Track: Undergraduate Student Paper Competition

Abstract

Our design idea spawned from the increases in traffic accidents rate during nighttime driving on unlit roads. Most unexpansive cars have fixed headlights that have blind spots that the headlight does not cover. We took a look in the market to see what are the solutions that the manufacturers provide and concluded that most solutions are expensive to the average population. So, we had a brainstorming session and came up with a design project idea. Our project is based on a simple mechanism and it is low cost at the same time. Which is the 4-bar mechanism. Basically, we will weld a rod vertically on the steering arm that is connected to the tires. Then we will construct our 4-bar the crank and rocker must be parallel and has the same length to make sure that both headlights turn at the same angle as the tires. Then we will attach an extension pin to the headlight. We are aware of the tight spaces so we modeled our design on a specific pick-up car our mechanism should not alter any of the car`s functions or interfere with the under-carriage components of the vehicle. Our design aims to make it affordable, safe, and reliable at the same time. The methodology we followed is to first outline the components of the mechanism and set the maximum dimensions of each part. Second, we worked comprehensively on the design calculations needed such as Degrees of freedom, Stress analysis, and force analysis as well as choosing an appropriate material and an international standard. Finally, we will construct a 3D model and simulate it to check if the mechanism passes the engineering program's tests. If necessary, changes will be made after the simulation. After that, the mechanism will be manufactured to conduct real-world experiments and determine the practicality of our design.