scholarly journals Increasing Student Practical Experience with the Hurdle of Large Class Sizes

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Baleshta
Keyword(s):  
Large Class ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Technical Knowledge ◽  
Early Exposure ◽  
Student Surveys ◽  
Machine Shop ◽  
Hands On ◽  
The University

Many students entering Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering (MME) at the University of Waterloo (UWaterloo) have limited hands-on skills and lack practical technical knowledge. Student surveys cite a desire for increased practical experience within the curriculum.This paper presents an initiative to address this issue. A keychain project was designed to involve all first year MME students in a practical (hands-on) activity that would foster competence with machinery. This objective proved difficult to implement due to large student enrollment, where scheduling, supervision, and resources were all significant challenges. However, as a result of this experience, over 400 engineering students were provided early exposure to the Student Machine Shop, creating a desire and confidence to pursue additional experience.This program is expected to continue at UWaterloo and become a component of a wider engineering clinic initiative. The methodology and key takeaways will be discussed herein.

scholarly journals Integrative Activities for First Year Engineering Students-Fuel Cell Cars as a Linking Project Between Chemistry, Mechatronics Concepts and Programing

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Hulls ◽  
Chris Rennick ◽  
Mary Robinson ◽  
William Melek ◽  
Sanjeev Bedi
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Low Voltage ◽  
First Year ◽  
Joint Project ◽  
Graduate Attributes ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Team Environment ◽  
Hands On Learning ◽  
The University

In Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo, a joint project involving small, inexpensive fuel cells cars was introduced to show how courses in the first term relate to one another. Additionally, the project was designed to provide the students with hands on learning, to give the students a taste of what to expect in later years, and to start incorporating many of the CEAB's graduate attributes at an introductory level. The fuel cell car consists of two low-voltage cells, a low power microcontroller and several sensors mounted on a motorised platform. Students employed concepts from chemistry, programming and mechatronics systems throughout the project, submitting reports at key milestones. during the projet, students needed to make decision in a team environment on which strageties to implement to meet the goals of the project. The project culminated in a final competition and report. Students were surveyed at the start, and end, and the term to measure any changes in attitude with regards to the courses as well as their satisfaction with the project. The project was well recieved by students but significant challenges remain to be solved.

“It’s not pronounced Mahna-mahna”: Creating a hands-on activity to teach first-year engineers about pressure measurement

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Robinson ◽  
Eugene Li
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Measurement ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Entire Class ◽  
Hands On ◽  
The University

Chemistry is a fundamental course that all first-year engineering students must take. However, many students cannot make the connection between the material learnt in class and their growing understanding of engineering. This is exasperated in the Mechatronics program at the University of Waterloo which does not have any physical labs but focuses heavily on analysis. To address this issue, the authors developed a short 90-minute activity which the entire class completed during an open-ended design event. This activity had students experience basic lab practices and gain a further understanding of pressure measurement, and the course materia

scholarly journals Tackling Kirkpatrick: Creating and Improving a First-Year Electromagnetics Activity

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Wright
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Computer Engineering ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Design Activities ◽  
Kirkpatrick Model ◽  
The University ◽  
Increasing Student Learning

–At the University of Waterloo, 1B electrical and computer engineering students participate in a series of hands-on, open-ended design activities. In particular, a wind-your-own motor activity has been trialed on four occasions. The activity is widely recognized as being fun, but are the students designing or kludging? The Kirkpatrick Model of Training Evaluation was used as a framework to assess student perceptions of the activity and to guide focus group discussions. The activity was iteratively improved to maintain a positive reaction while increasing student learning.

An Affordable Machining Laboratory Approach for Undergraduate Engineers

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vishnu Vardhan Chandrasekaran ◽  
Lewis N. Payton ◽  
Chase Wortman ◽  
Wesley Hunko
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Production System ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Machine Shop ◽  
Undergraduate Engineering ◽  
Graduate Research ◽  
Simple Machines ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Research Students ◽  
The University

Designers in any industry need to understand the processes involved in making a part beforehand in order to communicate with technicians from trade schools and industry. Even a simple engineering drawing can often not be created due to process limitations (e.g., a perfectly drawn internal 90 degree angle in a CAD drawing does not occur in nature OR in a machine shop). This paper describes an affordable way to teach manufacturing to undergraduate engineering students and in the process provide them with hands on training in a machine shop environment. The goal here is not to create machinists, but to enable future Engineers to understand and talk with designers/machinists. The theme here is not to spend on expensive super machines but on simple machines as emphasized in the Toyota Production System. Students learn the techniques that let technicians produce perfect parts on imperfect, simple machines. The result for Auburn University has been an affordable laboratory that mutually supports undergraduate students, graduate research students, and the university as a whole.

Engineering for good: A case of community driven engineering innovation

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinweike Eseonu ◽  
Martin A Cortes
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Students ◽  
Technology Innovation ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
First Year ◽  
Engineering Curriculum ◽  
Engineering Design Process ◽  
The World ◽  
The University ◽  
Social Consideration

There is a culture of disengagement from social consideration in engineering disciplines. This means that first year engineering students, who arrive planning to change the world through engineering, lose this passion as they progress through the engineering curriculum. The community driven technology innovation and investment program described in this paper is an attempt to reverse this trend by fusing community engagement with the normal engineering design process. This approach differs from existing project or trip based approaches – outreach – because the focus is on local communities with which the university team forms a long-term partnership through weekly in-person meetings and community driven problem statements – engagement.

scholarly journals Development and delivery of a work experience week programme for mechanical engineering

2020 ◽  
pp. 030641902098104
Author(s):  
A Gonzalez-Buelga ◽  
I Renaud-Assemat ◽  
B Selwyn ◽  
J Ross ◽  
I Lazar
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Legal Term ◽  
Stage 4 ◽  
Engineering Design Problem ◽  
Hands On ◽  
University Of Bristol ◽  
The University

This paper focuses on the development, delivery and preliminary impact analysis of an engineering Work Experience Week (WEW) programme for KS4 students in the School of Civil, Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering (CAME) at the University of Bristol, UK. Key stage 4, is the legal term for the two years of school education which incorporate GCSEs in England, age 15–16. The programme aims to promote the engineering profession among secondary school pupils. During the WEW, participants worked as engineering researchers: working in teams, they had to tackle a challenging engineering design problem. The experience included hands-on activities and the use of state-of-the-art rapid prototyping and advanced testing equipment. The students were supervised by a group of team leaders, a diverse group of undergraduate and postgraduate engineering students, technical staff, and academics at the School of CAME. The vision of the WEW programme is to transmit the message that everybody can be an engineer, that there are plenty of different routes into engineering that can be taken depending on pupils’ strengths and interests and that there are a vast amount of different engineering careers and challenges to be tackled by the engineers of the future. Feedback from the participants in the scheme has been overwhelmingly positive.

scholarly journals Developing students’ aptitudes through University-Industry collaboration

2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 121-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Aizpun ◽  
Diego Sandino ◽  
Inaki Merideno
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Students ◽  
Technical Knowledge ◽  
Collaborative Approach ◽  
Engineering Knowledge ◽  
Undergraduate Engineering ◽  
Student Community ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Industry Collaboration ◽  
The University ◽  
University Industry

<p>In addition to the engineering knowledge base that has been traditionally taught, today’s undergraduate engineering students need to be given the opportunity to practice a set of skills that will be demanded to them by future employers, namely: creativity, teamwork, problem solving, leadership and the ability to generate innovative ideas. In order to achieve this and educate engineers with both in-depth technical knowledge and professional skills, universities must carry out their own innovating and find suitable approaches that serve their students. This article presents a novel approach that involves university-industry collaboration. It is based on creating a student community for a particular company, allowing students to deal with real industry projects and apply what they are learning in the classroom. A sample project for the German sports brand adidas is presented, along with the project results and evaluation by students and teachers. The university-industry collaborative approach is shown to be beneficial for both students and industry.</p>

scholarly journals A Progressively Advancing Curriculum for Robotics Education – The Case of Toin University of Yokohama –

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-221
Author(s):  
Yasuo Hayashibara ◽  
◽  
Takeshi Agui ◽  
Takahiro Ito ◽  
Motoyoshi Ohaba ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Practical Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Trial And Error ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Robotics Education ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Elective Course ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Real World Problems ◽  
Mobile Machine

We detail an educational program implemented at Toin University of Yokohama in which lab and workshop courses on automated mechanics, from basics to applications, are offered consecutively during the first three undergraduate years. Engineering is a discipline concerned with practical real-world problems, but students rarely have the chance to gain enough practical experience to effectively understanding engineering. At our department, first- to third-year students may take several hands-on courses for fabricating machines – first-year students build an automatic mobile machine, second-year students write computer programs to control the position of a robot, and some third-year students design and fabricate an entire robot from the bottom up. An elective course on robot fabrication enables students to choose individual theme. Students experience failures and discover better ways by trial and error through these processes.

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