Subway Rail Car Filter Sampling Tool

The following design report has been prepared by Team Slice for both Cal Poly’s Mechanical Engineering Department and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. This report provides an overview of the design ideation process of creating a subway rail car filter sampling tool. This cutting tool will take samples of HVAC filters from subway railcars in New York City, NY. These samples will then be used for processing in biological terror emergency response situations. This device will provide an easy, safe, and user friendly tool to cut filter samples. The current method of cutting is a pair of scissors or shears, which is not only difficult but also poses a safety hazard to the biohazard team. This tool can be transported easily to the emergency response site. It is constructed of materials that will withstand decontamination chemicals and will not attract anthrax particles. In the following pages, relevant background topics and engineering specifications are discussed. Preliminary designs, a weighted design matrix, testing results, and feedback from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are discussed. The final design, its components, and its cost also follow