Research & Proposal

Document & Present

Design

GETTING YOUR PROJECT STARTED

What do you want to make?

A good starting point is to think about what you have created this year? From the topics we have covered, which did you enjoy the most? You could either come up with something completely new or you could pick up from where you left off and add, change and make it even better. You might have something outside of school that you are really passionate about that you want to make something for.

School Wide Projects

If you are struggling to come up with an idea or want to create something that helps someone, there are a number of teachers and clubs have problems that could be solved with Digital Technologies.

Here is a list Link

RESEARCH

Task 1: Complete some Background Research

If you are unsure of what to make or have a few different options then do some initial research to help you decide.

What could you try and make? Put in pictures, links and other useful resources to help you with deciding on what your project could be and can come back to. Aim for a few examples of similar products; some tutorials on other people making stuff like it; other reference images and video, including colours you could use.

At the start you should have looked at some existing solutions that are similar to what you want to create.

Look up tutorials or find people able to help you with your project
The equipment and software are you using will put limits on your design
What materials you have access to
Reference materials that you can look at for inspiration

PROPOSAL

The proposal document consists of several sections. This is exactly the same as the process you will go through in senior digital technologies courses.

The purpose of a proposal is to organise what you are planning to make with your research and other considerations so that this information can be seen by all involved in the project.

This also helps make sure your project is achievable and minimises scope creep

Task 2: Write your Proposal

Here is some help on what to include......

Outline

Who needs what and why?

Requirements

What MUST the project contain to be considered successful?

These should be goals in broad terms that are subjective (information or perspectives based on feelings, opinions, or emotions)

Here are some examples:

VIDEO GAME

Must be a scary FPS game / Must follow a horror theme
Must have simple game mechanics
Must be playable
Must be easy to use / Must be easy to control
Must be an engaging story / Must be entertaining / Must be funny
Must look professional

ANIMATION

Must be enchanting / Must be an engaging story / Must be entertaining / Must be funny
Must be suitable for U18s
Must look professional

PRODUCT (3D printed / Laser Cut)

Must be environmentally friendly
Must be sellable
Must be a suitable size
Must look professional

There should be around 4-5 requirements for your project. One useful technique is to look at your product from the perspective of the user. What do they need for your outcome to work?

Specifications

This is a list of technical and measurable things that the outcome “will have” or “will be” in order to achieve the requirements. These are objective (verifiable information based on facts and evidence).

Note: that there should be several specifications linked to every requirement

Here are some examples:

VIDEO GAME

The game will have dark lighting
The game will have creepy ambient sounds including distant screaming
The game will be single player only
The game will be set in a mental asylum
The game will have AI enemies who attack the player
The game will follow MDA game conventions
The game graphics exported jpg or png

ANIMATION

The animation will have a fairy as the main character
The animation will tell a story
The animation will be line art
The animation will be 24 fps
The animation is exported as mp4
The animation will be between 20 - 90 seconds

PRODUCT (3D printed / Laser Cut)

The product will be modelled in Fusion360 to reduce printing costs
The product will be between 60mm - 150mm height
The product will be made from repeated shapes and assembled
The product will be made from bamboo 3mm thickness

Anything that could be measurable e.g. size, shape, colour, volume, speed, format.

Resources

What do you HAVE to make this project? This should help you to judge if a project is in scope (ie do-able with the given resources).
What skills do your team have?
How much time?
What software and hardware?

Making Stuff

exurb1a

Contains Swearing

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