Engineering Consulting - Case Studies

Case Studies

1. Aviation
2. Automotive & Electronics
3. Mechanical
4. Structural

AVIATION

SilkAir 185 - On December 19, 1997 a Boeing 737-300 aircraft operated by SilkAir airlines crashed while en route to Jakarta from Singapore. The aircraft took off at 15:37 local time and climbed as directed to 35,000 feet, where it maintained cruise flight conditions for approximately twelve minutes without incident. At 16:05, the cockpit voice recorded (CVR) stopped and approximately six minutes later the flight data recorder stopped. Within two minutes, the aircraft began a rapid descent and crashed with the loss of aircraft and all persons onboard. To assist one of the defendants in the case, Midé engineers and scientists developed a state-of-the-art six degree-of-freedom simulation model to examine flight control inputs that would result in the descent flight path during which the aircraft's speed went supersonic. Since only radar data was available, Midé engineers developed probability models to describe the aircraft's flight path. In addition to the flight mechanics and autopilot investigations, Midé also examined the probability that the CVR and FDR would fail within sox minutes after only 2,800 flight hours. Weibull distribution based predictions concluded that such an occurrence is very unlikely. Midé electrical engineers performed an FMEA (Failure Mechanisms, Effects and Criticality Analysis) to examine electrical failure modes that would lead to the near simultaneous failure of the CVR and FDR.

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AUTOMOTIVE AND ELECTRONICS

Adaptive Driving Systems (Drive by Wire) - Midé is providing Forensic Engineering services on a number of cases, fatal and non-fatal, involving an Electronic Driving System fitted to fans for handicapped people. Midé engineers have examined the electronic design from a quality, safety, reliability and redundancy point of view.

MECHANICAL

Scheering-Plow – Midé assisted a team of experts in negotiating a favorable settlement involving the explosion of a polymer-nitroglycerine mix. Midé provided laboratory testing of the pneumatic pump that initiated the explosion. Midé engineers were responsible for measuring the fundamental characteristics of the pump using off the shelf and innovative, in-house developed sensors. After identifying the main failure mechanism, Midé supported accident re-construction visualization using in-house developed models.

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STRUCTURAL

R.R. Donnelly - Midé successfully helped NTS in a case involving the collapse of a large steel shelving system at R.R. Donnelly. During a shift change most of the storage facility's racks collapsed but there were fortunately no fatalities. The wreckage covered the most of the storage facility and had to be removed with heavy machinery. Possible failure mechanisms for this large metal frame-structure included poor welds and buckling (local or global). Detailed Finite Element Analyses were conducted and laboratory tests were performed. The studies showed that a poor joint design was to blame for the low buckling strength of the steel structure.

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For more information:

Please contact Tienie (Products), or call: 781-306-0609 x223