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Motion = Progress at the School of Technology
Rapid movement is the current watchword at the School of Technology. After classes ended in May 2005, the School underwent a rapid and dramatic change in its laboratory area in Copernicus Hall in rooms NC 118 and NC 101. The major reconstruction concept was designed and recommended by interested faculty and presented by Dr. Alfred Gates, chair of the Engineering Technology Department, in the fall of 2004. In little more than four months of extensive renovation, notes Dr. Z.B. Kremens, dean of the School of Technology, “we were running three new laboratories—for robotics, fluid mechanics, and thermal and mechanical engineering—in a space that prior to the renovation could be chaotic at times. The new arrangement allows several laboratories to be used simultaneously, each without interfering with the others. Additionally, the partitioning allows at least two other laboratories to have their own separate spaces in NC118, and the Technology Education laboratory has been also rearranged.”
Kremens also noted: “This more effective use of existing space enhances the quality of our programs and gives our School the state-of-the-art environment we need to educate the technologists of the future. We achieved this goal within a short space of time thanks to Dan Moran, Sal Cintorino, and CCSU’s entire Facilities Management department, who rose to the challenge of focusing their talents on our needs in the most timely and effective manner.” Now in use, the robotics lab (seen below) enables Dr. V. Rajaravivarma (left), professor of computer electronics and graphics technology, and Daryll Dowty, professor of manufacturing and construction management, to instruct students (seated from left) Sherele Zimmer and Tan Dam in the use of a “teach” pendant to “nest” the robot (return it to its initial starting position, so it can be accurately programmed). The “ROBOWARE” program enables the robot to operate in continuous operation. One of the new School of Technology labs was also the birthplace of a unique vehicle that uses bicycle components and pedals like a bike. With the driver supine in an enclosed shell, it is a human-powered speed vehicle, and it was CCSU’s entry in the sixth annual Human Powered Speed Challenge held in Nevada earlier this month.
Human Powered Speed Vehicle Club member and School of Technology student Joseph Szydlowski is seen above making adjustments to the vehicle under the direction of Dr. David Sianez (right), assistant professor of technology education, in preparation for a test run at Meriden-Markham Municipal Airport last month. They were observed by (from left): an interested bystander; Dr. James DeLaura, chair of the Department of Technology Education; and student Ed Szydlowski, who drove the vehicle. Some 15 CCSU undergraduates and area high school students have helped to develop Central’s human-powered speed vehicle. The campus club’s goal is to produce the fastest possible foot-powered, two-wheeled vehicle. Using a combination of bicycle parts for the power source within a streamlined carbon fiber and KEVLAR® shell, it pits cyclist, technology, and sheer determination against the seemingly insurmountable forces of air resistance and friction to determine the absolute boundaries of human-powered speed over a 200-meter distance. The use of high-level aerodynamic design techniques and maximum athletic power results in shockingly fast speeds, and CCSU’s Human Powered Speed Vehicle Club will continue to compete and strive for top honors. |
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