IIT-B students design bagged first prize

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American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME) Student mechanism and robot design competition

Two students from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, Anish Kulkarni and Kshitij Thavare have developed the prototype of a new four-wheel steering mechanism for a car which is based purely on mechanical controls for on-road safety. The innovative design has won ASME Student Mechanism and Robot Design Competition, 2011 held during 2011 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conference at Washington D.C. The competition calls for submission of a paper and a working model. Selected teams are required to present their work as well as exhibit a prototype working model at the venue of the conference. The team was one of four selected for the finals and bagged the first prize at the competition. A four-wheel mechanical steering car that gives immense power to maneuver as compared to conventional steering mechanism is expected to be ready in a years time. They are currently moving onto to build the real size car. At present, only front wheels are used to steer a car and those with four-wheel steering are based on electronic controls. They had taken an idea and worked hard to give it a shape. This is the first step they have taken. Next step will be to take their product to the market. The Project involves development of a new four wheel steering mechanism for off-road or military vehicles. The steering mechanism employs multi-bar linkages in the form of mechanical logic gates. A vehicle equipped with the proposed steering system shall be highly maneuverable as compared to a vehicle with a traditional steering mechanism. The objective of this steering mechanism is to enable a vehicle with the following functionalities: 1. Ordinary two wheel steering: Only front wheels steered. 2. Four wheel steering: Direction of turn of rear wheels is opposite to that of the front wheels. With all four wheels steered thus, the vehicle has a smaller turning radius than normal front steering vehicles. 3. Crab steering: All four wheels turn in the same direction. The vehicleshould be able to move sideways without turning. 4. Zero radius turning: Front wheels turn inward; rear wheels turn outward, enabling the vehicle to turn in its place.

A vehicle equipped with the proposed steering system will be highly maneuverable as compared to one with traditional steering mechanism, The prototype was designed by Kulkarni along with Kshitij Thavare, final year, dual degree mechanical engineering students, under the guidance of Prof. Amarnath, Mechanical engineering department. Students have filed for a patent for the technology. The objective of this steering mechanism is to enable a vehicle with multiple types of steering, including ordinary two-wheel steering where the front wheels are steered and four-wheel steering where the direction of turn of rear wheels is opposite to that of the front wheels. With all four wheels steered thus, the vehicle has a smaller turning radius than normal front steering vehicles. It enables crab steering where all four wheels turn in the same direction and the vehicle can move sideways without turning, he said. While the project started over three years back, the duo first created a model to prove that its performance is equivalent to an actual car followed by a virtual prototype. Subsequently, the final prototype, a miniature version, was built.