A Good Project
TECH 4943
The Maltese Falcon
ChatGPT…
Spoiler alert:
The Maltese Falcon is not about a bird.
The Maltese Falcon
A MacGuffin
Your project is not the thing. It is the planning, the designing, the failures and successes you experience along the way.
It is meeting with faculty, the questions you ask, and the problems you solve creatively.
It is the analysis you do, the research you conduct, the prototypes you build and test. It also includes a beautiful, well-developed solution.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacGuffin#/media/File:Maltese_Falcon_film_prop_created_by_Fred_Sexton_for_John_Huston.jpg
Looks Good
It should all LOOK GOOD.
Properly formatted documentation
Clear diagrams
Industry standard drawings
Workmanlike appearance
Properly finished (Paint, decals, etc.)
Looks designed, engineered
Includes analyses: free body diagrams, formulas, etc.
Workmanlike Appearance
YES
NO
Workmanlike Appearance
YES
NO
http://people.sinclair.edu/nickreeder/eet1131/breadboardingTips.htm
This is not acceptable. Do not do this.
Electronics Students…
A great option to add some real credibility to your project is to have a printed circuit made.
See: CadSoft Eagle or Kicad
Companies like ALLPCB.com can make prototypes fast and cheap from your design.
Yes. Yes.
If your project interfaces multiple boards, design a board to integrate or consolidate them.
100X better than jumper wires.
Like this…
Pay attention to details
Sounds Good
Be clear.
Don’t attempt “flowery” speak.
Don’t “Roget”
Demonstrates Upper Division Concepts Clearly
Don’t reference TECH 1711 concepts such as machining, welding.
Go beyond Vo-Tech topics.
Talk about topics such as allowable stress, moment of inertia, center of gravity, tensile strength, GMAW, tool design, fixture design, manufacturing process maps, value stream mapping, material selection, poka-yoke, tolerances, etc.
You must perform analyses.
You must reference standards.
You must refer to design guides, technical data sheets, patents etc.
A really great project will reference peer-reviewed journal articles.
Think “Production”
Is complete
Don’t over-promise.
To Do:
Find a job posting that interests you.
Copy the text from the posting and highlight everything your project will demonstrate.
Some projects are almost guaranteed to end badly
Projects that require machining a lot of complex components
Bending tube
Welding aluminum
A “box” project
Vendors you may consider (Mechanical Parts)
Consider Design Competitions