Lessons Learned from a 10-Year Collaboration between Engineering and Industrial Design Students in Capstone Design Projects

Engineers and industrial designers have different approaches to problem solving. Both place heavy emphasis on identification of customer needs, manufacturing methods, and prototyping. Industrial designers focus on aesthetics, ergonomics, ease of use, and the user’s experience. They tend to be more visual and more concerned with the interaction between users and products. Engineers focus on functionality, performance requirements, analytical modeling, and design verification and validation. They tend to be more analytical and more concerned with the design of internal components and product performance. Engineers and industrial designers often work together on project teams in industry. Collaboration between the two groups on senior capstone design projects can teach each to respect and value the unique contributions each brings to the project team, result in improved design solutions, and help prepare students for future collaboration in industry. Student feedback and lessons learned by faculty and students from a ten-year collaboration between engineering and industrial design students from Marquette University and the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, respectively, are presented. Students learned to communicate with people in other disciplines, appreciate the complementary skills of each discipline, and value different approaches to problem solving

Creating an Entrepreneurial Culture at a Startup Engineering Program

In 1992, the College of Engineering at Rowan University was created as the direct result of a $100 million gift from entrepreneur Henry M. Rowan. Mr. Rowan’s requirements were that the gift be used to create a high-quality, public undergraduate engineering institution and to impact the economic development of southern New Jersey, a region which has historically lagged behind northern New Jersey. Having started with a clean curriculum slate during a period of national change in engineering curricula in response to ABET 2000, we had the opportunity to infuse an entrepreneurial culture into our engineering program from its inception. Specifically, we have developed the following policies/programs: • Created an 8-semester Engineering Clinic course sequence in which hands-on design projects are completed every semester. • Developed a “job-fair” model for student clinic project staffing in which students get “hired” into their Engineering Clinic projects by marketing themselves and their capabilities to faculty, • Created an Undergraduate Venture Capital Fund where students can obtain funding up to$2500 per semester to develop their own original inventions, • Created the Competitive Assessment Laboratory for competitive benchmarking of consumer products. • Developed a micro-business model in which some Engineering Clinic project teams provide engineering services (design, fabrication, modeling, etc.) to other projects, • Hired (College of Business) an endowed chair in entrepreneurial studies, • Created the Technological Entrepreneurship Concentration, which is a certificate program that will be populated jointly by Engineering and Business students, • Obtained state funding to build the South Jersey Technology Park and Technology Business Incubator adjacent to the Rowan campus. This paper will describe the impact of each of these initiatives toward creating an entrepreneurial culture in our undergraduate students. It should be noted that many of these initiatives do not require a new program or major curriculum reform. Rather, our results suggest that it is possible to start with some small initiatives and build upon each initiative as the momentum for entrepreneurship develops

Annual Report 2020

Spring Quarter presented unexpected challenges for Louisiana Tech and the College of Engineering and Science. Efforts by the State of Louisiana to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus changed the way professors offered classes and students learned, as all classes within our College, including labs, were moved online in an extremely short time. Many of our traditional events were canceled or postponed, and students, faculty and staff missed opportunities to gather as we shifted to an online community. We have met these setbacks with the flexibility and innovation that define engineering and science at Louisiana Tech. As you read our 2020 Spring College Report, you’ll see examples of faculty and students who inspire innovation through their hard work and unique perspectives. We highlight two professors who are leading their fields in world-changing research. Dr. Amin Amir and a team of interdisciplinary students and faculty are designing a new method for Facebook to lay fiber optic cable. Dr. Kasra Momeni is leading multiple grants that will have applications in a variety of fields, including in-space manufacturing and quantum computing. You’ll learn about senior chemistry student Sierra Napoleon’s experiences in research and about the unique experiences provided by our Grand Challenge Scholars Program and our annual Cyber Storm hackfest. I am proud of the work that Engineering and Science students, faculty and staff have done for the 2019-2020 academic year and their perseverance during the Spring Quarter. -Hisham Hegab, Ph.D., Dean and Max Watson, Sr., Professorhttps://digitalcommons.latech.edu/coes-annual-reports/1000/thumbnail.jp

Development of IoT applications in civil engineering classrooms using mobile devices

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: [Chacón R, Posada H, Toledo Á, Gouveia M. Development of IoT applications in civil engineering classrooms using mobile devices. Comput Appl Eng Educ. 2018;26:1769–1781. https://doi.org/10.1002/cae.21985], which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/cae.21985. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-ArchivingThis paper presents academic efforts aimed at integrating methodologies associated with the use of mobile devices, the potential of the Internet of Things (IoT), and the role of experimental education in civil engineering. This integration is developed by encompassing the use of sensors, microcontrollers, civil engineering problems, app development, and fabrication. The proposal provides an explorative way of approaching the numerous possibilities that arise in civil engineering when it comes to IoT, automation, monitoring, and control of civil engineering processes. The used tools represent accessible and affordable ways for application in classrooms and in educational laboratories for beginners. The initial explorative approach implies the fusion of three realms: (i) the phenomenology and mathematics of varied civil engineering problems; (ii) the systematic use of digital fabrication technologies and electronic prototyping platforms; and (iii) the creative and visual way of developing codes provided by block-based development platforms. This integration of perspectives is an attempt of approaching civil engineering mathematics to technology and arts with a rigorous scientific approach. A set of different examples is presented with the corresponding findings in educational terms. These examples are developed in a constructive, scaffolding-based way and may contribute as a potential alternative in the development of open-source teaching labs in civil engineering schools.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Preparing ECE Students for Research Career in Nanotechnology via Track Program

Abstract: This paper details the research participation of undergraduate students from the freshman to the senior year. Four courses were designated to prepare students for a nanotechnology research career. New modes of instructions leading to research participation followed in this curriculum have been reported. This covers integration of knowledge, just in time approach, and project portfolio based curriculum. Courses developed in this track emphasize research and applications in health sciences and renewable energy areas. The structure of the track program was presented before with emphasis on the senior level courses of the track. The work in this paper, however, emphasizes research participation in nanotechnology of the junior students within the electrical engineering, computer engineering, and mechanical engineering disciplines. The multidisciplinary components in nanotechnology research topics were attractive to students to work in team. The topics covered in this course included nanotechnology applications in diabetes, cancer research, and neurosciences. Lecture materials were all from up-to-date research papers, and can be altered with the course updates. Students registered for this course were required to emphasize two research topics seven week each, and prepare research posters in a research day where industrial representatives are invited to participate in the discussions with students. Students who completed this course were interested to continue with nanotechnology individual research and get enrolled in upper level courses. The course starts with introducing students to the nanotechnology applications in various fields, including environment, society, consumer electronics, computers, health sciences, optics, electromagnetics, energy, and medical imaging. The course then introduces students to research issues emphasizing health sciences and renewable energy. Students will be required to expand their research to cover in depth one or two research issues that fall within their interests. In the research projects, students work in team, two students/team, and assignment is given to bath to share the contribution of the project. The course was assessed with student satisfaction, and the objectives and the outcomes of the course were met

ABET Self-Study Report for the Environmental Resources Engineering Program at SUNY ESF

In 1971, the Department of Forest Engineering at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) began offering a BS degree in Forest Engineering (FEG). The BS in Forest Engineering was first accredited by ABET in 1982 and was most recently reviewed by the Engineering Accreditation Commission in 2006. This is the first ABET review for the BS program in Environmental Resources Engineering, which evolved out of the previously accredited BS in Forest Engineering

Wright State University College of Engineering and Computer Science Bits and PCs newsletter, Volume 17, Number 7, April 2001

An eight page newsletter created by the Wright State University College of Engineering and Computer Science that addresses the current affairs of the college.https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/bits_pcs/1111/thumbnail.jp

Wright State University College of Engineering and Computer Science Bits and PCs newsletter, Volume 17, Number 7, April 2001

An eight page newsletter created by the Wright State University College of Engineering and Computer Science that addresses the current affairs of the college.https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/bits_pcs/1111/thumbnail.jp

Where and how 3D printing is used in teaching and education

The emergence of additive manufacturing and 3D printing technologies is introducing industrial skills deficits and opportunities for new teaching practices in a range of subjects and educational settings. In response, research investigating these practices is emerging across a wide range of education disciplines, but often without reference to studies in other disciplines. Responding to this problem, this article synthesizes these dispersed bodies of research to provide a state‐of‐the‐art literature review of where and how 3D printing is being used in the education system. Through investigating the application of 3D printing in schools, universities, libraries and special education settings, six use categories are identified and described: (1) to teach students about 3D printing; (2) to teach educators about 3D printing; (3) as a support technology during teaching; (4) to produce artefacts that aid learning; (5) to create assistive technologies; and (6) to support outreach activities. Although evidence can be found of 3D printing‐based teaching practices in each of these six categories, implementation remains immature, and recommendations are made for future research and education policy.This work was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [number EP/K039598/1]