Designing a Capstone Design Course to Achieve Student Outcomes

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent Wilczynski ◽  
Andrew C. Foley
Keyword(s):  
Program Evaluation ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Student Outcomes ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
Structure Assessment ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Capstone Design

The assessment of Student Outcomes is an import component for program evaluation and improvement. Though not proposed as the only tool a program should employ to measure the achievement of outcomes, the capstone design course can be a valuable mechanism to measure performance with regards to Student Outcomes. Because of the expansive reach of the engineering design process, capstone design projects present a natural environment to structure assessment activities that directly map to Student Outcomes. This paper presents versions of the Mechanical Engineering capstone design course that have been specifically structured to assess achievement of Student Outcomes commonly included in engineering accreditation criteria. Typically the outcomes are assessed by assignments that guide the engineering design process.

How to Recognize an Immutable Mobile When You Find One

2012 ◽  
pp. 92-106
Author(s):  
Fernando Abreu Gonçalves ◽  
José Figueiredo
Keyword(s):  
Resource Management ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Project Design ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
Constructive Process ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Actor Networks

Research involved with Actor-Network Theory (ANT) application in engineering domains often crosses through its fundamentals. In fact, exploring trends that envisage ANT as a paradigm that can prove valid in the engineering design field, researchers sometimes enrol in discussions that drive them to its roots. Obligatory Passage Points (OPP) and Immutable Mobiles (IM) are two of the fundamental concepts that need to be revisited. These concepts are critical to understanding innovation in Actor-Networks, especially for the part of IMs. In the pursuit of that understanding, the authors opt to entangle ANT and engineering design and explore a framework based on Programs of Action where actors are represented as taxonomies of competences. These actors are hybrids but, when human, they are mainly engineers engaged in the scope planning and resource management in engineering design projects or processes. This article exercises and develops a constructive process towards a methodology to approach innovation in engineering design. This research is useful for the first stages of the project design process and, in a broader way, to the full cycle of the engineering design process.

scholarly journals COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE STUDENT'S DESIGN PROCESS: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE TEACHING OF LATER PHASES OF THE MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damien Motte ◽  
Per-Erik Andersson ◽  
Robert Bjärnemo
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Engineer ◽  
Comparative Study ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Design Work ◽  
Detail Design ◽  
Embodiment Design ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
Tools And Techniques

Most methods that guide the designer through the later phases of the design process are general in nature, and it is up to the designer to organize the design work using the tools and techniques available. This process also relies greatly on experience, which is quite a challenge for students, who are mostly novices in the area. In a comparative study, the evolution of the experience and skills acquired by the students in performing design tasks during the embodiment design and detail design phases has been analyzed. The re-sults indicate the main directions for improvement in teaching the later phases of the mechanical engineer-ing design process.

scholarly journals CURRICULUM AS AN ENGINEERING DESIGN PROBLEM

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. W. Ruth ◽  
M. G. Britton
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Design ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Design Problem ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Program ◽  
Arts And Humanities ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Engineering Design Problem ◽  
Rules Of Thumb

If the teaching of engineering is indeed the practice of engineering, then it stands to reason that the development of engineering curricula can be treated as an engineering design problem. In this paper, the authors apply the engineering design process to develop a list of courses, for a Mechanical Engineering Program, that conforms to the constraints of the Canadian system of engineering accreditation. For the purpose of this exercise, the following steps are used to define the engineering design process: identical and delimit the problem, establish the outline of the solution (and alternatives), break the problem into its constituent parts, analyze the parts, synthesize the parts into a final configuration, and document the solution. The limits and constraints on the solution are based on the criteria specified by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB), the syllabus specified by the Canadian Engineering Qualifications Board (CEQB), some common rules-of-thumb, and previously published work by the authors. By utilizing the engineering design process, schools of engineering and applied science can ensure that their curricula, at least at the level of the course specification, will conform to the CEAB and CEQB requirements. As a final exercise, variations on the curriculum are studied to analyze the possibility of introducing such additional elements as options and minors, expanded studies in the arts and humanities, and development of skills in additional languages.

Use of 3-D Computer Graphics Simulation in a Capstone Mechanical Engineering Design Course

1993 ◽  
Author(s):  
David G. Alciatore
Keyword(s):  
Computer Graphics ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
State University ◽  
Colorado State University ◽  
Senior Design ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Capstone Design

Abstract This paper describes three-dimensional computer graphics simulation (CGS) and how it can be applied as a useful tool in a capstone design course in Mechanical Engineering. The necessary hardware and software to perform CGS is also outlined. Three examples of senior design projects at Colorado State University which utilized 3-D CGS to help revise and verify their designs are also presented.

Teaching Design in Context

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daisie Boettner ◽  
Lynn K. Byers ◽  
Bobby G. Crawford ◽  
Gunnar Tamm ◽  
John Rogers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Design Process ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
The United States ◽  
Just In Time ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Course Structure ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Class Ring ◽  
Formal Design ◽  
Capstone Design

As a result of recent curriculum revisions, the mechanical engineering faculty at the United States Military Academy teaches the formal design process “just in time” for students to apply the process to their capstone design projects. The design process consists of several phases and incorporates many engineering tools. During the initial offering of the course, Mechanical Engineering Design, instructors assigned students to capstone design teams early in the course. As the instructor taught the design process, team members applied the concepts to their capstone project. Based on instructors’ and students’ feedback, faculty revised the course structure to teach the design process in the context of a simple, in-class design project (design a portable illumination device) during the first half-semester. All in-class exercises were collaborative, hands-on experiences based on the project. To reinforce topics introduced in class and ensure all students develop a firm foundation in the design process, a separate common customer need (a device to store a West Point class ring) was the focus of all individual homework. Each student developed a design, built a prototype, and wrote an individual design report. Subsequent to formal design process instruction, students formed capstone teams and began their one and one-half semester capstone design projects. Results indicate that students more thoroughly understood the design process and its associated engineering tools allowing capstone teams to progress more efficiently through conceptual design; order parts, build prototypes, and test prototypes much earlier than the previous year; and enjoy a successful capstone experience.

How to Recognize an Immutable Mobile When You Find One

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernando Abreu Gonçalves ◽  
José Figueiredo
Keyword(s):  
Resource Management ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Project Design ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
Constructive Process ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Actor Networks

Research involved with Actor-Network Theory (ANT) application in engineering domains often crosses through its fundamentals. In fact, exploring trends that envisage ANT as a paradigm that can prove valid in the engineering design field, researchers sometimes enrol in discussions that drive them to its roots. Obligatory Passage Points (OPP) and Immutable Mobiles (IM) are two of the fundamental concepts that need to be revisited. These concepts are critical to understanding innovation in Actor-Networks, especially for the part of IMs. In the pursuit of that understanding, the authors opt to entangle ANT and engineering design and explore a framework based on Programs of Action where actors are represented as taxonomies of competences. These actors are hybrids but, when human, they are mainly engineers engaged in the scope planning and resource management in engineering design projects or processes. This article exercises and develops a constructive process towards a methodology to approach innovation in engineering design. This research is useful for the first stages of the project design process and, in a broader way, to the full cycle of the engineering design process.

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