A Senior Design Project Team Of Engineering And Engineering Technology Students
- Conference
- Location
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Chicago, Illinois
- Publication Date
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June 18, 2006
- Start Date
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June 18, 2006
- End Date
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June 21, 2006
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Design in Engineering Education
- Page Count
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12
- Page Numbers
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11.116.1 - 11.116.12
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--475
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/475
- Download Count
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450
Paper Authors
Gregory Watkins University of North Carolina-Charlotte
Gregory Watkins received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University, a Master of Engineering Management from Old Dominion University, and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from UNC Charlotte. He has taught in the Engineering Technology department at UNC Charlotte for the past 3.5 years. He taught in the Engineering Technologies Division at Central Piedmont Community College for 8 years and has 9 years of industrial work experience.
Michael Smith University of North Carolina-Charlotte
Michael Smith is a Mechanical Engineering graduate student at UNC Charlotte. He received his BSET in Mechanical Engineering Technology from UNC Charlotte in May 2005. He served as project team leader for the 2005 HPV Challenge.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
A Senior Design Project Team of Engineering and Engineering Technology Students
Abstract
During the senior year, both mechanical engineering (ME) and mechanical engineering technology (MET) students take a two-course sequence in senior design. Each version of the course includes a design project and acts as a capstone course for the respective program. These design courses and the respective student projects have traditionally been completely independent, even though university resources, such as machine shops and laboratory space, are shared between the programs.
During the past academic year, a project team made up of both ME and MET students embarked on a joint senior project to enter the Human Powered Vehicle (HPV) Challenge, an annual competition sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Held each spring, the HPV Challenge is a competition in which teams of students design and build a vehicle powered solely by human power. Vehicle classes include single rider, multi-person, and practical, each with their own design goals and constraints. The competition includes design, sprint, endurance, and utility events.
The pairing of students from differing academic and experience backgrounds on a design project of this scope proved most interesting, with some expected and also some unexpected results. The varied preparation of the group members offered great potential to form an outstanding design team, and they were largely successful in achieving their goals. This unique project also prepared the students for real world experiences, where diverse groups often work together towards a common goal.
Introduction
Mechanical engineering (ME) and mechanical engineering technology (MET) students both take two senior design courses in their respective programs during their senior year that act as a capstone course. The capstone course exposes the students to open-ended problems and also provides a framework for their evaluation.1 Incorporating joint projects between the programs could better utilize university resources, such as machine shops and laboratory space.
A project team comprised of both ME and MET students at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC) embarked on a joint senior project to enter the Human Powered Vehicle (HPV) Challenge, an annual competition sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The HPV Challenge is a competition in which teams of students design and build a vehicle powered solely by human power (i.e. no energy storage or input devices are allowed, such as a flywheel or battery). A team can pursue vehicle classes of single rider, multi- person, and practical, each with their own design goals and constraints. The competition includes design, sprint, endurance, and utility events.
Watkins, G., & Smith, M. (2006, June), A Senior Design Project Team Of Engineering And Engineering Technology Students Paper presented at 2006 Annual Conference & Exposition, Chicago, Illinois. 10.18260/1-2--475
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