AENG 1001 / MENG 1001 (Fall 2015)

Introduction to Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering

Resources

    • Syllabus (Fall 2015)

    • Block Diagram Assignment (due 09/08 for Tuesday sections, due date TBD for Thursday). In your team, choose either a product (e.g., internal combustion engine) or a process (e.g., secure communications from London the French Resistance in World War II), and

      1. Draw the block diagram, showing input and output relations between the action blocks. Your block diagram must have at least three elements.

      2. Use the block diagram to diagnose a potential problem. (For example, if the engine won't run, it could be because of a problem with the air intake.)

      3. Use the block diagram to identify a change/improvement that might make the system better. (For example, in the secure-communications problem, the line connecting London to the French Resistance is extremely vulnerable. We might be able to improve things by hiding/obscuring the line of communications between the two - perhaps by embedding our messages in newspaper advertisements.)

    • Painstorming Assignment (due 09/15 or 09/17). In your team, select an engineering discipline (aerospace, mechanical, civil, etc.) or a product field (e.g., kitchen, automobiles, medicine, construction).

      1. Come up with a list of at least 20 pains that have been addressed by your theme. For example, in the theme of "civil engineering", bridges have solved 3 pains (safely and swiftly crossing rivers; reducing the time/hassle of travel between 2 points by allowing roads to continue across canyons, instead of having to go around; and improving safety/speed of travel by allowing highways to pass over/under side streets without intersections).

      2. Identify common types of pains addressed by your theme. (Hint: safety and time-saving are very common types of pains.)

      3. Create a 60-second sales pitch. Pick one item from your list in Part 1. Go back in time to before the product/solution was invented, and pretend that you are presenting this idea to a group of investors. In 60 seconds, explain what the pain is, how your 'new' product will address that pain, and why they should invest in your idea. (Using the above example, if the pain is that we can't get people and goods across the river, my pitch would be to introduce the idea of a "bridge", and how it will solve this pain.)

      4. For the same idea, distill your sales pitch into a haiku (3 lines: 5 syllables, then 7 syllables, then 5). For example,

        • Can't cross the river?

        • My "bridge": road over water!

        • Your feet will stay dry.

    • Playpumps

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Idea to Product (I2P) Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to practice the process of identifying needs (painstorming) and then developing engineering solutions. We will practice the process of making focused designs and conveying our designs in a focused manner.

Your job is to look around you, and identify something that needs to be fixed or improved. The problem can be anything - something that you experience, something you've seen others experience. The point is to find some problem that can be addressed by the invention/creation of a product.

Your assignment has three parts:

  1. A one-page paper that answers the 7 questions outlined below. This can be no more than 1 page (single-sided). If you submit more than one page, only the first page will be read (the rest will be thrown out). The first draft of this paper is due on the first due date; the final version is due on the last day of classes. Note that three of the questions should not be addressed in the first draft. (See below.)

  2. A 7-minute presentation focused on the problem (NOT the solution! That comes in the second presentation!). Again, at this stage in the design process, you need to keep your mind open to new ideas. (Remember the space pencil? If you have already decided that your solution is a pencil, you won't even be aware of the possibility of a pen.) That presentation should include:

    1. A title slide

    2. A "show slide" that demonstrates the problem/need in as few words as possible (pictures-only is best)

    3. The answers to the four questions (one per slide). [Yes, four questions: see below for the questions that should be omitted.]

    4. Any concluding remarks

    5. A 15-minute presentation:

      1. Update/improve based on the results of the first presentation, plus your own work

      2. Include your answers the omitted questions from the first round

      3. Include charts that describe your solution, how you would produce it, and how/where you would sell it.

The Seven Questions

    1. What is your product or idea? (Distill it to one word or phrase, at most, a haiku.)

    2. What is the driving need (pain) addressed by your product?

    3. Is your underlying technology unique? Describe.[SKIP THIS ONE FOR THE FIRST PRESENTATION.]

    4. Is your product or idea innovative? Describe. [SKIP THIS ONE FOR THE FIRST PRESENTATION.]

    5. Who is your market and initial customer group (who will buy it)?

    6. What needs of your customers does your product or idea address? (In other words, why will they buy it? Your answer should address how your specific design solves the problems outlined in earlier questions.) [SKIP THIS ONE FOR THE FIRST PRESENTATION.]

    7. Provide some indication of the general size of the market (numbers are needed, even a rough guess).

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