A Criticism of an Undergraduate Design Curriculum

Author(s):  
Harry West

Abstract The mechanical engineering design curriculum of one university (MIT) is outlined. The sophomore level Introduction to Design course and the senior level Design Projects course are described in more detail, and compared and criticized. The challenge of design education is ascribed to two sources: (a) the reach of design development that is expected of the students, and (b) the difficulty of providing adequate feedback to the students. It is proposed that (i) the limitations on the science based undergraduate curriculum for providing a professional education in design be formally recognized, and that there be a clearer understanding of what a graduating engineer is expected to be capable of, and what is to be provided by graduate school and/or company based on-the-job training programs; (ii) that established principles of design be taught at appropriate stages in the undergraduate curriculum to the extent that they match the students’ design development and experience; and (iii) that undergraduate design courses incorporate projects in which students’ designs are manifested in hardware to provide an effective complement to the feedback provided by the faculty teaching the course.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (22) ◽  
pp. 7970
Author(s):  
Yu-Hung Chien ◽  
Chun-Kai Yao

As the inclusion of users in the design process receives greater attention, designers need to not only understand users, but also further cooperate with them. Therefore, engineering design education should also follow this trend, in order to enhance students’ ability to communicate and cooperate with users in the design practice. However, it is difficult to find users on teaching sites to cooperate with students because of time and budgetary constraints. With the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in recent years, chatbots may be the solution to finding specific users to participate in teaching. This study used Dialogflow and Google Assistant to build a system architecture, and applied methods of persona and semi-structured interviews to develop AI virtual product users. The system has a compound dialog mode (combining intent- and flow-based dialog modes), with which multiple chatbots can cooperate with students in the form of oral dialog. After four college students interacted with AI userbots, it was proven that this system can effectively participate in student design activities in the early stage of design. In the future, more AI userbots could be developed based on this system, according to different engineering design projects for engineering design teaching.


Author(s):  
Heather Herring ◽  
Peihua Gu

Involving industry in engineering design education would enhance quality of education and student experience as most design expertise resides in industry that can be accessed through guest lectures and interactions with students; and real, meaningful engineering design projects are needed for our students. Good industrial projects with enthusiastic industrial participation in the design capstone course would provide very valuable opportunity for students to gain meaningful experience and would prepare students better to be design ready engineers upon graduation. However, there are a number of challenges in association with industry participation. This paper reports our experiences in dealing with industry-based design projects as well as associated challenges. It is our experience and belief that these challenges can be successfully addressed if both university and industry treat the partnership from a long term perspective and provide reasonable resources to the partnership.


Author(s):  
Paul V. Straznicky ◽  
R. G. Langlois ◽  
M. McDill ◽  
R. Miller ◽  
S. A. Sjolander ◽  
...  

The engineering design curriculum is receiving much-deserved attention at all universities in Canada and abroad, and many interesting approaches to design education are under development. One such approach is the topic of this paper. Its key feature is a 4th-year integrated team design project at M&AE, a culmination of systematic design education that starts in the first year. The paper will describe this approach, the accomplishments and the plans for the future.


Author(s):  
Ralph O. Buchal ◽  
Hongmei Lu

Engineering design is the process of devising a technical system to satisfy a defined need. The design process can be modeled as a transformation of knowledge. Collaborative engineering design can be described as a collaborative knowledge building (CKB) process. CKB is a goal-driven collaborative process of generating and refining ideas and concepts of value to the community. Properly applied and supported, CKB has the potential to improve both learning and design outcomes resulting from collaborative design projects. The paper proposes an integrated model of the CKB process, and discusses requirements for supporting computer tools. Existing computer tools do not provide adequate support for CKB, and better tools are needed based on the specific requirements discussed in this paper.


IDEA JOURNAL ◽  
1969 ◽  
pp. 6-27
Author(s):  
Marina Lommerse ◽  
Nancy Spanbroek

This paper is the first in a series. The series will compare development in Interior Design/Interior Architecture in two commonwealth countries- Australia and Canada. These countries are of a similar population, size, language, mother country and age in terms of western development. The countries therefore share, in terms of design development, some of the same opportunities and barriers.Little documented research exists concerning the recent developments in Interior Architecture in Australia and Canada. Thus this paper was written to provide an anecdotal overview of the profession in the two countries over the period described. It is acknowledged that this is by no means an exhaustive piece of research of this period, but rather an overview and starting point for more in- depth research. This paper is the second in a series of comparative studies between education and practice in Interior Design/Interior Architecture between Canada and Australia. This paper discusses the similarities in the educational structure at universities within Australia and between Australia and Canada causing concern as we find ourselves in a global competitive market place. It is paramount that interior design education directs industry, and not be dictated by short-term industry demands. For this to occur, national educational bodies need to examine their existing programs in respect to one another, develop a distinctive approach in what they teach, and develop better communications with industry in order to ensure the sharing of valuable knowledge gained through project work. This paper is written to provide an anecdotal overview of the professional education in these two countries over the past twenty years.  


Author(s):  
KARL HAIN ◽  
CHRISTOPH RAPPL ◽  
STEPHAN REITBERGER ◽  
SIEGMUND HUBER

The challenge of a nowadays well-grounded engineering education is preparing industry ready graduates, that is, to provide students with the skills to master the complexity of products in terms of innovation, invention and problem solving combined with soft skills abilities. This addresses particularly the engineering design education, which in general should be mainly based on practical studies represented by engineering design projects. In order to supply industry with work-ready practitioners, the effectiveness and efficacy of design education respectively design projects is a crucial aspect. This article presents some findings of an efficient use of design methodologies and techniques when carrying through design projects in the faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Mechatronics at the University of Applied Sciences, Deggendorf, Germany. Engineering design projects are compulsory for students within their curriculum. The projects aim at fostering and stimulating students creativity by means of a complementary use of design methodologies and techniques. By taking advantage of this approach the systematic generation of ideas in the course of a design project is presented, which eventually led to the development of an innovative product.


Author(s):  
Patrick F. R. Murphy ◽  
Laeeque K. Daneshmend

Queen’s University at Kingston has been graduating a unique breed of multidisciplinary engineer since 1994: the Mine-Mechanical option students within the Queen’s Mining program are exposed to the fundamentals of both Mechanical Engineering and Mining Engineering. The final year capstone engineering design project in the Mine-Mechanical option focuses on mining equipment design, and since 2000 this multidisciplinary project has been carried out in collaboration with Sandvik Mining and Construction of Burlington, Ontario. The students work on real world design projects formulated by design engineers at Sandvik, under close communication and coordination with academic project advisors. These design projects are differentiated from typical mechanical engineering design projects in that they require a thorough understanding of the mining context in which the equipment is to be deployed and operated. This paper will present the structure and format of this university-industry educational collaboration, review past successes, evaluate the educational outcomes as well as benefits to industry, and ponder some lessons learnt.


Author(s):  
Carsten Rückert ◽  
Gritt Ahrens ◽  
Frauke Schroda ◽  
Oliver Gaedeke

Abstract At the Institute for Machine Design of the Technical University of Berlin, design methodology has been taught in industry-related engineering design projects for more than 20 years. In an interdisciplinary research study, different kinds of engineering design projects were evaluated. The aim was to identify factors which influence the acceptance and application of design methods, and thus optimize engineering design education and design methodology. The results suggest that the design work structure prescribed by design methodologies is a natural way to structure design work, at least for students. The separation of the basic machine elements education and the design methodology education seems to result in additional stress for the students.


2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 67
Author(s):  
S. Glover Takahashi ◽  
M. Alameddine ◽  
D. Martin ◽  
S. Verma ◽  
S. Edwards

This paper is describes the design, development, implementation and evaluation of a preparatory training program for international medical trainees. The program was offered for one week full time shortly before they begin their residency training programs. First the paper reports on the survey and focus groups that guided the learning objectives and the course content. Next the paper describes the curriculum development phase and reports on the topical themes, session goals and objectives and learning materials. Three main themes emerged when developing the program: understanding the educational, health and practice systems in Canada; development of communication skills; and supporting personal success in residency training including self assessment, reflection and personal wellness. Sample lesson plans and handouts from each of the theme areas are illustrated. The comprehensive evaluation of the sessions and the overall program is then also described. The paper then summarizes the identified key issues and challenges in the design and implementation of a preparatory training program for international medical trainees before they begin their residency training programs. Allan GM, Manca D, Szafran O, Korownyk C. Workforce issues in general surgery. Am Surg. 2007 Feb; 73(2):100-8. Dauphinee, WD. The circle game: understanding physician migration patterns within Canada. Acad Med. 2006 (Dec); 81(12 Suppl):S49-54. Spike NA. International medical graduates: the Australian perspective. Academic Medicine. 2006 (Sept); 81(9):842-6.


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