EDD

Reverse Engineering Project-

We started out our year with our reverse engineering project. This project encouraged us to think critically as we disassembled a hairdryer with supervision from our teacher and conducted relevant testing to test certain attributes of the dryer.

We started out the project as a class by discussing which attributes were most important for us to test as we had limited resources. We discussed several different parameters such as cord length, wind speed, and temperature, as well as several qualitative attributes including ease of use and aesthetics. From there, I chose several attributes of the hairdryer that I felt were the most important and developed testing procedures for each of these.

Testing Brainstorming

Reverse Engineering Testing Procedures

I decided to test the qualitative attributes of wind speed, cord length, dry time, temperature, and weight for my presentation and recorded the testing procedures for each as well and gathered data with the supervision of my teacher. I placed the testing procedures and the data in the presentation above.

Functional Model

Next, I developed a functional model of the hairdryer that allowed me to understand the processes that the hairdryer goes through as it operates. This allowed me to understand where critical points of failure might be when I was testing. I also learned to think critically as I had to consider the inputs and outputs that flowed through the system.

Testing Results

Throughout this project Mrs.Windolph expected us to learn more about designing our own testing procedures and getting reintroduced to the engineering design process. We evaluated solutions that already existed to prepare us for our final design process where we would have to work the other way around.

Inventor Skills Refresh

Now that we learned how to analyze solutions from other sources. I would need to learn how to create our own designs in preparation for the final design project. As such, It was necessary to refamiliarize with AutoDesk Inventor from Freshman Year.

During this project, I created inventor parts, which were 3D models and drawings in preparation for an exploded assembly, where we would need to combine parts together. There were quite a few things that came naturally, such as extrusions and sketching, but I had difficulty when I made an assembly. The assembly commands did not come naturally but proved essential for the senior design project and my concepts from then.

Content

For this project, we had to create three unique inventor parts, an engineering drawing for each part, a project assembly, and an exploded assembly. These four artifacts were some of the most powerful applications of Autodesk Inventor and prepared us for the design work that would lay ahead for our final project.

This was a dimensioned sketch of the first part that I made as part of my inventor skills project. It included isometric, top, front, and right views so that the audience could see what the part looked like from multiple perspectives.

Assembly

This is an Inventor assembly of three parts that I created by using both the joint and constraint features in inventor. This piece served as a reminder that even pieces that look properly assembled must be moved along all axes to see if any freedom remains that may separate the parts and undo the assembly.

Exploded Assembly

This was my exploded assembly drawing which shows exactly which parts were my components of the assembly and upon which axes the parts were originally constrained to create the original assembly drawing.

UT Mechanical Engineering Presentation

Due to Mrs. Windolph's professional contacts, Dr.Crawford of the University of Texas of Austin invited our EDD class to watch his senior design class give their final presentations virtually in the fall. Due to time constraints, we were only able to attend a single presentation as each was well over 45 minutes long.

Attached is the docket on which all the presentations and their presenters were listed alongside a design summary.

Project Description

The presentation that we had attended was about a filtration design intended to filter COVID-19 particles out of indoor classrooms. The filtration system was portable so that it could be used in developing countries and underserved communities. Although I did not have the same understanding as the group presenting, I understood that the device used electric fields and ultraviolet radiation to denature the COVID-19 particles such that they could not hijack the human body and spread infection.

Project Reflection

The reason that Mrs.Windolph had us attend the presentation in the first point, was to observe how other engineering students presented the results of their various design projects. This allowed me to gain foresight as to what would be expected in the final presentation and outlined good presentational practices that would be important to follow. These industry-standard practices included the use of reputable graphics and sources to justify the problem statement. I was also introduced to the concept of systemic solutions where a system of parts can be used to perform a task. Last but not least, the project demonstrated how mathematical and scientific knowledge could be applied to engineering problems as the group demonstrated the process through which ultraviolet radiation and the electric fields worked together to denature the virus

Final Project

After refamiliarizing myself with Computer-Aided Design and investigating the testing procedures that a product undergoes before entering the market, it was time for us to break into groups and generate solutions to issues that we felt meaningful. We would spend all our time in class from November to April researching a problem and constructing a solution that would effectively solve the problem.

Topic Research

To begin our final design project, I was tasked with researching an issue that I felt was important and believed could be solved. I decided to research trash in the water as I am interested in protecting the environment as an outdoors enthusiast. I found evidence on reputable sources online and compiled my work into a bibliography using NoodleTools. This research process taught me how to attribute outside data to the right sources and introduced me to many research resources that I would continue to use as my project progressed.

Project Idea Poster

I originally started out the final project hoping to find solutions to trash accumulating in waterways, however, there was too much interest in this project and I had to change my mind. Below are the posters containing research on how the presence of trash in our waterways has proven harmful for both our communities and the local wildlife.

Supporting Evidence

After discussing the project posters with our teacher in class, we each chose to work in a group based on interest in the issues. There was too much interest in solving pollution in waterways so I decided to work with the group that was working to prevent dog injuries on walks. They had already come up with a problem statement, so it was up to me to find more sources to further justify why the injuries dogs face on walks are truly an issue. I further expanded my use of outside sources in this process and learned how to delegate tasks with my group.

Similar Solutions

After discussing the topics with the other groups, my group and I decided that we would instead focus on preventing injuries caused by dog leashes for our final project. After we had coordinated our problem statement, we moved on to the next step of our design process: evaluating solutions that already existed. I was put in charge of leashes and leash materials by my group. During this time, I searched the US patent database for an elastic dog leash. We had concluded that this leash did help discourage dogs from pulling on their leashes but was too heavy for small dogs. Through this process, I got to see how others attempted to solve the problem, which opened my eyes up to how we could design our leash.

Problem and Design Statements

After sufficiently researching the topic in which we hoped to generate solutions, it became time for us to summarize our findings into a problem statement and a design statement. The point of these two statements is to allow the audience to understand the problem you are solving and how you plan to solve it without forcing them to read all of your research.

Problem Statement: Dog Leashes

Pet owners and vets have been reporting numerous injuries that are caused by leashes that range from choking to thyroid damage. There are currently over 76 million dogs spread over 48 million households in America and In a poll taken 24% of owners say they would like to do something about the neck injuries caused by leashes. Some of these injuries include things like Tracheal Ruptures, whiplash, and thyroid injuries. That's why we believe that a new leash could be beneficial to the dogs and their owners as they save money on things like vet bills as well as keep their dog healthy and safe.

Design statement:

Design a leash that minimizes stress on the dog's body and is practical for everyday use.

This assignment improved my understanding of the issue we were solving as I was able to analyze the situation and explain it to others as proof of my understanding.

Generate Design Concepts

After we had clearly defined the problem, it was time for us to start brainstorming any potential solutions to our problem. To keep everything simple from the start, Mrs.Windolph had us draw three annotated sketches by hand and share them with her. My designs were mainly focused on a leash with an elastic cord that would allow it to expand whenever the dog pulled on it. I would have to say that I learned that neatness is key after this exercise, as my works needed to be easy to read for others to understand what I am doing.

Customer Needs Analysis

After developing our first set of sketches, we were assigned a customer needs analysis in which we would interview a target market and gather information about how they saw our problem as an issue and how they wanted it to be solved. I interviewed my family, as I have three dogs at home and the results are available below:

Dog Leash Interview

Raghav Bhatnagar, Luke Neading, Connor Copeland

Are you ever concerned about your dog’s health when on walks?

Yes I am

Sometimes

No

What are your opinions on your dog leash/harness?

Her leash is too short - she does not get to go as far as she wants and can’t explore

It’s good

It’s good

If you had to change one thing about your leash, what would you change?

I would change the length

I would make it longer

The clasp is broken- it wore out too quickly

How does your dog behave on walks?

She likes to go very fast

He loves his walks

Good

Does your dog pull on its leash often?

Fiona doesn’t pull

No

Yes he does

Is your leash the right size for your dog?

No it’s too short - it’s the right width

Yes

Yes

We learned from the customer needs analysis that outside input is important, as there is no point in designing a product that no one would buy. This also served as an opportunity to develop my presentational skills before we started presenting.

Decision Matrix

After each member of the group had come up with several designs, it was time for us to compare them using a specified list of criteria and a design matrix. The point of this assignment was to build team development skills and learn how to design a product with limited resources. We decided to use the elastic neck leash, even though the pinch collar scored the highest, as there were already several pinch collars on the market.

Project Proposal Presentation

Our group functioned independently from the teacher, so we were responsible for monthly presentations in which Mrs.Windolph could track our progress on the project. The goal of these assignments was to summarize a month's worth of work into several minutes and practice the presentational skills necessary for the final presentation.

By the time we finished our project proposal presentation, it was already late January. Because of this, we needed to budget our time wisely, and as such, Mrs.Windolph required our group to create a Gantt chart before doing any more work. This proved essential for our progress as it allowed us to keep up with deadlines and improve upon our project management skills.

Test Plan

We had originally planned to test our prototype in AutoDesk Inventor, but due to it being a non-rigid object the stress-testing feature would not function properly. We were forced to do hand calculations for the stress on the leash by using the formula Stress= Force/Area, but could not conduct any actual testing due to the state of our first prototype.

I learned from this that we need to have a backup plan in case things don't work out as planned and that testing is not something that can be overlooked.

Inventor Models/Drawings

Due to the number of Inventor Drawings created, we decided to place them all upon a single slideshow for the best appearance. To build upon the precision of our initial sketches, we used computer-aided design to generate three-dimensional models of our parts and an exploded assembly of our leash. We broke the leash into several pieces including the handle, main body, cord, and clip, and modeled each part separately in inventor. While this process helped improve our competence in CAD, we found that AutoDesk Inventor was not effective at modeling non-rigid objects and made our parts seem too rigid and awkward.

Materials and Vendors List

One of our constraints was a $35 budget for each prototype that we created, so we decided to create a materials and vendors list to keep track of our spending and make sure we stayed on track with our budget. We would list how much each material costs in its unit of basic measure and multiply by the number of units purchased to find the total cost per item and added them together to find our final cost.

Prototype 1

Due to time constraints, our first prototype was a mockup and not an actual functioning prototype. I built it at home using found materials such as a rubber bracelet, a lanyard, and a paperclip.

The prototype easily snapped when put under any pressure so we decided not to test it on any dogs to be safe,

I learned from this that it is important to manage my time so that I do not produce poor quality work at the sacrifice of procrastinating.

February Checkpoint Presentation

Due to the poor time management in January and February, our March Checkpoint Presentation to Mrs.Windolph went less than ideal.

Without a proper prototype and insufficient testing procedures, we missed two of the items that Mrs.Windolph was looking most critically for.

We learned as a result of our mediocre performance that communication was key and that it would be best for us to focus our efforts together rather than working on individual components of the project individually. Thus we improved as a group due to the adversity we faced during the project.

Prototype two Drawings

For our second prototype, we decided to stop using AutoDesk Inventor, as it did not let us properly model non-rigid objects. Instead, we used an alternative piece of software called AutoDesk Sketchbook. Rather than working alone, we all met up online and drew a single design together to ensure that everyone in the group approved of our design. By far our largest change was the use of a thinner cord and a cord that was slightly longer than the leash to allow it to exert a corrective force on the dog when it tugged. We thus learned from this activity the importance of teamwork and the ability to adapt to a situation when it does not go to plan.

Prototype 2

For our second prototype, we decided that a physical model would work best as it would allow us to test physically.

We all gathered at the school to sew our second prototype together, which consisted of an exercise band wrapped around a piece of fabric and a carabiner.

We also noticed that the build quality was much higher than it was initially for our first prototype, and this was our first truly functioning prototype.

Updated Materials and vendors List

Since we had significant changes between our first and second prototypes we decided to create a new materials and vendors list to reflect this. Luckily, we stayed on budget as we learned to be more frugal and combined some parts so that we would have to buy fewer items.

Testing prototype 2

We had learned from our last prototype that digital testing was not going to work for our design, so we completely revamped our testing procedures to conduct two physical tests.

The first was the pulling force test, which measured how hard a dog pulled on their leash, this test was important as it told us how much force the leash would have to withstand to walk a certain size dog.

We also combined this with the stress test which was a boolean test to see if the leash broke under any stress. If it snapped or had any major tears it would fail.

We learned from the testing that it is important to build the activities off of the group's strengths and weaknesses, so Luke was assigned to testing since he was much more confident in the area manner than I was.

This was the spring scale test where Luke measured how hard his dog pulled on the leash

This is a video of the leash being testing on Luke's Dog Roxie.

Prototype 2 Test Data Analysis

After collecting the data from our second prototype, we decided to analyze it to see if we needed to make any major design changes for our final prototype. We also graphed the data that we recorded on a bar chart so that our audience could see the data easily while we were presenting. We concluded that the leash did not break but there were some minor tears in the stress test, which meant that a more securing leash that would not overstrech was needed for our final prototype.

Prototype 3 Sketching

For our final prototype, we decided to continue using AutoDesk SketchBook as it worked well in our last prototype. We did not make any changes other than integrating the handle into the fitness band and including an internal sleeve of fabric to keep the fitness band from stretching too far and escaping the leash.

We thus learned that even small changes can make a big difference in terms of our performance.

Prototype 3

For our final prototype, we had Connor build it as we were running short on time and could not find a time to meet together.

The third prototype appeared similar to the second one but had a secret cord inside that would keep it from overstretching and a larger carabiner to support dogs with larger harnesses.

We thus learned that with effective communication, quality work can still be accomplished when I work alone.

Prototype 3 Test Data Analysis-

For the final test data analysis, there were no major changes to the testing procedures, but we decided to test again to ensure that our data was reliable.

We actually got even better results than prototype two as there were no tears at all, meaning that it performed even better in the stress test than the second prototype.

Thus the final round of testing reminded me that testing is an essential part of the engineering design process and should be conducted as much as possible to ensure optimal quality.

April Checkpoint Presentation

In preparation for the final presentation, Mrs.Windolph wanted us to give one more presentation to her before our final one.

We discussed both our second and third prototypes in this presentation, so it was longer than our march presentation.

The presentation flowed much smoother than the last one as we made sure to play to our group's strengths and weaknesses when dividing up the presentation material.

Final presentation

Here is the result of the months that we spent iterating throughout the engineering design process.

The Final Presentation serves as a timeline of the journey that we went through as we solved the issues facing our community when dogs get injured.

I learned so much from this presentation, from team development to the engineering design process the skills learned are immense.

I learned how to sew to build our prototypes, familiarized myself with project management software, and cited my sources in a professional manner.

Mrs.Windolph had high expectations for us and we delivered!