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Design Project
The design project for ENG 130 is an example of "reverse engineering",
a process where the engineer looks at an existing project, attempts to
determine how and why the item was designed as is, and attempts to improve
on the design in some significant way.
You work for the Fisbin Toy Company, a manufacturer of creative toys
for pre-school age children. In an attempt to develop new product lines,
the company has acquired several toys manufactured by other companies.
they want you to help decide what new toys to develop.
You have been assigned to work with a team of 3 or 4 other engineers.
Each team will be given a toy to reverse engineer. You will need to describe
the item completely, so you may want to measure, sketch, or photograph
the intact device. Then you will need to disassemble it. That may require
simple tools like a screwdriver or pliers, or more complex tools, like
a drill or saw. If you need access to the machine shop, make an appointment
with the instructor. Again, you will need to document what you find when
the device is taken apart.
Your goal will be to describe how you think this design evolved. By looking
at the toy, can you tell:
- How and why the device functions? Can you describe how it works,
what energy sources are used, and what purpose that function serves?
- How was human engineering involved? How would the human/machine interface
affect this design? What safety issues would have been involved?
- Why the original designers selected the materials used? What
properties of the materials were most important in selecting them?
- What features make this product unique? Compared to similar
items, are there features on your example that would identify this as
a better product?
- How was the production process affected by this design? Are there
specific features that might have been added to make production more
efficient?
- What purpose does the toy serve? Can you describe what age group it
targets, what it was intended to do, and what constraints may have been
involved?
As your analysis continues, choose one aspect of the design that intrigues
you. Study the design used, and consider how you might improve on it.
- Develop a list of alternatives, and compare them to the existing design.
- Develop some criteria that may help you select one of your alternatives
as most likely to succeed.
- Finally, select one alternative, and describe how it improves on the
existing design, what its limitations are, and why you think this is
a better alternative than the existing design.
Your team will be required to make a presentation to the class during
the last week of classes. You will need to describe the toy you studied
in sufficient detail for the members of the class to understand how it
worked. You will need to describe the feature you studied, the process
you used to consider alternative designs, and the decision you made on
possible improvement. Pictures, overheads, and other visual aids will
be a big help in making this presentation!
Your team will also have to submit a written report describing the entire
process. The report will be due no later than the start of the
final exam period. The report must be typewritten, double spaced, and
include any graphics you think will help in clarifying the process used
or the decisions reached.
In order to keep me informed as to your work, I will require the following
items to be submitted by e-mail during the course of the project:
- Item Description. Describe the item you've been assigned, including:
- dimensions
- materials used
- its function or purpose
- what you've been able to determine about how it works.
If you've identified unique features, include them in the description.
You must e-mail this to me by Wednesday, Nov 5.
- Problem Statement. This should be a summary of your crew’s decisions
on what you think the design problem and constraints involved. Discuss:
- The problem you think the designers were attempting to solve
- Design limitations they may have faced
- Human factors
- Production considerations
- Materials used.
You may need to break this down into sub-parts.
The problem statement will be due by e-mail Monday, Nov 17.
- Progress report. At a point in the process, I need to know how your
work is coming. Tell me the feature you are considering for improvement,
and the alternatives you are considering. The progress report will be
due Monday, December 2.
Finally, I award 10 points as a "completion bonus" If
all elements are submitted on time, and all group members attend the final
class session, each group member receives 10 points. The total points
for your group will be shared as decribed below.
Your grade for the project will include:
| Item Description |
5 points |
| Problem Statement |
10 points |
| Progress Report |
5 points |
| Presentation |
10 points |
| Written Report |
10 points |
| Completion Bonus |
10 points |
|
50 points |
These 50 points represent 20% of your final grade!
One concern for many is how the group will share the grade. I provide
two mechanisms for the group to ensure that all members share in the effort:
- You can be fired! As in a work setting, if the team decides
that you simply aren't pulling your weight, they can go to the supervisor
(me) and say, "He's not helping. We'd rather work without
him." If they have made a significant effort to contact you,
and given you reasonable opportunities to be involved, and you haven't,
I reserve the right to "fire" you from the project.
You will share in the credit earned up to that point, but will receive
a 0 on any further work. The rest of the group must be unanimous
in asking that you be fired.
- At the end of the final class period, your group will be asked to
rank the effort made by each member in completing the project.
I will distribute the completion bonus based on those rankings. If everyone
agrees that everyone contributed an equal effort, you all get the same
score. If, however, your rankings indicate that one member did
significantly more work, he or she will receive more of the points,
while the rest of the group will receive less.
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