Using Course Projects to Infuse Innovation Throughout the Undergraduate Experience in the Engineering and Engineering Technology Curriculum

Jason K. Durfee; Donald C. Richter; Martin William Weiser; N.M. A. Hossain; Hani Serhal Saad

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Conference: 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Publication Date: June 15, 2014
Start Date: June 15, 2014
End Date: June 18, 2014
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Simulations and Project Based Learning I
Tagged Division: Engineering Technology
Page Count: 12
Page Numbers: 24.1324.1 - 24.1324.12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--23257
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/23257
Download Count: 411

Paper Authors

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Jason K. Durfee P.E. Eastern Washington University

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Jason Durfee is a professor of engineering and design at Eastern Washington University. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in mechanical engineering from Brigham Young University. He holds a Professional Engineer certification. Prior to teaching at Eastern Washington University, he was a military pilot, an engineering instructor at West Point, and an airline pilot. His interests include aerospace, aviation, computational fluid dynamics, professional ethics, and piano technology.

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Donald C. Richter Eastern Washington University

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Donald C. Richter obtained his B.Sc. in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from Ohio State University, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in engineering from the University of Arkansas. He is currently a full professor at Eastern Washington University. He holds a Professional Engineer certification and worked as an engineer and engineering manager in industry for 20 years before teaching. His interests include engineering education, project management, robotics/automation, and air pollution dispersion modeling.

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Martin William Weiser Eastern Washington University

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Martin Weiser is an assistant professor in the engineering and design department at Eastern Washington University. He earned his B.S. in ceramic engineering from Ohio State University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in materials science and mineral engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He then joined the mechanical engineering department at the University of New Mexico, where he taught materials science, thermodynamics, manufacturing engineering, and technical communication. Prof. Weiser then joined Johnson Matthey Electronics/Honeywell Electronic Materials where he held positions in technical service, product management, six sigma, and research and development. An inventor on a dozen patents and patent applications, he has published more than 40 papers and book chapters on topics including ceramic processing, Pb-free solder development, experimental design, and biomechanics. His current research focuses on rocket propellant characterization, fin flutter, and heat transfer.

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N.M. A. Hossain Eastern Washington University

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Dr. Hossain is an associate professor in the department of engineering and design at Eastern Washington University, Cheney. His research interests involve the computational and experimental analysis of lightweight space structures and composite materials. Dr. Hossain received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in materials engineering and science from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City.

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Hani Serhal Saad Eastern Washington University

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Abstract

Using Course Projects to Infuse Innovation throughout the Undergraduate Experience in the Engineering and Engineering Technology CurriculumABSTRACTEngineering and Engineering Technology students need to learn how to innovate and embrace newtechnologies as they develop and progress through their careers. Accomplishing this challenge requiresthe undergraduate degree programs to provide the first opportunities for innovative solutions totechnological problems to gain experience and confidence before they reach their Capstone course. Thispaper describes the learning experiences in innovation that we use at our institution in undergraduatecourses in Robotics and Automation, Finite Element Analysis, Parametric Modeling and RapidPrototyping. The courses are composed of Mechanical Engineering (ME) and Mechanical EngineeringTechnology (MET) students. The paper relates the successful attempts the students have had indeveloping and using innovation through the creation of open-ended projects in these three courses. Theundergraduate student project teams in each course are self-directed and have to use innovation todevelop a project of their own design within the course constraints. This breaks the cycle of students justdoing the same preset experiments that others have done before them. Although doing preset experimentscan reinforce the theoretical concepts given in the classroom, it does little to develop skills in innovation,which will be the key to success in the global economy. The courses used in our ME and MET programsprovide an excellent framework for the students to demonstrate their ability to innovate using newtechnology to solve a complex engineering problem. The projects are also supervised by instructors asstudents take their first steps in actually doing innovation. The confidence and process used to solve thesetechnical problems will provide a basis upon which they can formulate new strategies to incorporate newtechnologies throughout their career. Using this new approach will help our students gain confidence inreaching out to use new technologies and innovation early in their career.

Citation
Format

Durfee, J. K., & Richter, D. C., & Weiser, M. W., & Hossain, N. A., & Saad, H. S. (2014, June), Using Course Projects to Infuse Innovation Throughout the Undergraduate Experience in the Engineering and Engineering Technology Curriculum Paper presented at 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Indianapolis, Indiana. 10.18260/1-2--23257

TY - CPAPER
AB - Using Course Projects to Infuse Innovation throughout the Undergraduate Experience in the Engineering and Engineering Technology CurriculumABSTRACTEngineering and Engineering Technology students need to learn how to innovate and embrace newtechnologies as they develop and progress through their careers. Accomplishing this challenge requiresthe undergraduate degree programs to provide the first opportunities for innovative solutions totechnological problems to gain experience and confidence before they reach their Capstone course. Thispaper describes the learning experiences in innovation that we use at our institution in undergraduatecourses in Robotics and Automation, Finite Element Analysis, Parametric Modeling and RapidPrototyping. The courses are composed of Mechanical Engineering (ME) and Mechanical EngineeringTechnology (MET) students. The paper relates the successful attempts the students have had indeveloping and using innovation through the creation of open-ended projects in these three courses. Theundergraduate student project teams in each course are self-directed and have to use innovation todevelop a project of their own design within the course constraints. This breaks the cycle of students justdoing the same preset experiments that others have done before them. Although doing preset experimentscan reinforce the theoretical concepts given in the classroom, it does little to develop skills in innovation,which will be the key to success in the global economy. The courses used in our ME and MET programsprovide an excellent framework for the students to demonstrate their ability to innovate using newtechnology to solve a complex engineering problem. The projects are also supervised by instructors asstudents take their first steps in actually doing innovation. The confidence and process used to solve thesetechnical problems will provide a basis upon which they can formulate new strategies to incorporate newtechnologies throughout their career. Using this new approach will help our students gain confidence inreaching out to use new technologies and innovation early in their career.
AU - Jason K. Durfee P.E.
AU - Donald C. Richter
AU - Martin William Weiser
AU - N.M. A. Hossain
AU - Hani Serhal Saad
CY - Indianapolis, Indiana
DA - 2014/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Using Course Projects to Infuse Innovation Throughout the Undergraduate Experience in the Engineering and Engineering Technology Curriculum
UR - https://peer.asee.org/23257
DO - 10.18260/1-2--23257
ER -