Mechanical Engineering (ME)

University Directory
University Courses

ME 110/110L INTRODUCTION TO MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
(1-1) 2 credits. An introductory course for incoming mechanical engineering freshmen which will introduce the student to the profession they have chosen. Topics to be covered include: Solid modeling, CAD lab, professional development, engineering design, technical communication, personal development, and academic success skills.

ME 211 INTRODUCTION TO THERMODYNAMICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: MATH 125 and PHYS 211. An introduction to the basic concepts of energy conversion, including the first and second laws of thermodynamics, energy and entropy, work and heat, thermodynamic systems analysis, and the concepts of properties and state. Application of these fundamentals to energy conversion systems will be presented.

ME 221 DYNAMICS OF MECHANISMS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 211, EM 214, MATH 125. Brief review of dynamics of a particle. Kinetics and kinematics of two and three-dimensional mechanisms. Emphasis will include free body diagrams, vector methods, and various coordinate systems. Newton’s law and energy methods will both be used.

ME 262/262L PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
(3-1) 4 credits. Prerequisites GES 115, ME 110, MATH 123 and sophomore standing. The course presents in a detailed fashion useful tools and structured methodologies that support the product development practice. Also, it attempts to develop in the students the necessary skills and attitudes required for successful product development in today’s competitive marketplace. The cornerstone is a semester-long project in which small teams of students plan, conceive, design, and prototype a simple physical product. Each student brings his/her own background to the team effort, and must learn to synthesize his/her perspective with those of the other students in the group to develop a marketable product. An introduction to manufacturing aspects that must be taken into consideration during product development is provided in the context of a mini-project.

ME 312 THERMODYNAMICS II
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 211and ME 221. Thermodynamic power cycles using vapors and gases. One-dimensional compressible flow. Energy analysis. Refrigeration cycles. Mistures and psychrometry. Maxwell’s relations. Combustion and thermochemistry.

ME 313/313L HEAT TRANSFER
(2-1) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 211 and MATH 373 (concurrent). A study of the transfer of heat by conduction, convection and radiation. Application to thermal systems.

ME 316 SOLID MECHANICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 216 and ME 221. Covers stress analysis and failure theories of both brittle and ductile materials and energy methods. Also includes such topics as elastic impact, stability, axisymmetrically loaded members in flexure and torsion, and an introduction to plastic behavior of solids. ME 322 MACHINE DESIGN I (3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 316 and ME 262. Applications of the fundamentals of strength of materials, basic elastic theory, material science and how they apply to the design and selection of machine elements. Elements include shafts, gears, fasteners, and drive components such as gears and chains.

ME 322 MACHINE DESIGN I
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 316 and ME 262. Applications of the fundamentals of strength of materials, basic elastic theory, material science and how they apply to the design and selection of machine elements. Elements include shafts, gears, fasteners, and drive components such as gears and chains.

ME 331 THERMO FLUID DYNAMICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 211 and ME 221. A study of the nature of fluids, constitutive relations, fluid statics/buoyancy, and the equations governing the motion of ideal (inviscid) and viscous, incompressible fluids, as well as inviscid, compressible fluids (1-dimensional gas dynamics). Internal and external flows, including viscous pipe flow, the Moody diagram, lift, drag and separation. Laminar and turbulent boundary layer theory, and dimensional analysis, modeling, and similitude.

ME 351/351L MECHATRONICS AND MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS
(3-1) 4 credits. Prerequisite: CSC 150 and EE 220 or EE 301. This course will encompass general measurement techniques found in mechanical and electrical engineering. These include measurement of force, strain, frequency, pressure flow rates and temperatures. Elements of signal conditioning and data acquisition will be introduced. In addition to this material, the course will have a Mechatronics approach reflected in the combined applications of electronic mechanical and control systems. This course is cross-listed with EE 351/351L.

ME 352 INTRODUCTION TO DYNAMIC SYSTEMS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: MATH 321, ME 221. This is an introductory course in the control of dynamic systems. The course presents the methodology for modeling and linearizing of electrical, mechanical, thermal, hydraulic and pneumatic systems. The course also covers control system analysis and synthesis in the time and the frequency domains.

ME 380 INTRODUCTION TO BIOMECHANICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: EM 321 or EM 217, MET 231, and MET 232. This course will provide an introduction to the important field of biomechanics. It will cover topics such as: engineering based on biological design; human anatomy; neural systems; locomotion; and biological materials.

ME 391 INDEPENDENT STUDY
1 to 3 credits. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Includes directed study, problems, readings, directed readings, special problems and special projects. Students complete individualized plans of study which include significant one-on-one student-teacher involvement. The faculty member and students negotiate the details of the study plans. Enrollments are usually 10 or fewer students. Meeting depending upon the requirements of the topic.

ME 392 TOPICS
1 to 3 credits. Includes current topics, advanced topics and special topics. A course devoted to a particular issue in a specified field. Course content is not wholly included in the regular curriculum. Guest artists or experts may serve as instructors. Enrollments are usually 10 or fewer students with significant one-on-one student/teacher involvement.

ME 402/502 GAS DYNAMICS
(3-0) 3 credits. This course will review fundamental concepts from thermodynamics including isentropic flow and normal shock functions. The equations of motion will be derived in differential form and wave theory will be introduced. Multidimensional flows and oblique shock theory will be discussed. Integral methods for inviscid, compressible flow will be developed and numerical methods (including the method of characteristics for hyperbolic equations) will be employed in the second half of the course. Students enrolled in ME 502 will be held to a higher standard than those enrolled in ME 402.

ME 404 HEATING, VENTILATING, AND AIR CONDITIONING
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 312 (concurrent), ME 313 (concurrent), ME 331. A study of space heating and cooling systems and equipment, building heating and cooling load calculations, solar radiation concepts, and moist air properties/conditioning processes. Indoor air quality/comfort and health issues will be discussed. Basic heat and mass transfer processes will be introduced; pump and fan performance issues along with duct and piping system design. Heat exchangers and mass transfer devices will also be studied.

ME 411/411L INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES I
(3-1) 4 credits. Prerequisites: ME 312 (concurrent), ME 313 (concurrent), ME 331, ME 351. Otto and diesel cycle analysis; combustion in engines; exhaust gas analysis; engine mechanical design features. Laboratory includes experiments designed to coordinate with the lectures and special investigations to topics of current interest such as noise and pollution.

ME 416 THERMOSCIENCE LAB
(0-1) 1 credit. Prerequisites: ME 351, ME 312, ME 313 and ME 331. A hands-on experience with experimental methods in mechanical engineering thermoscience; measurement techniques for temperature, pressure, flow and velocity; data acquisition systems and uncertainty analysis will be covered. Group projects to illustrate design of experiments will be assigned, in addition to conducting various heat transfer, fluid mechanics, and thermodynamics experiments.

ME 419/419L THERMO-FLUID SYSTEMS DESIGN
(3-1) 4 credits. Prerequisites: ME 312, ME 313, and ME 331. Investigation and design of thermal and fluid systems and components, emphasizing the major thermal/fluid design issues that arise in internal combustion engine power conversion; analysis and synthesis involving modeling and optimization of thermo-fluid systems, components and processes. Development and application of fundamental numerical tools and algorithms for thermal and fluid problems. A central design problem for a thermal/fluid system or component will be selected to meet an existing or future project need and will be decomposed into the relevant thermal and fluid aspects which will studied throughout the course. Review of the basics of the design process and physical processes important to thermal-fluid problems (basic thermodynamics, heat transfer and fluid mechanics), the fundamentals of building and solving mathematical models, and design issues and concepts unique to internal combustion engines will be discussed. Students will be required to implement one or more previously developed Fluent learning modules to study the use of CFD in thermal/fluid system design. The final project will incorporate skills developed in the learning modules into the required design of the system or component. The laboratory will include experiments to compliment the lecture material and provide a means for hands on validation of concepts.

ME 422 MACHINE DESIGN II
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 322. This course will explore advanced structural design concepts within an integrated framework of theory, simulation, experiment, and materials. Of particular importance will be the study of modern topics, such as plastic materials and their response to service loads. Structural mechanics and materials response will be brought together in support of machine component design.

ME 423 MECHANICAL VIBRATIONS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 352. Study of the oscillatory nature and vibration design of mechanical systems. One, two, multi, and infinite degree of freedom systems are analyzed for their response in both free and forced vibration regimes. Particular emphasis is given to designing for vibration control. Brief introductions are made to vibration testing and measurement, and human response to vibrations.

ME 424 FATIGUE DESIGN OF MECHANICAL COMPONENTS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 322. The analysis and prevention of fatigue related failures in mechanical components. Topics covered include historical background, failure theories, macroscopic aspects of fracture and fatigue, fatigue characteristics of materials, stress concentration factors, environmental effects, and surface treatments. (Design Elective)

ME 425 PROBABILISTIC MECHANICAL DESIGN
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 322. Basic concepts of probability and statistics are introduced including Gaussian, Exponential, and Weibul distributions. Primary emphasis is placed on treating stresses, strains, deformations, and strength limitations as random variables and computing probability of failure under required loads. Considerable time is devoted to converting data into meaningful engineering parameters for making engineering decisions. Statistical methods applied to topics in mechanical design. (Design Elective)

ME 426 MECHANICAL SYSTEMS ANALYSIS LABORATORY
(0-1) 1 credit. Prerequisites: ME 423 (concurrent). Use of experimental methods and modern instrumentation techniques to understand the free and forced oscillations of machines and machine components, as well as the control of these vibrations. Laboratory exercises are designed to reinforce material learned in the companion lecture class ME 423, extend knowledge into new areas, and help to make the connection between theory and practice.

ME 427/427L COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE
(2-1) 3 credits. Prerequisite: Senior standing or permission of instructor. Discussion of methods and topics in computer-aided design and manufacture. How to bridge the gap between the design/analysis phase and the actual manufacture phase. Database requirements of CNC machine tools and how they can be constructed.

ME 428/428L APPLIED FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS
(2-1) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 316 or permission of instructor. Basic mathematical concepts of finite element analysis will be covered. The students will learn finite element modeling using state of the art software, including solid modeling. Modeling techniques for beams, frames, two and three-dimensional solids, and thin walled structures will be covered in the course.

ME 430 WELDING ENGINEERING AND DESIGN OF WELDED STRUCTURES
(3-0) 3 credits. Introduces the state-of-art in welding processes and technology. Discusses fundamentals of the fabrication welded structures by introducing basics of solidification in welds, metallurgy of welds, fatigue and fracture in welds, joint design and weld defects and inspection. The technology focus is friction stir and laser welding. This course is cross-listed with MET 430.

ME 442 FAILURE MODES OF ENGINEERING MATERIALS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 322. Discussion of various material failure modes with emphasis on understanding how to design components to avoid failures. Topics covered will include deformation, fatigue, fracture, creep and corrosion. The course will include examples of typical failures, discussion of case studies and laboratory demonstrations.

ME 443 COMPOSITE MATERIALS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 316 or concurrent enrollment in MET 440. This course will cover heterogeneous material systems; basic design concepts and preparation; types of composite materials; advances in filaments, fibers and matrices; physical and mechanical properties; failure modes; thermal and dynamic effects; and application to construction, transportation and communication. This course is cross-listed with MET 443.

ME 445/545 OXIDATION AND CORROSION OF METALS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: MET 232, MET 320 or CHE 222 or ME 312 or permission of instructor. Initially, the thermodynamics of electrochemical processes are covered; use of the Nernst equation and Pourbaix diagram is presented in this material. Fundamentals of electrode kinetics are then discussed with special emphasis on the derivation of the Butler-Volmer equation and application of the Evan’s diagram. Following presentation of these fundamental concepts, phenomena observed in corrosion and oxidation such as uniform attack, pitting, stress corrosion cracking, and corrosion fatigue are discussed. Finally, selection of materials for site specific applications is covered. Students enrolling in ME 545 will be held to a higher standard than those enrolling in ME 445. This course is cross-listed with ENVE 445/545, CHE 445/545, MET 445/545.

ME 453/453L CONTROL SYSTEMS
(3-1) 4 credits. Prerequisite: ME 352 or EE 311. Analysis and design of automatic control and process systems by techniques encountered in modern engineering practice, including both linear and nonlinear systems with either continuous or discrete signals. This course is cross-listed with EE 451/451L.

ME 454 INDUSTRIAL HYDRAULICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 331, ME 352. Design and use of high pressure hydraulic pumps, valves, systems and computer control systems.

ME 456 CONTROLS LABORATORY
(0-1) 1 credit. Prerequisite: ME 453 (concurrent). The purpose of this laboratory is to expose the students to real-time control applications. During the course of this lab the students get acquainted with the TMS320C30 board, its data acquisition capabilities as well as its control capabilities. Two major set-ups exist in this laboratory. The first one consists of a servo motor - C30 board combination, while the ECP’s inverted pendulum is the other experimental configuration. The students are asked to design, investigate, implement, and evaluate various control strategies on these two control systems.

ME 477 MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN I
(0-2) 2 credits. Prerequisite: Senior standing or graduation within three (3) semesters, ME 322, ME 351 (concurrent). The first semester of a two (2) course sequence in senior design practice. Integrates concepts from all areas in mechanical engineering into a practical design project. Fundamentals of the design process, specifications, decision making, and preliminary design will be the focus, with the major part of the course being the project.

ME 479 MECHANICAL SYSTEMS DESIGN II
(0-2) 2 credits. Prerequisite: ME 477 and senior standing. Corequisite: ME 351. The second semester continuation of Mechanical Systems Design. Integrates concepts from all areas in mechanical engineering into a practical design project. Detailed design and analysis, manufacturing, and assembly will be the focus.

ME 499/599 RESEARCH PROBLEMS/PROJECTS
1 to 3 credits. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Independent research problems/projects that lead to a research or design paper but not to a thesis. The plan of study is negotiated by the faculty member and the candidate. Contact between the two may be extensive and intensive. Does not include research courses which are theoretical. Students enrolled in ME 599 will be held to a higher standard than those enrolled in ME 499.

ME 612 TRANSPORT PHENOMENA: MOMENTUM
(3-0) 3 credits. Introduction to momentum transport. Equations of continuity and motion. Velocity distributions. Boundary layer theory. Turbulent transport compressible flow. This course is cross-listed with CBE/CHE 612.

ME 613 TRANSPORT PHENOMENA: HEAT
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 313, MATH 373 (concurrent). An in-depth study of the fundamental laws of heat transfer. Major areas considered are: heat conduction, free and forced convection, and radiative heat transfer. Emphasis is placed on the formulation and solution of engineering problems by analytical and numerical methods. This course is cross-listed with CBE/CHE 613.

ME 616 COMPUTATIONS IN TRANSPORT PHENOMENA
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: MATH 373 or permission of instructor. Various computerized techniques, including finite difference and finite element, will be used to solve transient and steady state heat transfer problems involving conduction and convection. This course is cross-listed with CBE/CHE 616.

ME 623 ADVANCED MECHANICAL VIBRATIONS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 423 or equivalent. Study of the vibration of systems of particles both forced and free. Included is the study of transient vibrations and system natural frequencies. Classical studies of the vibration of continuous systems, free and forced, damped and undamped using computer solutions are emphasized. Introduction to Theoretical and Experiment Modal Analysis. (Design Elective)

ME 661 ENGINEERING ECONOMICS FOR MANAGERS
Credit: Variable 1 to 4. Students are expected to have prerequisite skills in the time value of money and basic probability. Students not having these skills require the permission of instructor. The course is divided into 4 one-credit modules, which include: economic valuation for decision making, problems with uncertainty and risk, budgeting and cost management, and financial statements and enterprise management. (Manufacturing elective). This course is cross-listed with TM 661.

ME 673 APPLIED ENGINEERING ANALYSIS I
(3-0) 3 credits. Advanced topics in engineering analysis. Special mathematical concepts will be applied to mechanical engineering problems. Topics will be selected from the following: Fourier series and boundary value problems applied to heat conduction and convection, Laplace transforms and complex variable analysis applied to vibrations and dynamic system analysis, series solutions of differential equations, partial differential equations, general matrix applications to a variety of large systems of equations in engineering, calculus of variation, and Ritz method for various engineering problems.

ME 683 ADVANCED MECHANICAL SYSTEM CONTROL
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisites: ME 673, ME 453, MATH 315 or permission of instructor. Derivation of state equations for continuous and discrete control systems. A study of optimal and adaptive control of mechanical systems. (Manufacturing Elective)

ME 685 STATISTICAL APPROACHES T0 RELIABILITY
(4-0) 4 credits. Prerequisite: MATH 441 or permission of instructor. This course covers the development of statistical methods for application to problems in reliability engineering. Statistical topics include: basics of reliability and lifetesting, probabilistic reliability, patterns of failures, probability concepts and distributions in reliability, analysis of reliability data, prediction and modeling, reliability measurements and problems. This course is cross-listed with MATH 685.

ME 691 INDEPENDENT STUDY
1 to 3 credits. Prerequisite: Permission on instructor. Directed independent study of a topic or field of special interest. This may involve readings, research, laboratory or fieldwork, and preparation of papers, as agreed to in advance, by student and instructor.

ME 692 TOPICS
1 to 3 credits. Lecture course or seminar on a topic or field of special interest, as determined by the instructor.

ME 715 ADVANCED COMPOSITE MATERIALS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Includes classification and mechanical behavior of composite materials, macromechanical behavior of lamina and laminates. Course emphasizes study of advanced composite laminates including failure theories, experimental methods, stresses, strains, and deformations.

ME 722 ADVANCED MECHANICAL DESIGN

ME 773 APPLIED ENGINEERING ANALYSIS II
(3-0) 3 credits. Applications of numerical methods to mechanical engineering problems. Topics will include data processing techniques, curve fitting and interpolation of experimental information, solutions to systems of ordinary differential equations, solutions to partial differential equations, and numerical integration both of known functions and functions described only by experimental data.

ME 781 ROBOTICS
(3-0) 3 credits. The course covers the following topics as related to modern industrial robots, sensors and actuators, motion trajectories, synthesis, control, computers and languages, available robots, and applications. (Manufacturing Elective)

ME 782 INTEGRATED MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS
Credit to be arranged. A course designed to provide an opportunity for the graduate student to do applied research work in his/her major field. This course will be the basis for the project required when the student has opted for the nonthesis option, for the master of science degree in the mechanical engineering department.

ME 788 Graduate Researh (Non-Thesis)
Credit to be arranged. A course designed to provide an opportunity for the graduate student to do applied research work in his/her major field. This course will be the basis for the project required when the student has opted for the non-thesis option, for the Master of Science degree in the Mechanical Enginering Department.

ME 790 SEMINAR
(1-0) 1 credit. May not be repeated for credit. Oral presentations followed by group discussions on a weekly basis. Speakers will be drawn primarily from the graduate student body but may also include faculty and invited lecturers.

ME 791 INDEPENDENT STUDY
1 to 3 credits. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Directed independent study of a topic or field of special interest. This may involve readings, research, laboratory or field work, and preparation of papers, as agreed to in advanced, by student and instructor.

ME 792 TOPICS
1 to 3 credits. Lecture course or seminar on a topic or field of special interest, as determined by the instructor.

ME 798 MASTER'S THESIS
Credit to be arranged. A course designed to provide an opportunity for the graduate student to do research work in his major field. This course will be the basis for the thesis required when the student has opted for the thesis option, for the master of science degree in the mechanical engineering department.

ME 555/555L ADVANCED APPLICATIONS IN COMPUTATIONAL MECHANICS
(1-2) 3 credits. Prerequisite: Senior or higher standing. Introduction to solid modeling techniques using advanced solid modeling software. Use of Computational Fluid Mechanics codes for the solution of complex fluid mechanics and heat transfer problems. Use of finite element codes for the solution of non-linear and transient problems in solid mechanics.

ME 299/299L SOPHOMORE DESIGN
(1-1) 2 credits. Prerequisite: GES 115. This course focuses on the design process including project management and teamwork; formal conceptual design methods; acquiring and processing information; design management tools; design for manufacturability, reliability, maintainability, sustainability; design communication: reports and presentations; ethics in design; prototyping designs; case studies. This course is cross-listed with EE 299/299L. (Experimental)

ME 216 INTRODUCTION TO SOLID MECHANICS
(3-0) 3 credits. Prerequisite: EM 214. This course covers the fundamental concepts of solid mechanics including the definition of stress, transformations and states of stress; plane stress, plane strain, octahedral stresses, three dimensional stresses, and principal stresses in two and three dimensions. Additional topics include strain analysis, strain measurements and rosette analysis, generalized Hooks law, and orthotropic materials. Specific applications are an introduction to composite materials, analysis of thin and thick cylinders, statically indeterminate members, torsional loading of shafts, power transmission and the shaft analysis, torsional loads in noncircular components and thin tubes, stress concentrations, and combined loads.

ME 481L ADV PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT LAB I
(0-2) 2 credits. Corequisite: ME 479. Advanced laboratory experience in product development. Students will perform activities in support of detailed product design, including virtual prototyping, computational investigations, and testing of components and systems. During the time of this course and in order to broaden their views on globalization, students will be required to attend a seminar series.

ME 482L ADV PRODUCT DEVELOP LAB II

ME 455/455L VEHICLE DYNAMICS
(2-1) 3 credits. Prerequisite: ME 352. Fundamental principles and practices of modern automotive chassis and suspension design, operation and testing are presented in the course. The dynamics of acceleration, braking, ride and handling are covered. Steady-state cornering using the standard bicycle model is covered in detail. Laboratory work involves shock absorber and spring testing and the setup and evaluation of Formula SAE and Baja SAE chassis. Students must complete a chassis design project.

ME 264/264L Sophmore Design

Contact: South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
http://sdmines.sdsmt.edu/sdsmt/directory/courses/me