Undergraduate Courses 2017-18

Hands-on practice course series for MECH and non-MECH students to become familiar with design and physical prototyping of basic technologies in A) computer-aided design tools; B) hybrid prototype fabrication techniques and practice; C) sensing and actuation; D) structure and mechanization; E) testing methods and tools; F) system testing and proofing. OD I is the first course to guide the students through the design, prototyping and testing with a robot project. The students will be grouped and follow given procedures to complete a robot for competition and heavy guidance will be provided.

Hands-on practice course series for MECH and non-MECH students to become familiar with design and physical prototyping of basic technologies in A) computer-aided design tools; B) hybrid prototype fabrication techniques and practice; C) sensing and actuation; D) structure and mechanization; E) testing methods and tools; F) system testing and proofing. OD II is the second course to guide the students through the design, prototyping and testing after the first heavily guided course. This second course is structured to give significantly higher degree of freedom to allow grouped students to make significantly larger number of engineering decisions in design, prototyping, testing and competitive advantage building on a climbing robot with freedom under supervision.

Forces, moments, equilibrium; principles of virtual work; analysis of structural members under axial load, torsion and bending; shear force and bending moment diagrams; statically indeterminate trusses; buckling and structural stability.

Kinematics and kinetics of planar machinery. Linkage and machinisms, cams, gear trains. Dynamics of particles, momentum method and impact. Dynamics and dynamic balance of machinery; vibration analysis.

For first year non-MECH students. This is an entry level course on nanotechnologies and microsystems. The topics to be covered include introduction to miniaturization and scaling laws, thermal-mechanical properties at the nano-scale, nano-materials, nano-composites, multi-scale mechanics, self assembly process, basics of micro- and nano-fabrication, and fundamentals of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MENS) and nano-electro-mechanical systems (NEMS). The emphasis will be placed on the applications of nanotechnologies and microsystems in mechanical engineering.

This course provides students an understanding of what is mechanical engineering and what mechanical engineers do. The fundamental mechanical concepts and engineering skills will be introduced through four subject studies: Automobile & Graphics, Smart Materials, Robotics, and Alternative Energy. The students will learn graphic software (e.g., SolidWorks) and practice computer-aided design. The course is conducted via weekly lecture and graded P or F.

Fundamental concepts; pure substance; work and heat; control volume; Ideal and real gases. First and second laws of thermodynamics. Entropy. Elementary power and refrigeration cycles.

Atomic bonding of materials; crystal structure and defects; mechanical properties of materials; phase diagrams and phase transformations; heat treatment of metals; processing and applications of metallic materials.

Introduction to the engineering design process and engineering graphics; design specification, concept generation, and concept evaluation; geometric construction, sketching, orthographic projection, auxillary views, sectioning, dimensioning, tolerancing, and working drawing.

This course covers key elements of intellectual property (IP) law that can protect business, engineering and scientific innovations, and its implications for business operations and management decisions. The course begins with an analysis of the competing policies underlying intellectual property laws and then move onto the basics of trade secrets, patent, copyright, and trademark law, as well as new international intellectual property standards. The students will identify, analyze and apply appropriate legal principles to practical IP situations. This course also empowers the students to understand the tensions inherent in IP rights and when IP law promotes innovation, or stifles it. This course is recommended for business, engineering, and science students.

For non-engineering students or students enrolled in the Minor Program in Technology Management. Examples of modern products useful in daily life will be used to explain mechanical engineering principles and their usage in product design and manufacture. Contents include history; modern materials for transport, communication and sports etc; air conditioning and refrigeration; energy and air pollution; micro-machines and robots.

For Mechanical Engineering students only. This course is designed to develop students' skills in speaking to the technical and non-technical audiences that engineers will encounter in their professional careers. Oral assignments call for impromptu speeches and formal presentations. Graded P or F.

Bi-axial stress state and failure criteria; thick-walled cylinders and spinning disks; bending of plates; elastic foundations; unsymmetric bending and torsion; curved beams; frame analysis; energy methods; plastic collapse and limit analysis.

Fundamental concepts; hydrostatics; integral and differential equations of fluid flows; conservation of mass, momentum and energy; dimensional analysis; pipe flow; channel flow and boundary layers.

Thermodynamics of combustion, chemical equilibrium, refrigeration and mixtures of gases. Analysis of power generation, propulsion systems. Performance of modern steam plants, gas turbines, internal combustion engines and refrigeration plants.

Transient and steady heat conduction. Natural and forced convection. Radiative exchange. Introduction to computational methods.

Structure, properties and applications of ceramics and polymers; introduction to composites; construction materials; corrosion and degradation of materials; materials selection and design considerations.

Geometric modeling systems, data structures, NC technology, NC machining, project.

Engineering specification, selection of materials, design criteria. Methods of joining and assembly. Engineering components design and applications: shafts and bearing, gearing, pulleys and belts, brakes and clutches. Design for manufacturing.

Introduction to system equations, block diagrams, signal flow graphs, state-space systems, transient response using convolution integral, root locus and frequency response methods. Design by root locus, frequency response and state space method. Nyquist stability test.

Electromagnetic circuits, transformers, electromechanical energy conversion, DC machines, asynchronous and synchronous machines, special machines, transients and dynamics, three-phase circuits and power electronics, applications in electrical building services.

Introduction to the principles of manufacturing processes; process characteristics, capabilities and limitations; related machinery and equipment; automation and common aspects of manufacturing, including metrology and quality assurance.

Introductory laboratory course to provide training in experimental techniques and laboratory procedures, data acquisition, analysis and presentation.

Basic laboratory course to demonstrate physical principles in mechanical engineering, and to enhance technical reporting skills. Objectives are prescribed, but original procedures and analysis are required.

Continuation of MECH 002 for Mechanical Engineering students only. This course is designed to develop students' skills in speaking to the technical and non-technical audiences that engineers will encounter in their professional careers. Oral assignments call for impromptu speeches and formal presentations. Graded P or F.

Covers selected topics of current interest to the Department not covered by existing courses. Offerings announced each semester.

Basic concepts of continuum mechanics, stress and displacement formulation, plane stress and plane strain, plate theory, thermal stress, basic concepts of the finite element method, implementation and application of FEM in 1-D and 2-D stress analysis with ANSYS/ABAQUS, applications in structural design, mechanical analysis of electrical packages and MEMS devices . Prerequisite: MECH101

Failure analysis, brittle and ductile fracture, creep rupture, fatigue cracking, environmental degradation of materials, damage tolerance design, life predication of engineering components, case studies.

Cartesian tensors; stress, strain, displacement fields; compatibility; plane stress and plane strain; stress and displacement formulation; two dimensional problems in rectangular and polar coordinates; torsion; thermal stresses.

Properties of sound. Hearing mechanism. Instrumentation and noise measurements. Sound propagation outdoor. Construction and community noise. Transportation noise. Noise assessment and control. Indoor noise and vibration problems.

Structure of the atmosphere. Air quality in Hong Kong. Sources and fate of air pollutants. Air pollution meteorology and dispersion. Control technologies and environmental impact assessment.

Introduction of heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, moist air properties, heat transmission in building structures, solar radiation, air conditioning cooling load and heating load calculation, air distribution system design, indoor air quality, economic analysis, alternative cooling systems.

Indoor air pollutants in buildings and their transport dynamics with respect to building ventilation systems. Design methodology in handling indoor air quality in buildings and enclosed spaces. Building environmental assessment method.

Introduction to intelligent building and building automation, communication, safety and security systems; modeling and control of noise, illumination, mechanical transportation, electrical, electronic, fire safety subsystems; system integration and optimization with the building envelope; code of practice in design, operational characteristics and performance specifications.

Study of microstructure, morphology, and chemical compositions of engineering materials using optical, X-ray and electron methods; specimen preparation, instrumentation and case studies.

Basic concepts of finite element methods, element equations for basic structural elements, implementation and application of FEMs in 1-D and 2-D structural analysis and heat conduction.

Rigid body motion, forward and inverse kinematics, manipulator Jacobians, force relation, dynamics and position control robot manipulators, force control and trajectory generation, collision avoidance and motion planning, robot programming languages.

Principles of precision design, precision machining, and precision measurement; mathematical definitions and theoretical studies of tolerances for one-, two-, and three-demensional precision assemblies; applications and industrial practices.

This course is intended for teaching numerical methods for engineering students at the senior level as well as at the beginning graduate level. The course will have three important objectives: (1) to teach the basic theories and fundamentals of numerical methods; (2) to help the students to acquire skills to implement these methods for computer solution; and finally (3) to provide an environment where the students can familiarize themselves with many today's popular commercial software systems, such as MATLAB, and their use in the solution of engineering problems.

Single-degree-of-freedom vibration, multiple-degree-of-freedom vibration, vibration in continuous media, numerical method and their application in mechanical engineering and building services.

This course aims to introduce some professional contract management practices for the participants; to motivate the participants to adopt a more flexible and effective approach in managing maintenance contracts; and to inspire participants to develop their best contract management methods.

Within the context of the diminishing role of the state and of globalization, study of ethical issues in engineering practices and operation such as: the social responsibility of technological firms, the rights and obligations of employees and employers in engineering enterprises, the problem of discrimination, environmental issues, the impact of technological advances and implications on society. Course structure: Corporate Governance and Accountability in Engineering Enterprises, Engineering Business Ethics, Social Impact, Stakeholders and Key Communities, Measurement tools.

Definition of risk, perception of risk, social acceptability of risk, risk assessment and management techniques; principle and processes of risk management, contingency plans and disaster recovery, principle and processes of risk-informed decision, multi-attribute utility theory, analytical hierarchical process and cost-risk benefit analysis.

This course is intended to provide 3rd year UG students with practical hands-on training in the form of a co-op program in an engineering company located in Hong Kong or China. Students must obtain approval from the UG Coordinator before enrolling in the course.

Practice of engineering design through a group design project chosen to integrate materials covered in the curriculum. Each student will be assigned a component of a large project which may be sponsored by industry. May be graded PP.

Continuation of MECH 398.

For Mechanical Engineering (Building Services) students only. A practical training course for a total duration of thirteen weeks include manufacturing processes and project planning, intelligent building services, CAD, safety, first aid and a project. Graded P or F.

For Mechanical Engineering students only. A practical training course for a total duration of thirteen weeks. Topics include manufacturing process and project planning, CAD, safety, first aid, and manufacturing project, plus two additional modules in either - automation, or electronic packaging area. Graded P or F.