Andrew Birkel

Andrew Birkel

Building things, Learning New skills, Having fun doing it!
About Me
Project list
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About Me

(Photo Credit – Deanne Fitzmaurice)

My Name is Andrew Birkel,

I am currently a Research Specialist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in the Plasma Science Fusion Center.

I graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a B.S. in Applied Physics with a concentration in Electronics and Optoelectronics.

I enjoy hiking, electronics, machining, tinkering, sailing, camping, and taking things apart to understand how they work.

Andrew Birkel

Massachusetts Institute of Technology – Research Specialist – (PSFC-HEDP)

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – B.S. Applied Physics

[email protected] 

Favorite Projects

[05.2019]Look like a Pro, Be like a Pro: Custom Caliper Case
[05.2019]Look like a Pro, Be like a Pro: Custom Caliper Case
[Description]: Every professional has a high quality item related to their field of study or work. This item both holds significance to themselves but also...
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[01.05.19]Louis of the Creek: Custom Short-staff for Christmas present
[01.05.19]Louis of the Creek: Custom Short-staff for Christmas present
[Description]: This projects objective is to create a short-staff based off of the staff of the main character from the popular cartoon Craig of the Creek....
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[Fall ’12] The Hopper: A Personal City Transportation Vehicle
[Fall ’12] The Hopper: A Personal City Transportation Vehicle
[Description]: A personal city transportation vehicle, A.K.A. The Hopper. This vehicle aims at being a versatile scooter that can ride both on un-kept roads, and in-doors. The...
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Complete Projects

[8.3.16] Sintillator Fabrication (CNC)[Work Related]

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[Description]: Manufacturing scintillation material into specific shapes for a diagnostic package run at The Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) Omega Facility. [Processes Applied]: Machining CNC [Summary]: This project was difficult due to the fragile nature of the plastic scintillation material I was working with. The issues for this material; (1) …

Complete Projects

[9.15.16] Reeve Doorbell

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[Description]: A friend is moving into a new space where he setup a few machines, and every shop space needs a door bell. So I decided to refurbish a working xylophone door bell, with a bit of customization.  [Processes Applied]: Waterjet Laser Cutter [Summary]: This project took more patience than …

In-Progress

[7.30.16] MITERS Related 3D Printing Projects

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[Description]: General 3D printing projects, Mainly utility projects regarding 3d printing in 3d  [Processes Applied]: 3D Printing [Summary]: In General, This project is aimed various small projects where I used 3D printing to modify some organization in MITERS and general useful. [I will probably occasionally add to this in the …

Collaboration, Complete Projects

[Summer ’16] Atomic Cocktail

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[Description]: Design and fabrication of a cocktail glass that takes its inspiration from the Atomic Cocktail (drink, song, and Fallout in-game item).  [Processes Applied]: 3D Printing Solidworks [Summary]: After completing my Milkshake refurbishment project I wanted to create a cool looking drinking glass. One of the things I always thought …

Complete Projects, General

[3.1.16] MITERS Door

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[Description]: The project was aimed to create a reliable system in which MIT students could find-out if the MIT Electronic Society (MITERS) was currently open. MITERS is a Student Operated club for Students, with the occasional MIT Community members (Staff, Faculty, Alumni).  [Processes Applied]: Twitter API RaspberryPi Python [Github Repository] Temp …

Complete Projects

[8.21.15] Gear Reducer Refurb.

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[Description]: To clean out an older thrown out gear reducer, replace the gaskets and fill with new oil.  [Processes Applied]: Gasket Replacement [Summary]: The main purpose of this project was to asset the integrity of the worm-gear drive in the gear reducer and then replace the components required to get …