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C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2)

Senior Design Projects in Mechanical Engineering – Active Involvement of Industry Partners and Advisory Council. C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2) (1) Professors Department of Mechanical Engineering FAMU-FSU College of Engineering

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C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2)

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  1. Senior Design Projects in Mechanical Engineering – Active Involvement of Industry Partners and Advisory Council C. Luongo(1), C. Shih(1), J.W. Sturges(2), D.C. Bogles(2) , and R.A. Wright(2) (1) Professors Department of Mechanical Engineering FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Tallahassee, Florida (2) Engineering Directors Lockheed-Martin Corporation Contact E-mail: luongo@magnet.fsu.edu Phone: (850)-644-1095

  2. Undergraduate Program Overview • Mechanical Engineering Web site • www.eng.fsu.edu/me • Program Flowchart/Advising • Curriculum Structure • Senior Capstone Design

  3. Integrated Curriculum • Capstone design and eng. design methods run concurrently during senior year, design is otherwise taught in Intro. to ME and embedded in curriculum • Department has about 325 undergraduate students with a declared ME major, and graduates ~ 60-70 BSME per year

  4. Increase in Class Size and Industrial Sponsorships Growth - Projected Class Sizes 07-08: 90 , 08-09: ~ 100

  5. Project Descriptions A wide variety of student projects spanning the entire spectrum of mechanical engineering practice (shared in design reviews for class exposure) • Elgin/AFRL - Autonomous lawnmower • Elgin/AFRL - Fuel injection system • Elgin/AFRL - Dynamic tensile test unit • Elgin/AFRL - Human Parasail System • Micro-hydro power generation • Submersible robot for underwater cave exploration (Woodsville Karst Plain Project) • ASME human-powered vehicle • Lockheed – Combat vehicle IED simulator • Lockheed – Projector stabilizer mount • Cummins – Crankshaft fatigue tester • Cummins – Rotating/bending tensile tester • Shell - Tri-generation system (international collaboration with Brazil Parana U) • CERN - Shaft balancing (international collaboration with Romania, Budapest U) • Talla-Tech - Immersion tank

  6. Design Review and Open House • One-day senior capstone design review mini-symposium • Early April • Oral presentations for all teams • Hardware showcase and poster session • Dinner and award announcement in the evening • followed by the two-day MEAC spring meeting and ME annual assessment meeting

  7. Open House (cont’d) • Done “early” to allow project completion prior to finals/graduation rush • Motivation for students to showcase project results • Invitation to all sponsors and industrial advisory board members • Panel of “judges” (all from industrial sponsors and MEAC members) • Best-in-category awards (certificates) • Overall program review by advisory board (ABET assessment loop) • Advisory Council meeting scheduled to immediately follow senior design open house • Opportunity for underclassmen to observe senior projects (college-wide) • Follow-up with feedback requests • Sponsors/MEAC • Senior exit interviews

  8. Project Harvesting/Sponsors • Effort through summer to harvest enough projects • Industrial partners in advisory board (35 out of 71 since 03-07) • Local companies • Course alumni • Faculty contacts • Professional organizations design competitions • Consistent sponsors: • AFRL at Eglin AFB (17), Lockheed-Martin(Orlando, Huntsville, etc., 8),Cummins Engines (6), Sandia National Lab (4), Boeing, Shell Oil, Talla-Tech • Other strong sponsors: • Rancho Suspension, Growth Innovations, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (FSU), Center for Advanced Power Systems (FSU) • Variety of small local businesses and individuals

  9. Industrial Participation (Flowchart) Summer (Project harvesting) Project Definition (Kickoff) Fall Semester (Design) Project Follow-up (throughout year) Spring Semester (Implementation) Feedback to sponsors (project harvesting and selection) Final Project Review (Judging) Open House (Final review) Feedback to ME Dept. (ABET cycle) MEAC review

  10. Industrial/MEAC Involvement – • Projects come from industry as part of a broader relationship, not just as senior projects • Potential recruitment, advisory board involvement, interest on some research areas, sustainable involvement, etc. • Need a “champion” at a higher level, also need people in the “trenches” with a genuine interest in working with students and act as “customer/mentor” • Projects need to be selected carefully for scope and difficulty (enough resources, etc.) • Direct involvement of industrial partners and MEAC has resulted in improvements through assessment/feedback • A specific example will be given

  11. Evolution of Capstone Design Curriculum Intro. to ME • Embedded Model (1999-2003) • 4+4 units (Fall/Spring of senior year) • Combined lectures, Engineering Design Methods (EDM) and concurrent year-long projects • Problems: Lecture material too late for project, project delay, combined grading encouraged students to concentrate on coursework in detriment of projects • Just-in-time model (2003-date) • 3+3+3 units (Fall/Fall/Spring of senior year) • Separate Engineering Design Method (EDM) class from the Capstone project class • Problems: Lecture material still too late for projects; students not practicing formal design process in core courses Capstone-1 EDM Capstone-2 EDM Intro. to ME Capstone-1 EDM Capstone-2 Proposed new model

  12. 1st Year Engineering Lab ME Tools Introduction to ME Engineering Design Methods EDM Capstone-1 Capstone-2 Proposed New Model – Design Integration • First exposure of engineering processes • ME as a profession • Design process • CAD, tool sets, machine shop practice • Product design cycle • Engineering economics • Statistics, reliability, optimization • Implementation “design practice” in junior-level core courses • two-semester capstone project design/realization Freshman Sophomore Junior Senior

  13. Proposed Modules in EDM • Design Process: • Product design cycle • Project management • Design for “X” (DFX): • Manufacturing/assembly • Reliability (statistics) • Engineering Economy • Economic principle • Cost analysis • Modeling & Optimization: • System engineering • Design trade space • System optimization • Other components: legal, ethical, environmental, societal issues, team work, communication • Guest lectures by MEAC members and other engineering professionals • Coordinate with junior-level core courses to implement formal design practice in project realization

  14. The Challenges Ahead • Continue to expand circle of industrial partners to keep up with program growth • Streamline the process for project harvesting and management/mentoring • Expand college-wide to allow for multi-disciplinary teams and projects • Expand international collaborations to expose students to engineering in a global economy (ongoing) • Fully integrating the design process with the core curriculum; both vertically and horizontally

  15. Conclusions • Well established capstone design course at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering • 8 years running, strong industrial participation, including high rate of returning customers • Industry participation is an important part of making capstone experience “realistic” • ME Advisory Council has been instrumental in increasing industrial participation in capstone projects and help us close an annual ABET assessment cycle that includes the senior project open house • Partnering with industry has been beneficial for all involved as evidenced by its self-sustainability

  16. Engineer of 2020 • The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century & Educating The Engineer of 2020 (published by the National Academy of Engineering, www.nae.edu) • Desired Attributes • Strong analytical skills • Practical ingenuity • Creative/innovative • Good communication skills • Master business & management principles • Leadership quality • High ethical standards/professionalism • Dynamic, agile, resilient, and flexible • Lifelong learners

  17. Re-engineer the Engineering Education System – Some Interesting Proposals/Observations • BS in engineering  Pre-engineering degree for entry-level engineer position • New Liberal arts degree in the 21st century (springboard for other careers) • Professional “Master” degree program (modeled after law, medicine, pharmacy degrees) • Emphasis on the first-year engineering curriculum – design, team-based, hands-on activities • The Global Engineer – challenges and opportunities from national and international levels; need skills to be globally competitive

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