A Multidisciplinary, Hands-on Freshman Engineering Team Design Project and Competition
| Author(s): | Howard Fulmer, Edward Char, J.O. O'brien, William Koffke, Kenneth Muske, Joseph Yost, Randy Weinstein, John J. Wolf |
|---|---|
| Year of Publication: | 2006 |
| Journal Title: | International Journal Engineering Education |
| ISSN: | 0949-149X |
| Volume: | 22 |
| Issue: | 5 |
| Start Page: | 1023 |
| End Page: | 1030 |
| Abstract: |
To introduce engineering students to multidisciplinary team work and the principles of engineering
design early in their educational careers, a freshman design project and competition was developed. This project and competition required skills typically associated with the four engineering departments (the Departments of Chemical Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering) in the College of Engineering at Villanova University. Students were required to build a model car with proper gearing, construct a bridge, and supply power through an electrochemical reaction to complete a specific set of tasks. Teams could only use the limited materials supplied to them. The competition involved an aesthetics contest, a race (including a hill), a load pull, and a load test of the bridge. The project emphasized teaching the freshmen engineering students about team work, open-ended design issues, long-term deadlines, creativeness, the multidisciplinary nature of engineering, as well as the `fun' of engineering. |
| Link to Full Text: | Full Text |
