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COURSES Mechanical Engineering 3rd Year Microcontroller Training
So far two courses HAVE BEEN taught:
- Programming with AVR microcontrollers, by Vincent Musau
- Introduction to Linux, by Paul Korir
PROJECTS - Wireless Device Programming – Vincent Musyoka Musau
- Mobile Device Battery Charger Using Cycle Power – Joseph Nyamato
- Water Filtration for the Poor– final year project
- Light-Aircraft Manufacture– Felix Maina
- 2D to 3D Imaging– Paul Korir
- A Simple Mobile Robot – Ciira Maina
- Wi-fi Phone network– Vincent Musau
- Brief case – John
- Light controller– John
- Universal Remote Control for Light Switching– John
WIRELESS DEVICE PROGRAMMING – Vincent Musau, Graduated-
student, Electrical and Electronics Engineering  Vincent won the regional IEEE innovation competition with an entry which
permitted the programming of mobile phones to enable the control of domestic
devices and appliances via instructions communicated using short messaging
service (sms). Objectives
The purpose of this project was to create a remote command interface for any
device that could accept user commands through SMS and perform the appropriate action.
The objectives to achieve this goal included: - To design a device that obtains SMS text messages from a user at a remote location
- To establish a connection between a PC/ Microcontroller and a cellular
phone through a serial link, infrared or Bluetooth - To extract the request from the SMS and pass it to the application
- To process and carry out the commands the user requests
- To authenticate user and report unauthorized entry
- To send confirmations or alerts back to the user
Methodology
I have two phases of implementation of this device. The first phase is complete
and working very fine. Currently I am working on the second phase of
implementation which aims at making the device quite cost effective and less
power consuming. Phase I
Consists of a phone remotely attached to a UNIX based computer systems.
SMS requests are sent to the attached phone. A module running on the UNIX
system transfers the SMS upon arrival to the microcomputer where the rest of
the processing takes place. The module running on the microcomputer is a script
that incorporates codes that I have written in several languages including C, Perl,
Python, etc. This phase of implementation has proved very handy and has ease of processing
the requests. However, the cost of the PC is considerably high and power
consuming and hence not realist in embedded controls. Phase II
The second phase of implementation of this project aims at eliminating the use of
the PC while retaining those very features of the project. In this case I am using a
mobile phone and a microcontroller in the place of the PC. Though the
microcontroller has a limitation in terms of memory, it is the best way to go about
the project to achieve a very realistic, cost effective and less power consuming
device  Mobile Device Battery Charger Using Cycle Power
Joseph Nyamato. Graduated-student, Mechanical and Manufacturing
Engineering  On a challenge posed to him by Dr. Kamau, Joseph designed
and constructed a simple circuit for charging mobile
batteries.
The circuit is simple and easy to construct using basic
off-the-shelf components and a copper strip board. Faced with the range of different current and voltage
requirements for the various mobile phone types, he designed
a circuit which is able to serve two different types of
phone – Nokia and Motorola, two of the most popular brands
sold in Kenya. Specifically, the circuit is able to produce
0.3A and 0.5A at voltages of 3.7 V and 4.5V. The voltage is
generated using a dynamo built for lighting
a bicycle lamp. It is seen
in the picture below. Efforts are underway to patent this idea.
INEXPENSIVE WATER FILTER LIGHT-AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURE – Felix Maina, Graduated-student,
Bachelor of Commerce
 Felix is the main proponent of this project. He has dreamt of flying since as a young
boy in Nakuru he observed the flight of a jet high in they sky. He’s been smitten with
the idea of flight ever since, but has been unable to find the necessary sponsorship
necessary to obtain a private pilot’s license. Not being easily discouraged, he decided
to build his own plane.
After graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Nairobi in
2004, he has spent all of his time building an aircraft. He succeeded in doing so and
his first solo flight was little more than a hop, but he was airborne for a few reckless
moments nevertheless. He loved it.
Figure: Felix (left) inspects the aircraft he constructed prior to his first flight. He has initiated a company P.W.I. Aircraft Company is a start-up company
making cheap affordable aircraft for aircraft operators. P.W.I. Aircraft
Company will design thoughtful, complete, and cost-effective aircraft solutions
and sub-contract some of the manufacturing to related companies.
P.W.I. Aircraft Company has identified and will work to complete four
objectives that will
assist them on their path to profitability. - An initial prototype of the design.
- To obtain Airworthy Certification approval from the KCAA and FAA.
- To secure parts manufacturer approval.
- To develop a comprehensive marketing plan and promotional campaign.
P.W.I. Aircraft Company will target aircraft operators initially in Kenya, move on
to the east African market and finally to the entire continent. Currently, the
mentioned segments have very high market potential. P.W.I. Aircraft Company will
reach these segments in several ways, including direct mailings, brochures, websites,
advertisements in trade publications, and a demo unit. The main segments that will be
targeted are the Military, Flight Schools, Agricultural Organizations, Police Force and
Individual Fliers. All these segments have a high demand for easy affordable
transportation requirements. Felix met Justin Njuguna, an automotive engineer formerly with TWR (U.K.)
who has a passion for kit aircraft, through Kamau Gachigi. They are partners
in this start-up. 2D TO 3D IMAGING – Paul Korir, Graduated-student, Electrical
and Electronic Engineering  The main deliverable of the project was a 3D model of the extracted facial
features from the orthogonal face images, which could be manipulated. The
following is a description of how this was achieved. Creation of sub-images
Two monochrome orthogonal images of a human face were used. The images
used were those of a male of Caucasian origin. The position of the eyes was
observed from a selection of a few images and positional information refined
to extract a sub-image that contained the eyes and as little area around them
as possible.
This was done for both the front and side images. Image-processing of sub-images
Once the sub-images were extracted, they were processed in order to
obtain the basic geometric shape of the eyes. This was done by passing
the images through filters (by 2D-convolution) that accentuated the outlines,
exaggerated contrasts and finally picked out the shapes that were needed.
The result of filtering was a pair of binary images that only consisted of
outlines of the front and side images. Interpolation and display on the 3D canvas Generation of the final 3D
model from the pair was the last step in the process. This entailed systematically
moving between images to identify similar corresponding points to come up
with the 3D vertices of the model. This data was stored and passed on to
OpenGL for display on the 3D canvas. This final model could be rotated and
viewed from any angle. Applications
This has numerous applications in various fields though just a few have
been highlighted below. - Animation: the use of this technology can be used to rapidly build 3D
models for creating animations. - Medicine: such technology can be used in non-invasive views of internal
organs and tissues. - Manufacturing: as an aid to rapid-prototyping, 3D models, or the
associated data can be an integral step in the production process. 
A SIMPLE MOBILE ROBOT – Ciira Maina, 5th year student, Electrical and
Electronic Engineering,
University of Nairobi
 Figure – Simple robot assembled by Ciira from waste and recycled materials,
at his own cost.
It receives instructions from computer to which it is tethered.The aim of the
project was to design a mobile robot capable of navigating unknown areas
both autonomously and semi-autonomously. The robot is designed so that it
is easily assembled from a kit.
The creator Ciira hopes that this will inspire young Kenyans (10 - 17yrs)
to get interested in science and engineering and find it enjoyable.
Capabilities: - The robot is a simple autonomous vehicle designed to navigate unknown
areas - This is achieved by use of touch sensors to avoid obstacles and a motion
and steering system. - The robot is controlled by a program stored on a PC to which the robot is
interfaced via the parallel port. - External circuitry is used to control the robot’s two onboard motors (stripped
fore a car tape-recorder)
to effect forward or reverse motion and turns. The motor system: Two onboard
motors for motion and steering. - The sensory system: Two micro switches mounted at the front of the robot.
- The software system: This ensures sensor data results in appropriate motor action
Status: Currently a prototype has been developed.
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