Awesome Mechanical Engineering Resources

So many free resources are available for computer science students and I am jealous. Therefore, I started making this list for mechanical engineering students. This section contains some overview resources, rules and regulations, and advice.

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Licensed under GNU General Public License v3.0

Table of Contents

Preamble

I got inspiration from the countless awesome lists in github.

Open Courses

• MIT OpenCourseWare
• MIT Online Textbooks
• edX
• InTech, Open Acess book publisher

General

• ASME The Unwritten Laws of Engineering, by K.J. King and J.G. Skakoon (1944)
• A Dictionary of Units of Measurement UNC.edu
• How to be a Star Engineer, by R.E. Kelley
• How Complex Systems Fail, by R.I. Cook (Rev.D)
• How to Be a Good Graduate Student, by M. desJardins
• The Art of Insight in Science and Engineering, by S. Mahajan (2014) MITPress   _{^{ISBN: 9780262526548}}

Mechanical Engineering Knowledge Maps

• MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN, knowledge maps with selectable links
• AIRCRAFT & MISSILE DESIGN, knowledge maps with selectable links
• STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS, knowledge maps with selectable links
• VIBRATION & FATIGUE, knowledge maps with selectable links

Databases

• MatWeb, database of material properties
• MatBase, database of material properties
• McMaster-Carr, components supplier with 3D models and drawings
• Traceparts online, CAD parts library
• 3D Cad Browser, 3D models
• GrabCAD, models' library and tutorials
• Thingiverse, CAD parts, especially for 3D printing
• Direct Industry, online catalogs

Online Calculators

• Desmos, online graphing calculator
• fxSolver, solver for engineering and scientific equations
• MechaniCalc, mechanical calculator with extensive documentation
• WolframAlpha

Tools and Programs

• Linkage, quick prototyping of linkage mechanism
• LyX, document processor based on LaTeX
• SumatraPDF, lightweight pdf reader
• Pandoc, a universal document converter

Useful Websites

• The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
• eFunda, engineering fundamentals
• Ryerson Stock List for structural profiles
• How Stuff Works articles explaining how everyday things work
• Google Scholar Classic Papers
• 507 Mechanical Movements, animated movements
• Animated Engines, animated engines
• thang010146, 2100+ animated mechanisms (downloadable) youtube
• DMG Lib, Digital Mechanism and Gear Library
• KMODDL, collection of mechanism and machines Cornell.edu
• Engineering ToolBox
• Thermopedia
• Wolverine Industries
• Omega Engineering
• Electrical Training
• NASA Technical Report Server

Patents

• Google Patents
• European Patent Office
• United States Patent and Trademark Office

Blogs and Forums

• Engineering StackExchange
• iMechanica
• Eng-Tips Forums
• Physics Forums
• IEEE Spectrum
• ScarbsTech, everything technical in F1
• GlobalSpec
• Hackaday
• Plastics Engineering Blog
• 3D CAD World
• Engineers Rule, blog on SolidWork
• AirShaper, blog on Aerodynamics

Mathematics

Calculus and Linear Algebra

• Calculus, by G. Strang. Direct download MIT.edu
• Online Mathematics Textbooks, list of free books cured by G. Cain
• Essentials of Linear Algebra, by 3Blue1Brown youtube
• Introduction to Tensor Analysis, by H.D. Block. Out of print Cornell.edu
• The Matrix Cookbook, by K.B. Petersen, M.S. Pedersen (2012) DTU.dk
• Fundamentals of Linear Algebra and Optimization, by J. Gallier and J. Quaintance (2017) UPenn.edu

Numerical Analysis

• Numerical Analysis for Engineering, by D.W. Harder and R. Khoury UWaterloo.ca
• Numerical Recipes in C, by W.H. Press, B.P. Flannery, S.A. Teukolsky and W.T. Vetterly (1992) Free for personal use
• Numerical Methods for PDEs, by Qiqi Wang MIT.edu youtube
• Math, Numerics, & Programming (for Mechanical Engineers), M. Yano, J.D. Penn, G. Konidaris and A.T Patera (2013) Draft v2.1 MIT.edu
• Iterative Methods for Sparse Linear Systems, by Y. Saad (2003) UMN.edu
• Fundamental Numerical Methods and Data Analysis, by G.W. Collins (1990) Harvard.edu
• A Pragmatic Introduction to Signal Processing, by T.C. O'Haver (2018) UMD.edu

Programming

• Free programming books github
• Project Euler, math/programming problems archives
• Programming Notes for Professionals, books compiled from StackOverflow Documentation goalkicker
• Rosetta Code, implementations of common algorithms in many programmming languages

C++

• The Definitive C++ Book Guide and List stackoverflow
• EbookFoundation #C++ github

Python

• A Byte of Python, by C.H. Swaroop (2013) [Free Copy/Hard Copy]
• Dive into Python 3
• Learn X in Y minutes, where X=Python
• Automate the Boring Stuff with Python, a great book for getting a handle on writing python scripts
• EbookFoundation #Python github

Julia

• Learning Julia, official learning resources
• Learn X in Y minutes, where X=Julia
• EbookFoundation #Julia github

Microsoft Excel VBA

• Excel VBA Programming for Dummies
• VBA Notes for Professinals goalkicker

MATLAB

• Awesome MATLAB List, by @mikecroucher github
• Learn X in Y minutes, where X=MATLAB
• MATLAB Toolbox tutorials
• Control Tutorials for MATLAB and Simulink
• A Brief Introduction to Engineering Computation with MATLAB BCcampus.ca
• Stuart’s MATLAB Videos (Blog) MathWorks.com
• EbookFoundation #MATLAB github

R (statistics)

• Intro to R for data science edX Microsoft
• EbookFoundation #R github

Fortran

• Introduction to Programming with Fortran 95
• EbookFoundation #Fortran github

LaTeX

• WikiBooks: LaTeX (PDF) wikibooks
• LaTeX Notes for Professionals goalkicker
• Learn LaTeX in 30 min sharelatex
• EbookFoundation #LaTeX github

Mechanics

Continuum Mechanics

• Introduction to the Mechanics of a Continuous Medium, by L.E. Malvern (1969) Out of Copyright Archive.org
• Many lecture notes links available from iMechanica (2007)
• Applied Mechanics of Solids, by A.F. Bower (2012) [Amazon]   _{^{ISBN: 978-1439802472}}
• Continuum Mechanics, by B. McGinty (2012)
• Introduction to Continuum Mechanics for Engineers, by R.M. Bowen (1989) Tamu.edu

Theory of Plates and Shells

• Theory of Plates and Shells by S. Timoshenko and S. Woinowsky-Krieger (1959) Archive.org   _{^{ISBN: 978-0070647794}}

Statics and Dynamics

• Introduction to Statics and Dynamics Cornell.edu
• Bolted Joint Analysis
• Lug Analysis

Strength of Materials

• Mechanical Metallurgy, by G.E. Dieter (1961) Archive.org
• Applied Strength of Materials for Engineering Technology, by B. Dupen (2017) IPFW.edu
• Mechanics of Materials, by J.M. Gere and B.J. Goodno (2012) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1111577735}}
• Mechanical Behavior of Materials, by N.E. Dowling (2012) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0131395060}}
• Roark's Formulas for Stress and Strain, by W.C. Young and R.G. Budynas (2001) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0070725423}}
• Strength of Materials
• Beam Stress and Deflection
• Column Buckling
• The Engineering of Structures Around Us edX Dartmouth
• Elements of Structures edX MIT
• Mechanical Properties of Materials
• Mechanics of Materials, by M. Vable (2009) MTU.edu
• Mechanical Properties of Materials, by D. Roylance (2008) [Direct] MIT.edu

Plasticity

• The Mathematical Theory of Plasticity, by R. Hill (1950) Archive.org
• Computational Methods for Plasticity, by E.A. de Souza Neto, D. Peric & D.R.J. Owen Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0470694527}}

Theory of Machines

Mechanism Design

• Shigley's Mechanical Engineering Design, by R.G.Budynas and J.K. Nisbett (2014) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0073398204}}
• Introduction to Mechanisms, by Yi Zhang with S. Finger, S. Behrens. CMU.edu
• Mechanisms/Machines, by L. Teel (1972) Archive.org
• U of Minessota 'YouTube'
• [NPTEL IIT Kgp Mechanisms and Robot Kinematics] (https://onlinecourses.nptel.ac.in/noc18_me18) 'NPTEL'
• MIT Fundamentals of Design 'MIT'
• NPTEL- Kinematics of Machines 'Courseware'
• Middle East TU Mechanisms 'Courseware'
• Kinematic Models for Design Digital Library (KMODDL) by Cornell U
• Mechanism Design: v. 1: Analysis and Synthesis by Arthur G. Erdman, George N. Sandor, Sridhar Kota Amazon  _{^{ISBN: 978-0130408723}}
• Mechanism Design: v. 2: Analysis and Synthesis by Arthur G. Erdman, George N. Sandor, Sridhar Kota Amazon  _{^{ISBN: 978-0130408723}}
• Design of Machinery by Robert L Norton Amazon  _{^{ISBN: 978-0071236713}}
• Mechanisms and Mechanical Devices Sourcebook by by Nicholas Paul Chironis, Neil Sclater Amazon  _{^{ISBN: 978-0070113565}}

Control Engineering

• Modern Control Engineering, by K. Ogata (2009) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0136156734}}
• Automatic Control Systems, by F. Golnaraghi and B.C. Kuo (2017) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1259643835}}
• Control Systems Engineering, by N.S. Nise (2015) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1118170519}}
• Linear Robust Control, by M. Green and D.J.N. Limebeer (1994) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0131022782}}
• Essentials of Robust Control, by K. Zhou with J.C. Doyle (1997) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0135258330}}
• Feedback Control Theory, by J.C. Doyle, B.A. Francis and A.R. Tannenbaum (2009) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0486469331}}
• Feedback Systems by K.J. Åström and R. Murray (2011) CalTech.edu
• Classical Control Theory, by Brian Douglas youtube
• Control Systems wikibooks
• System Design for Uncertainty, by F.S. Hover & M.S. Triantafyllou (2009) MIT.edu

Robotics

• Awesome Robotics List, by @Kiloreux github
• A Mathematical Introduction to Robotic Manipulation Caltech.edu

Thermal Engineering

Thermodynamics

• NASA's Introductory Thermodynamics Notes NASA
• MIT OpenCourseWare: Thermodynamics & Kinematics Lecture Series MIT.edu
• Wikibooks: Engineering Thermodynamics Wikibooks
• Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics, by M.J. Moran & H.N. Shapiro. Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0471274711}}
• Thermodynamics: An Engineering Approach, by Y.A. Cengel & M.A. Boles. Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0073398174}}

Heat Transfer

• MIT OpenCourseWare: Introduction to Heat Transfer MIT.edu
• A Heat Transfer Textbook, by J.H. Lienhard IV and J.H. Lienhard V (2017) MIT.edu
• Wikibooks: Heat Transfer Wikibooks
• Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer , by F.P. Incropera & D.P. DeWitt. Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0471386506}}

Fluid Mechanics

• NASA's Basic Fluid Mechanics Notes NASA
• MIT OpenCourseWare: Fluid Dynamics MIT.edu
• Wikibooks: Fluid Mechanics Wikibooks
• Thermophysical properties of water and steam: International Association for the Properties of Water and Steam
• Fundamentals of Fluid Mechanics, by B.R. Munson, D.R. Young & T.H. Okiishi. Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0471442509}}

Gas Dynamics

• NASA's Compressible Fluids/Aerodynamics Notes NASA
• Modern Compressible Flow: With Historical Perspective, by J.D. Anderson. Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0072424430}}

Manufacturing

• Fundamentals of Manufacturing Processes edX MIT
• A.J. Hart's Presentations slideshare
• Building Prototypes, by D. Gelbart youtube
• Fabrication Labs, Labs available globally

CAD/CAM

Theory

• Shape Interrogation for CAD and Manufacturing, by N.M. Patrikalakis, T. Maekawa & W. Cho (2009). MIT.edu (Amazon)   _{^{ISBN: 978-3540424543}}
• Geometric and Solid Modeling, by C.M. Hoffman (1992) Out of Print Purdue.edu
• Computer Aided Geometric Design, by T.W. Sederberg (2006) BYU.edu
• Curves and Surfaces in Geometric Modeling by J. Gallier (1999) Out of Print UPenn.edu   _{^{ISBN: 978-1558605992}}
• Geometric Modeling: A First Course, by A. Requicha (1996) Draft USC.edu
• Computer Aided Design in Mechanical Engineering Slides ULiege.be

Learning and Tutorials

• Vertanux1, Training Guides: Creo, Solidworks, NX, Inventor, Rhino3d.
  • vertanux1's channel youtube

Technique

• Resilient Modeling Strategy (RMS)
  • A Resilient Modeling Strategy, by R. Gebhard (Slides) Siemens
    • RMS Presentation youtube
  • Learn RMS
• Horizontal Modeling
  • Horizontally structured CAD/CAM modeling-vertical to horizontal conversion [US 7472044 B2] patent
  • Product/Process Design using Horizontally Structured Modeling, by Delphi Automotive dezignstuff.com
  • Going Horizontal (The failed promise of parametric CAD, part 4) 3dcadworld.com

Sheet Metal Forming

• Mechanics of Sheet Metal Forming, by Z. Marciniak, J.L. Duncan and S.J. Hu (2002) Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-0750653008}}
• MDLPostech Mechanical Properties of Steel youtube
• SheetMetal.me

Plastic

• Polymer Processing UMich.edu
• BASF Snap-Fit Design Manual
• Bayer Snap-Fit Joints for Plastics
• Living Hinges Design Guide MIT.edu
• Bayer Part and Mold Design Guide
• DuPont General Design Principles for Engineering Polymers
• Bayer Reaction Injection Molding (PolyUrethanes), Part and Mold Design Guide
• 3D Hubs Knowledge Base

Finite Element Analysis

• Finite Element Procedures, by K.J. Bathe (2014) MIT.edu   _{^{ISBN: 978-0979004957}}
• Introduction to the Finite Element Method, by C.S. Jog
• Introduction to Finite Element Methods Colorado.edu
  • Advance FEM
  • Nonlinear FEM
• FINITE ELEMENT MODELING CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT , (NASA FEMCI book)

Good Reads

• Meshing of complex geometrical domains stackexchange
• What Is a Good Linear Finite Element? by J.R. Shewchuk (2002) Berkeley.edu
• How Can I learn Finite Element Analysis? simscale
• Why CAD Surface Geometry is Inexact pointwise

Code

• deal.II (C++ library)
• FEniCS Project (C++ and Python library)
• List of FE packages wikipedia

Software Packages

For Finite Element Analysis

• Code_Aster
• CalculiX
• Elmer

Further reading

• awesome-CAE github

ANSYS

Student/Free version: Available for anyone with limited capability and usage for learning purpose. This is a video explaining how to download and install ANSYS Student Release 17.2 from Ansys How To official channel

• EdX MOOC A Hands-on Introduction to Engineering Simulations
• University of Alberta - ANSYS Tutorials
• Cornell University- ANSYS Tutorials
• Ansys Support Resources

ABAQUS

Student/Free version: Available, 1000 nodes limit.

LS Dyna

Student/Free version: Not available but a student license can be obtained for less than $150 AFAIK.

• LS Dyna Official Examples Site
• LS Prepost Tutorials
• Jim Day FAQ

COMSOL

Comsol was known as FEMLAB before and is a academic spin-off from Stanford University. Comsol integrated multiphysics simulation capability for the first time in a commercial package and is pretty popular in many unconventional industry.

Student/Free version: Not available.

• Comsol Blog
• Comsol Technical Papers and Presentations

Hyperworks (Radioss, Optistruct)

Hyperworks is a complete commercial suite of Preprocessing, Solving, and Postprocessing tools for FEA by Altair Engineering. The flagship product is Hypermesh - a meshing software widely popular in CAE industry only challenged by ANSA, a new entrant from Beta CAE Systems. Hyperworks includes many software for different purposes though the mostly used ones are Optistruct and Radioss solvers besides Hypermesh.

Student/Free version: Available only for students with limited capability.

• HyperMesh | Pre processing | 2D | 3D | Meshing | ANSYS | Tutorial |
• HyperMesh & Optistruct Solved Tutorials AOC-2016 Contest
• Optistruct for Optimization AOC-2016 Contest
• Optistruct by Anil Kumar
• Hyperworks Optistruct Tutorials by Manuel Ramsaier
• HyperWorks Tips & Tricks by Altair
• Hypermesh basics by Apoorv Bapat
• Hypermesh Tutorial by TheScientifica
• Hypermesh Tutorials Collections by Fazle ahad
• SAEINDIA BAJA 2016 Online Training Session
• Dynamic Analysis of Roll Cage
• SUPRA SAE India 2016 Pre-virtual online Training Session
• Formula Student India Online Training Series
• BAJA Student India Online Training Series
• Altair HyperWorks Online Training series - Meshing, Analysis & Post-processing

Simscale

Website: https://www.simscale.com/

Cloud based FEA/CFD

For Control Engineering

MATLAB

• Control Tutorials for MATLAB and Simulink

For Robotics

ROS

• Learning ROS for Robotics Programming
• Mastering ROS for Robotics Programming
• Learning Robotics Using Python
• ROS Robotics By Example

For CAD Modeling

CATIA

Website: https://www.3ds.com/products-services/catia/

Student Edition until Nov. 26th. Promo code: CATIA4FREE17

NX

Formely known as Unigraphics.

Website: https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/en/products/nx/

Student Edition: N/A

• NX Resources Siemens

Creo

Formerly known as Pro/ENGINEER.

Website: https://www.ptc.com/

Student Edition: https://www.ptc.com/en/academic-program/products/free-software

SolidWorks

Website: https://www.solidworks.com/

Student Edition: request (60 Days)

• Solidworks Resources Solidworks

Solid Edge

Website: https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/it/products/solid-edge/

Student Edition: request (45 Days)

• Solid Edge Resources Siemens

OnShape

Website: https://www.onshape.com/

Cloud Based CAD

OpenSource

FreeCAD

Geometric Kernel OpenCASCADE

Website: http://www.openscad.org/

• A FreeCAD manual GitBook
• CadQuery Plugin for FreeCAD, python based language for building parametric models [Wiki]
  • CadQuery Documentation

OpenSCAD

Website: http://www.openscad.org/

Script based modeller

Geometric Kernel OpenCSG + CGAL

BRL-CAD

Website: http://brlcad.org/

SubReddits Related to Mechanical Engineering

• /r/AskEngineers: Non-school Q&A
• /r/CAD: Computer Aided Design
• /r/CFD: Computational Fluid Dynamics
• /r/Engineering: About all things related to engineering
• /r/EngineeringStudents: For wee engineerlings
• /r/FEA: Finite Element Analysis
• /r/FluidMechanics
• /r/CivilEngineering: Civil Engineering
• /r/Manufacturing: Manufacturing Industry
• /r/Materials: Materials Engineering
• /r/MechanicalEngineering: Mechanical Engineering

Misc

• /r/EngineeringPorn: porn for engineers (safe for work)
• /r/Mechanical_gifs: perfect loops of mechanical things
• /r/SpecializedTools
• /r/MachinePorn
• /r/ToolPorn
• /r/ThingsCutInHalfPorn

Top Publication Venues for Different Fields

Journals

Open Access

• DOAJ, Directory of Open Acess Journals
• SCIRP, Modern Mechanical Engineering
• SAGE journals, Advances in Mechanical Engineering
• The Royal Society

Magazines

• Machine Design
• Mechanical Engineering Magazine
• Popular Mechanics
• Popular Science

Competitions

Altair Contests

Altair Optimization Contest (AOC)

ASME Competitions

Robotics Competitions

• Robocup Virtual Robot Competitions | RoboCup 2017
• Robocup Soccer
• Robocup Rescue
• Robocup Home
• Robocup Industrial
• Robocup Junior
• FIRST Robotics Competition
• Wearable Robotics Innovation Competition at WearRAcon 17 by Wearable Robotics Association
• To be added

Other Competitions

• Elsevier 3D Printing Grand Challenge

Challenges

CAD

• GrabCAD Challenge, product design challenges
• Fusion360 Monthly Challenge Autodesk Community Philippines
  • Video Playlist Youtube
• Model Mania Challenge SOLIDWORKS World
• Reddit CAD Challenge (Inactive) /r/CAD
  • Archived version Github

Misc

• Hackaday Contest
• Instructables Contests

Open Source Design projects

Civilization Starter Kit Mechanical Design Project

• Open Source Ecology-Build Yourself

• Open Source Ecology wiki

• Global Village Construction Set

Qualifying/Certification Examinations

Qualifying examinations are a kind of certification to engineers - PE in USA, GATE in India

Note: If you're from another country than USA or India, feel free to add a section relavant to your country's professional certification or equivalent examination. If you're not sure how to do that in Github, send me an email

Altair Certification

• Certification website

Mechanical Engineering & Related PE License for USA

A PE license is probably the most useful certification that a mechanical engineer can obtain. A PE license is only actually a requirement if you want to provide services directly to the public, but it is still a good thing to have regardless. It is a sign to employers and clients that you are a competent engineer, and the act of studying for the exam will sharpen your skills. This examination is organized by NCEES - National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying.

Official Practice of Engineering(PE) License Examination Website

Information about the Exam

• NCEES Examinee Guide
• Passing the PE Exam

ME PE specific Books

• Michael R. Lindeburg - Mechanical Engineering Reference Manual for the PE Exam Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1591264149}}
• Michael R. Lindeburg - Mechanical PE Practice Examination Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1591264170}}
• Michael R. Lindeburg - Practice Problems for the Mechanical Engineering PE Exam Amazon   _{^{ISBN: 978-1591264156}}
• NCEES - PE Mechanical Engineering: Machine Design and Materials Practice Exam Amazon

GATE for India

GATE Official Website

GATE or Graduate Aptitute Test in Engineering is a qualifying examination conducted by a consortium of Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institute of Science Bangalore. Even though the official reason to conduct GATE is for post-graduate admissions only, PSUs and Govt. research entities often recruit students on the basis of GATE score.

Information about the Exam

Topper's Story or How to Prepare

• GATE 2015 Topper Interview: Ravi Shankar Mishra AIR 1 in CSE Although this interview is from a CSE topper, who happens to be a mechanical engineer by education, it shows the power of strategy in clearing an examination like GATE.

GATE specific Books

• GATE yearwise and topicwise solved papers from 2003

GATE specific Websites

• Mechanical - GATE Overflow

PSU & Govt Entities Recruiting Through GATE

These companies recruit engineering and management trainees using GATE score as qualifier. They are ordered alphabeticallly. Not all of them recruit every year which is indicated by Y/N

An exhaustive list is available here - List of 40+ PSUs Recruitment Through GATE 2017

• AAI - Airports Authority of India N
• NTPC - National Thermal Power Corporation Y
• BARC - Bhaba Atomic Research Centre Y
• BBNL - Bharat Broadband Network Limited N