ELM4701: Electromechanical Project I Fall 2011 Instructors Andre St. Denis John Kidder Green Hall 100 Morril

1. ELM4701: Electromechanical Project I Fall 2011 Instructors Andre St. Denis John Kidder Green Hall 100 Morrill Addition 117 728-1370 728-1783 728-5744(home) 728-0031(home) astdenis@vtc.edu jkidder@vtc.edu • Course Overview • Capstone experience in the ELM program • Continues with ELM 4702 in the spring • Gain experience team-based engineering design process • Design, build, and test an electromechanical product prototypes ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

2. Course Outcomes • Develop the skills to function effectively as a contributing member of a technical design team • Develop an aptitude for researching, organizing and evaluating concepts and ideas to develop a solution to a technical problem • Understand how to integrate mechanical, electrical, and software components in a functional system design. • Keep thorough and effective records of the design process. • Be capable of planning and managing a technical project through group meetings, work plans and cost budgeting. • Effectively communicate the functionality and development plan of an engineering design through presentations and documentation. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

3. Building a doghouse like a skyscraper It doesn’t take any special skills to build a simple dog house (just collect some wood, nail the pieces together; measuring and cutting is optional; the customer (your dog) will be happy with anything), Building a skyscraper requires serious planning, financing, many calculations, many meetings and presentations, proper documentation, purchasing the correct materials, scheduling, and so on; it is very expensive and nearly impossible to fix if a mistake is made; it must be engineered from the start! The goal in this course is not just to build something, but to engineer a product prototype - to design and build a “doghouse” as though it’s a skyscraper. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

4. Application of technical knowledge and skills • Problem analysis and solution development • Establishing specifications and functionality parameters • Research of technology and processes • Develop and present designs in terms of functionality and robustness • Complete design details (drawings, schematics, state diagrams) • Fabrication and testing of electrical and mechanical systems • Development and testing of control systems and software • Oral and written presentation of an engineering design ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

5. Teamwork and Project Management • Critical to the engineering design and development process. • Teamwork and team building • Personnel roles and responsibility • Work planning and scheduling • Budgeting of time and financial costs • Design documentation (technical notebooks, research records, electronic documentation) ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

6. Design, build and test a prototype product • Engineer-level work • Designing mechanisms and mechanical components, strength and materials analysis, circuit and sensor design, development of software and control system algorithms, organizing and managing schedules, budgets, and presentations, designing test procedures, etc…… • Technician-level work • Production of CAD drawings from designs, fabrication of parts, assembling electronic circuits, writing code, etc. • Contribution at each level is important • Each student lead the engineering of some part of the project. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

7. DOCUMENTATION Technical Notebook  Primary Project Record Permanently bound technical notebook required Provides a record of the design and engineering work by an individual. Technical notebook should be used to record…meeting notes, concept sketches, analytical calculations, contact information, test conditions and results, design diagrams, random ideas,... All written and hand-drawn information should be written into this one central notebook. When possible computer generated information (subroutines, small CAD drawings, budget tables, work schedules, xeroxed research information, etc.) should also be included ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

8. DOCUMENTATION • Electronic Files • A file system on a computer drive organized into working areas and containing: • …electronic drawings, files for software development, spreadsheet files (schedules, budgets, etc., presentation (source) files, digital photos, web site, etc. • Serves as a permanent archive of the project • Structured in an organized and logical way (directories and subdirectories) and documented in a ‘README.DOC” file. • Other Records • A three-ring binder and paper folder system may be used to store and organize other project records…purchase orders, research articles, etc. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

9. Mini Project - Introduction to the team-based design (6-8 weeks) Main Project (~20 weeks or more) • Concepts emphasized in the Mini Project • Understanding and defining a technical problem • Brainstorming, developing, and evaluating design concepts • Team building and project management • Communicating engineering designs- mechanical, electrical, state, and system diagrams, technical presentations • Prototype development and testing ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

10. Mini-Project Schedule Week 1 Lecture: Course Intro; Design teams, brainstorming, and concept development Lab Activity: Mini Project problem; Brainstorm solutions, form teams. Introduction to MARV Assignment: What is the engineering design process? System diagrams Week 2 Lecture: Project management: Teambuilding, meetings, planning tools, etc. Lab Activity: Time/cost estimation exercise; Mini Project team work Assignment: Schedule and cost estimation Week 3 Lecture: Presentation styles and visual aids in engineering design Lab Activity: Develop diagrams for existing systems. Assignment: Prepare preliminary design reviews for mini-project. Week 4 Lecture: Preliminary design presentations Lab: Preliminary design reviews/ in remaining time;Electronic documentation Assignment: Planning and scheduling exercise; Create team web page/electronic file system Week 5 Lecture: Systems engineering- testing and analysis Lab Activity: Project work Week 6 Lecture: Mini Project Design Presentations Lab Activity: Mini Project Design Presentations ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

11. Grading Criteria ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

12. Brainstorming • Guidelines [from Tools and Tactics of Design, P.G. Dominick et al., (John Wiley, 2001) • Criticism is Ruled Out • Generate as many ideas as possible in the allotted time • Do not critique ideas, generate them • No idea should be squelched  no idea is too silly or impractical • Creative and Imaginative Thinking is Encouraged • Free-wheeling and wild ideas are welcomed • “Think outside of the box” • A solution may evolve from an side comment or a simple idea that is initially perceived as a joke • Quantity is the Metric • Success is measured by the quantity of ides generated (not the quality) • The goal is to generate promising ideas that will need much further refinement • Combining and Extending is Good • Interaction between those in the session is good • Suggestions by one may stimulate formation of ideas by another • The extension of one idea or a combination of two or more can lead to idea refinement and improvement ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

13. Mini-Project: Brainstorming and Team Forming • Rules of Engagement • • Everyone has the problem statement • • For a fixed period of time (15 minutes) people make suggestions of solutions and write them all down (on the blackboard). No suggestion should be discussedother than to clarify its description; no comments should be made about the quality or effectivenessof the suggestion. • Dozens of suggestions and variants should be possible and the process continues until we fill the board (the vast number of suggestions usually convinces everyone that something worthwhile has occurred). • • Take a break (5 minutes). • • Everyone returns to refine the suggestions and eliminate some; it will be possible to start grouping the remaining ones into similar groupings and eventually get the number down to 3 or 4 types. • • At this point let individuals or groups request to work on a solution of their choice. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects

14. Mini Project: Design an automated device to draw letters and designs on Frisbees. For this prototype device Sharpie markers should be used as the ink delivery device. ELM4701 Electromechanical Projects