Capstone Design Step 3: Evaluation of Alternative Concepts
Capstone Design Step 3: Evaluation of Alternative Concepts
Important concepts to apply to your designs:
Minimize number of parts.
Minimize number of different Kinds of parts.
When possible buying parts (on the cheap!!!) is preferable to manufacturing them yourselves.
Seek a modular design (i.e a design where the different functions are physically isolated.)
Design for ease of manufacture.
Design for robustness.
Design for adjustability (thing can be tuned up on the fly to improve performance).
Design Milestone: Evaluation of Alternatives
Successful completion of this milestone requires three strong design concepts, an open mind, and a lot of careful thought.
2. Decide on five to seven evaluation criteria that will be used with a decision matrix to evaluate the three concepts from the previous milestone.
3. Assign weights to the evaluation criteria.
4. Fill out a decision matrix. One row at a time, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of all of the concepts in the context of the given criterion and assign values by consensus before moving on to the next criterion.
5. Analyze the results of the decision matrix. Use the matrix to look for weaknesses and attempt to correct them by combining ideas from different concepts.
6. Select the best concept.
7. Document your evaluation process as per Example 23.4 in the reading above.
Every member of the design team must individually fill out a decision matrix prior to engaging in team discussions. This gives everyone a chance to think about the strengths and weaknesses ahead of time and makes it more likely that all will be active participants at the team meeting and decisions.
Use the matrix to identify and correct weaknesses in a promising design. Give priority to the weaknesses that are most heavily weighted.
Feel free to create new alternatives by combining strengths from competing concepts.
Grading Criteria
• Are weights and values accurate and fully justified?
• Were the results of the decision matrix interpreted thoughtfully when searching for and selecting the best concept?
• Were all three concepts strong designs?
• Is the documentation typed and clearly written?
Things to Consider
• There is no need to rig the results of the decision matrix to come out to the concept you want as the results are nonbinding.
• Do not blindly obey the results of your decision matrix; the selection of evaluation criteria may have been flawed to begin with.
• Engage everyone in the decision-making process. including your mentors!!!
• Do not shy away from bold designs just because they are different from everyone else's. Those differences could lead to some serious innovation.
Following is an example of the matrix (from the PDF document above):
