Design

Starboard sees a design component in every project it tackles. From traditional mechanical and electrical components to sensors and software, and from patent applications to process improvement, Starboard’s clients know that our engineers tackle them all. We stay mindful of the interplay among different disciplines in the design process and our systems engineering perspective allows us to design accordingly.

We seek to fully understand the engineering challenge at hand and to be certain that constraints are understood and that strategies and methods are soundly applied. At Starboard, we also appreciate the fluid nature of most projects, so we design our approach to include clear and constant communication with our clients and flexibility in our thinking to ensure efficient, effective results.

Design Capabilities:

Systems
Actuators and mechanisms
Advanced materials
Hydraulics and pneumatics
Extreme environments
Special applications
Active control
Magnetics
Optics
Electronics
Sensors and instrumentation
Software
Manufacturing
Experiments

Related Work

Downhole Sensing Tool

Shock-hardened, 12-channel load, pressure, and acceleration sensing tool with embedded electronics: conception, design, fabrication, & testing.

Aircraft Crashworthy Design

Novel crash energy attenuation mechanisms & energy absorber elements for commercial aircraft seats: design, development, full-scale crash test, & data analysis.

Helicopter Vibration Control

Three projects to reduce transmission of engine vibration to fuselage and to pilot & isolate sensitive UAV payload: research, design, & full-scale vibration testing.

Thru-Tubing Bridge Plug

Award-winning, high-expansion ratio with elastomer retainers, slips, & centralizers for thru-tubing applications: design, prototype, & deployment simulation.

Systems

Problem/mission statement, scope & objectives definition, operational & functional requirements definition & negotiation, subsystem interfaces definition, feasibility studies, risk assessment, test plans, & staged prototyping.

Actuators and mechanisms

Electromagnetic, hydraulic, pneumatic actuation; smart/active materials; rotary, linear, servo, acoustic, kinematic, deformable actuators & mechanisms; motion amplification; deployable elements; constrained motion.

Advanced materials

Composites, elastomers, ceramics, high-strength alloys, corrosion-resistant alloys, specialty materials (e.g. electrically & thermally conductive epoxies, polymers, & elastomers), piezoceramics, active fiber composites, shape-memory alloys, & magnetostrictors.

Hydraulics and pneumatics

Valves, high-pressure seals, metal-metal seals, & pressure control systems.

Extreme environments

Pyrotechnic shock (explosives), high vibration, high pressure/high temperature (HPHT), corrosive fluids, & crash/impact.

Special applications

Examples include downhole tools, fluid-loaded structures, flight vehicle payloads, & energetics.

Active control

Motion/servo, vibration, thermal, optical, PID, multi-variable, & non-linear.

Magnetics

Magnetic sensors, magnetic actuators, magnetic collar locators, magnetic shaft coupling across a pressure barrier, & linear/rotary motors.

Optics

Fiber optics, free-space optics, bulk optics, lasers, photodiodes, optical control, beam-steering actuators, all-optical fiber-optic matrix & wavelength-selective switches, & telecom components & systems.

Electronics

Embedded processors & firmware, analog & digital, low-power, battery operated, extreme environment, data acquisition, data logging, & real-time control.

Sensors and instrumentation

Sensor specification, selection, & design; analog signal conditioning, instrumentation & charge amplifiers, digital filtering, high-speed data acquisition, & shock-induced triboelectric noise mitigation; pressure, temperature, mechanical load (strain), shock (acceleration), inertial & navigation, & downhole survey (gamma, collar locators).

Software

Custom analysis, signal processing, data acquisition, tool configuration, communication, calibration, modulation/demodulation, process control, test automation, database, data analytics, C++, Java, Visual Basic, MATLAB, & LabVIEW.

Manufacturing

Design for manufacture & assembly (DFM & DFA), process development, inspection, qualification, & training.

Experiments

Design of experiments (DOE), parameter studies, mechanical apparatus, electronics, controllers, sensors, data acquisition systems, & automation software.