Winter Quarter 2009 Course Announcement

David L. Jaffe, MS and Professor Drew Nelson
Tuesdays & Thursdays   4:15pm - 5:30pm
Main Quad, History Corner, Lane Hall (Building 200), Room 034 (lower level)

Assignment Two
Design Proposal

Due Friday - March 13, 2009 at 5pm

For your second assignment your team is asked to formulate a preliminary set of design concepts addressing the specific problem your team has identified, further research this need, and to focus on a specific design solution. The embodiment of your chosen design should be in the form of detailed drawings, non-functional models, and/or critical function prototypes. Your team will present this design in class and submit a final comprehensive project report that encompasses your project work for the entire quarter.

Team Project Report

1. Your report should include all your background research, user interaction, evolution of ideas, etc. Your team's report should be at least 10 pages in length.

2. Provide a concise and accurate overview of preliminary design concepts (at least 3) your team considered to address the identified problem. Describe the general design objectives, the rationale for the design concepts selected, how these concepts address a specific project problem, and features / potential benefits of each of the specific design concepts. Include any models, mechanical engineering analyses, calculations, drawings, and sketches you have developed as well as any feedback from potential users or coaches.

3. Comment on the chosen concept's technical feasibility and engineering difficulty, estimated cost of materials, and safety considerations.

4. Assuming this project will be pursued in ME113 or as directed study, identify future challenges and include a timetable of major tasks to produce and test a functional prototype.

5. Suggested format for your team's Final Report:
   • Cover page - include course name & year, project title, team member's names, and photos
   • Abstract - one paragraph summary of objectives, approach taken, and results of the project
   • Introduction - problem to be addressed, problem background
   • Objectives - project goals and rationale
   • Design criteria - project background research, interviews with project suggestors and potential users, project specifications
   • Methods - what did your team do and why - include prototyping, model building, preliminary testing, analyses
   • Results - discuss specifics of your design solution such as features, benefits, aesthetics, cost, safety, reliability, usability, test results, feedback from users, etc.
   • Discussion - include challenges and suggestions to further develop and refine the project
   • References - bibliographic citations
   • Acknowledgements - mention individuals and facilities who helped you
   • Appendices - detailed calculations, testing notes, relevant vendor information, etc. that are referenced in the main body of the report

   In addition to a printed final report, please submit an electronic copy.

Individual Reflection

Reflect on your class and team experiences. Each project team member will provide a discussion (one page minimum) of the design process, what you learned, and what was most valuable to you individually. Here are some items to address:

1. You have spent the past quarter hearing from different professionals and users, interviewing community members, brainstorming with your team, doing background research, looking at prior art, etc. Please comment on the relative value of the different parts of this process toward your design.

2. How did the different interactions in the class (with users, community members, speakers, professionals, etc.) contribute to the results of your design? Was any particular interaction especially rewarding or helpful? Why?

3. If you were to go through this process again, what would you do differently? Was there support from the teaching staff or course content that was helpful or that you felt was missing? What advice would you give to future students?

4. Other questions you can reflect on can be found here.

Team Project Presentations - Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Your team will describe your project work in an interactive poster presentation. You should be prepared to discuss the following points:

1. Introduction of team members
2. Statement of problem
3. Discussion of interviews with project suggestors and users
4. Statement of need
5. Identification and limitations of existing solutions
6. Magnitude of problem addressed by this project
7. Description of and rationale for all design concepts considered
8. Analysis of considered design topics
9. Description of selected design including its technical feasibility, engineering difficulty, estimated cost, user acceptance, safety considerations, etc
10. Project visualizations: photographs, videos, sketches, drawings, models, prototypes
11. Future work and challenges for continuing the project

Course staff, your classmates, and others in attendance will judge your presentation on the following metrics:

1. Content - what was overall quality of the information you presented?
2. Clarity - did the audience understand your presentation's content?
3. Conciseness - was your presentation short and to the point?
4. Completeness - did you include all major elements?
5. Convincing - did you provide a good reason for your decisions?
6. Creativity - how inventive / innovative was your design?

More about the project presentation.

Updated 03/04/2009

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