design and selection of systems and equipment, operation, commissioning and installation and repair and maintenance of marine vessels (Tompkins p431). They must collaborate with the naval architect for better results in their work in the design and construction process. They deal with a variety of machines ranging from diesel engines to heat exchangers. Usually marine engineers acquire marine orientation through professionalism and indulgence in marine activities but currently there are programs leading to the award of the marine engineer diploma or degree in educational institutions. Nanotechnology has come as a field that is rapid in nature and has attracted a lot of people. It involves the study of control of matter on a molecular and atomic scale. It deals with structure sizes of 1-100 nM in at least one direction and design and development of devices or material within that size. It is a very diverse field ranging from device physics to molecular self assembly and may bring various implications in future like effect on global economics, toxicity and environmental effects of the nano materials. Acoustical engineering is a discipline of engineering dealing with vibration and sound. It is the application of science of vibration and sound, acoustics in technology. The acoustical engineers are generally interested in the science of sound, that is, control and manipulation (Olson p32). The main goal of acoustic engineers is to reduce unwanted sound generally referred to as noise. It is the mandate of the acoustic engineers to control noise in any engineering work as the unwanted noise can have negative impacts on human beings. The acoustic engineers are engage in developing systems that are act as sound absorbers, buffer zones, silencers and noise barriers. The application of noise technologies differ in implementation in outdoor and indoor implementations. Apart from preventing unwanted noise, the acoustical engineers has the obligation of producing noise useful to the user and carrying out analysis of sound waves to collect data and information. This includes applications of infrasonic and ultrasonic that generally makes use of sound difficult to be heard by humans. The ultrasonic waves are acoustic waves possessing high frequencies of about 20 kHz way beyond the audible range. There are wide applications of ultrasonic including sonar and medical imaging. On the contrary, the infrasonic waves are have frequencies of approximately 20 hz which is way below the audible range. Infrasonic is generally applied in volcanic eruptions and earthquakes detection. These are not the only applications of acoustical engineering as it can also be applied in other areas like architecture and environmental acoustics. As mentioned earlier in the essay, acoustical engineering is concerned with internal and external sound application. The architectural acoustics is the field of acoustical engineering that deals with the control of vibrations and sound within or inside buildings which ranges from opera houses and concert halls to office spaces and ventilation ducts. Acoustics of rooms generally aims at gaining privacy and intelligibility of speech. Standing waves (waves resulting from reflection of sound wave 180o out of phase with the incident wave) is one of the factors affecting the intelligibility of speech. Standing waves are eliminated or reduced through building of angled walls. Poor speech intelligibility can also be caused by reverberation which can be reduced through use of porous absorbing materials like textiles and glass. Environmental acoustics deals with control of sound and vibrations in the outdoor environments like the sound generated by aircraft, industrial equipment and traffic. The future of mechanical engineering seems clear and well set to incorporate upcoming technologies. Mechanical engineering will simulate and develop prototypes for various engineering tasks before the real work is done. I foresee where a 3D model will be the order of the day in the mechanical engineering field. Technology will help in the evolvement of mechanical engineering in developing strong engineering products that have been simulated before the actual manufacture (Asmeconferencesorg p13-15). Nanotechnology is to be the core to every engineering discipline. Successful outcome in the field will lead to development of better opportunities in aerosol science and production technology. This discipline requires better training to be carried out on the engineers so as to be able to handle future challenges. Another sub discipline that is bound for better future and that would leap well in the future is mechatronic engineering. It is through major developments in photonics, electronics and intelligent systems that mechanical engineering as an engineering discipline will be able to make great strides into the future (American Society of Mechanical Engineers p25). This sub discipline of mechanical engineering will automate robotics, industries and manufacturing processes. Another area with bright future is hydrogen engineering. This area can best be handled by mechanical engineers who are better equipped with the prerequisite knowledge. However, this could branch out just like aerospace engineering and automotive engineering and become a subspecialty. Core sectors of engineering, health care, energy and transportation form the basis of the future in mechanical engineering. To meet the future challenges, mechanical engineers need to undergo extensive training in upcoming technologies and the various interdisciplinary areas. Presentation Material Definition Mechanical engineering is a discipline in the engineering field concerned with the principles of material science and physics in designing, analysis, maintenance and manufacturing of mechanical systems. It encompasses the use and production of heat and mechanical power in the design, production, manufacture and operation of tools and machines. It is recognized as one of the largest, oldest and broadest disciplines of engineering. Mechanical engineering generally use the principles of materials, energy and mechanics in the design, and manufacture of devices and machines of various types. Categories: Just like any other engineering field, mechanical engineering can be sub divided into various disciplines among them being nanotechnology, marine engineering, Biomechatronic engineering, Robotics and acoustic engineering. Nanotechnology involves the engineering at the molecular and atomic state of functional systems. It is the ability to use tools and techniques in making of complete, high performance products. Marine engineering involves the design, construction, maintenance and developing of marine vessels. Earlier, the field was learn only in the profession experience but is currently offered in schools. The robotics engineering makes use of intelligent systems and expert systems to enable mechanical devices perform tasks performed by humans. In biomechatronic engineering, the engineers aim to develop devices that can be integrated into human systems to aid in motion out of injury to the body systems. The future of mechanical engineering will mainly focus on robotic engineering, biomechatronic engineering, hydrogen engineering and nanotechnology engineering. Works Cited American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Mechanical engineering, Volume 67, New York, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1945. Asmeconferences.org, Future Trends in Mechanical Engineering, viewed on 13th August 2010, http://www.asmeconferences.org/asmeglobalsummit/FinalGlobalSummitReport.pdf, 2008. Careercornerstone.org, mechanical engineering viewed on 13th August 2010, http://www.careercornerstone.org/mecheng/mecheng.htm, 2010. Domaine H., Robotics (illustrated), Minneapolis, Lerner Publications, 2006. McBrewster J., Miller F. P , Vandome A. F , , Biomechatronics, Beau Bassin, VDM Publishing House Ltd., 2009. Me.mtu.edu, What is Mechanical Engineering?, viewed on 13th August 2010, http://www.me.mtu.edu/admin/whatme.html, 2010. Murphy R., Introduction to AI robotics (illustrated), Cambridge, MIT Press, 2000. Ocw.tudelft.nl, Bio Mechatronics, viewed on 13th August 2010, http://ocw.tudelft.nl/courses/biomedical-engineering/bio-mechatronics/course-home/ 2010. Olson H. F., Acoustical engineering (3rd edition), New York, Van Nostrand Publishers, 1957 Taylor D. A., Introduction to marine engineering (2nd edition illustrated), London, Butterworth-Heinemann, 1996. Tompkins A E, Marine Engineering: A Text-Book, Charleston, BiblioLife, 2010. . Read More