U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A L I F O R N I A , B E R K E L E Y

DRAFT

A Proposal from the Design Committee

 

A. Agogino, D. Auslander, H. Kazerooni, D. Lieu, P. Sheng, P. Wright

 

Smart Machines and Products I and II

Tentative Syllabus *

INVITATION LETTER *

ABET 2000 Criteria *

Mechanical Engineering Criteria *

Implementation Schedule *

Smart Machines and Products I and II

  1. A two semester course in "Smart Machines and Products" during the forth year will be offered. These two semester courses have three components:

  1. All projects will be funded by industry. We will advertise the existence of these courses through a professionally programmed WEB site. The SBA office in Sacramento and other entrepreneurial offices such as Bay Area Regional Technology Alliance (BARTA) will introduce these courses to California companies particularly to startup companies. All logistical issues associated with interaction with industry will be handled through MEIA office. We will also need to write proposal to NSF and HP for funding.

    2.  

  2. We need two slots for these courses. We will completely modify ME102B to become the first course in this series. The first course (i.e. SMP I) will be a required course for all ME students. There are several choices for the second course (SMP II):

  1. SMP II will be an elective course.

  2. Students choose either SMP II or ME107B as a required course.

  3. Use the sequence of ME102A and ME102B for this two semester courses and make them both required courses. This choice depends on material committee and their opinion on how they might be able to use other courses to fulfill the material requirements for ME undergraduate students.

  4. Combine ME107A and ME107B and use the extra slot for SMP II.

Note: There is a problem with choices a, b and c: Can ME107B and SMPII coexist during one semester? Do we have enough FTE and resources to successfully teach both courses ME107B and SMPII?

  1. Both ME 135 and ME136 (two elective courses taught be Dave Auslander and Hami Kazerooni) deal with software and hardware aspects of Mechatronics. In the event we decide to teach SMP I and II during senior year, both ME 135 and ME136 will be dropped from curriculum.

 

Tentative Syllabus

  1. Design Process and Business Aspects

    2. Customer and user needs assessment, translating function specifications, concept generation, concept selection, economics of product development, business plans, professional ethics and responsibility. (This section will be interspersed throughout the two semester to correspond with the stages in the industry-sponsored design project.)

  2. Actuators

    3. design and dynamic properties of hydraulic actuators, pneumatic actuators, electric actuators and I.C. engines.

  3. Sensors

    4. accuracy, dynamic range, stability, resistive, inductive, capacitive, optical, solid state, piezoelectric and ultrasonic

  4. Basic Electronic Devices

    5. power supplies, diodes, signal processing, shielding and grounding, transformers, filters, multiplexing, choppers, relays

  5. Operational Amplifiers

    6. ideal amplifiers, characteristics, integrators and differentiators, filters ,analogue computers.

  6. Embedded Microprocessor Systems and Control

    7. CPU operation, system bus, memories, interrupt processing, input and output devices, IO programming (serial, parallel, A/D and D/A), PLC Control

  7. Real Time Software Design and Implementation Methodology

    8. Software design models, specifications and documentation, computer language and software

  8. Power Transfer Components

    9. shafts, transmission systems, brakes, clutches, fasteners, belts, chains, traction drives, indexing systems, cams, pulleys, ball screw systems, bearings, springs.

  9. Mechanism Design

    10. kinematics and dynamics of robotic type devices, articulation, speed, accuracy, bandwidth, inertia, vibration, static and dynamic loading, materials, integration of design requirements

  10. Basics of Production and Manufacturing Methods and Equipment

    11. industrial design, design for manufacture, design for environment, rapid prototyping, layered manufacturing, turning, drilling, broaching, milling, gear cutting, grinding, casting, heat-treating, deburring, welding, borring

  11. Methods of Testing, Performance Evaluation and Design Refinement

design of experiments; scaling, dimensional analysis and similitude; robust design and analysis of variations, reliability and statistics. Feed results of prototype testing into a refinement of the design prototype.

INVITATION LETTER

Department of Mechanical Engineering

University of California at Berkeley

Smart Machines and Products, I and II

 

The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California invites you to join us in helping to educate future engineers by sponsoring a project for SMP I and II, our required, senior-level design courses. The purpose of this two-semester course is to provide students with a realistic design experience in which they can integrate and capitalize on the basic disciplinary material they have learned during their engineering program to synthesize a new product, device or process. We have found that "real-world" projects sponsored by industry result in some of the best experiences for our student designers.

 

BENEFITS TO COMPANIES

  1. Over 400 hours of work on your project from each well-trained, creative student engineer on your project team.

  2. Your problem is approached with fresh eyes with the potential for new solutions.

  3. A final report detailing the design efforts, and often a working prototype demonstrating concept feasibility.

  4. Recruiting exposure to our graduating engineers, both those on your project team and others in the class.

  5. Access, via the students, to University resources including libraries, computing facilities, machine shops and faculty expertise.

 

 

BENEFITS TO STUDENTS

  1. Opportunity to work on a "real-world" problem.
  2. Mentoring and feedback from professional engineers.
  3. Access to company resources where appropriate.

 

 

PROJECTS

The project undertaken by the team of five to ten students must be selected carefully to provide an appropriate educational experience, to provide maximum benefit to the company and to ensure the maximum chance of success. We have found the following to be features of the ideal project.

Challenging

Projects should challenge the creative, intellectual and technical abilities of the students.

Innovative

We stress creativity in the course and projects should be amenable to multiple solutions. Sponsors should avoid imposing a particular solution on the students, but can guide them in appropriate directions by providing all relevant information about the problem.

Unique

Students do best on new products, one-of manufacturing systems, or mature products where new technologies open opportunities for novel solutions. Students do not have the highly specialized knowledge where they can compete effectively with seasoned experts in a narrow area (e.g. mold design or automobile engines).

Familiar

Students do particularly well developing products or systems in domains with which they are familiar. Consumer products or easily understood manufacturing machines are good examples.

Customer understanding

We stress a customer-based design methodology in the course. Thus it is important for the students to understand the market or user of the product, service or system being designed so that appropriate product design requirements can be specified.

Realizable

We encourage physical, working prototypes to be delivered at the end of the course. Thus, simple systems that can be prototyped by the students in our fabrication shops are preferred.

Appropriate scope

Projects must be completed within the one or two semesters.

 

WHAT THE COMPANY PROVIDES

  1. A project description.

  2. A company representative, familiar with the project, who can serve as project advisor and meet weekly with the students on the campus, typically for 90 minutes on Tuesday or Monday afternoons. The advisor should have at least an undergraduate degree in engineering and five plus years of industry experience.

  3. Participation in student evaluation. This includes attending and grading the mid-semester design reviews, attending and grading the end-of-semester design show, reading and evaluating the design team final report and submitting suggested final grades for the team members.

  4. Payment of all expenses associated with constructing physical prototypes or gathering information.

 

WHAT WE PROVIDE

  1. A weekly series of lectures on mechatronics design. Company representatives are welcome to attend the lectures, and often are asked by us to give a lecture in their area of expertise.
  2. University resources including libraries, computation facilities and machine shops.
  3. Coordination of the course and supervision of the grading process.
  4. Where needed, co-advising of design teams with the company representative.

 

CONFIDENTIALITY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

The best projects are those which involve little or no exchange of confidential information. Although not encouraged, standard confidentiality agreements can be signed by the students. These agreements are between the company and the student, not between the company and the University of California, and should be used only where students need access to additional, proprietary information to progress on their project. Student work cannot be confidential because they make presentations in class, showcase their results in a public, end-of-semester design show and file their design reports in the department archive. Likewise, companies may negotiate separate intellectual property agreements directly with the students, but again, these are not encouraged because they are usually unnecessary and can delay the project planning process.

 

HOW TO PARTICIPATE

Fax or e-mail your description of a project idea and the qualifications of the project advisor to:

Kate Littleboy

MEIA Office

QUESTIONS?

If you have any questions, send your questions to by email to SPM@euler.berkeley.edu

ABET 2000 Criteria

 

ABET 2000 Criteria

General

Smart Machines and Products I and II

Content

Strength of Support for Criteria

Comments
       

General Engineering Criteria

      

(a) an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering

  

HIGH

As a capstone class, SMP I & II require the application of a broad range of fundamental subjects in math, science and engineering. Most of the other ME courses do as well, but over a narrower range of subject areas.

(b) an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data

Design of experiments and testing as performance evaluation of design prototypes.

MEDIUM/HIGH

Except for the design of experiments, most is covered by ME107A and ME107B.

(c) an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs

Design and product development. Customer and user needs analysis, translating function specifications.

HIGH

Most of the course is focused on this goal.

(d) an ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams

Work in teams to design mechanical, electrical, & embedded computing systems. Some teaming skills will be taught: brainstorming, personality differences, etc.

HIGH

The SMP I&II sequence is multidisplinary within ME and includes some nontraditional ME components as well, such as business, electrical and embedded computing. But one might argue that the students are not working on multi-disciplinary teams across all engineering disciplines.

E28 is multidisciplinary at the lower division level. Thus E28 with reinforcement by this sequence may satisfy this criterion.

(e) an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems

Design and product development require these abilities.

HIGH

Also covered by a number of other ME courses in more focused subject areas.

(f) an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility

Professional ethics, including intellectual property rights, design for environment, etc.

LOW

Not offered elsewhere, unless students take an elective course in a related topic, such as Social Implications of Technology. Depending on the degree of coverage in SMP I & II, this may satisfy the ABET requirement.

(g) an ability to communicate effectively

Students must present and defend their product at different stages of development. Oral and written reports will be required. Students must also learn to effectively communicate in teams.

MEDIUM

We also require a course in technical communications or equivalent. A few other courses also have oral and written report requirements.

(h) the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global and societal context

Customer and user needs assessment, translating function specifications, economics and business plans. Design for X.

 

LOW

This requirement is really aimed at general education requirements. However, we need to be sure that these issues are also integrated into the engineering curriculum. This is one of the few ME courses that attempts to do this.

(i) a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning

 

 

LOW

As not all material can be covered in class, each project will require studying handbooks and seeking information in these areas. This does set the stage for the realistic need for expanding one’s current knowledge base.

(j) a knowledge of contemporary issues

Contemporary business issues.

LOW

Again this is aimed at general education requirements. However, SMP I&II must connect to contemporary "best practices" in industry.

(k) an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice

Modern engineering practices in product development, such as prototyping and computer-aided design/analysis tools.

HIGH

SMP I & II summarize these modern engineering tools and make those covered in other courses more relevant.
       

Mechanical Engineering Criteria

      

(i) knowledge of chemistry and calculus-based physics with depth in at least one

    

As needed in SMP I & II for a particular project. Covered by freshman/sophomore sequence.

(ii) ability to apply advanced mathematics through multivariate calculus and differential equations

    

As needed in SMP I & II for a particular project. Needs to be covered by other courses.

(iii) familiarity with statistics and linear algebra

Application of linear algebra in real time control and software design. Design and analysis of experiments, analysis of variations, reliability and statistics. Performance evaluation of prototypes. Feed results of prototype testing into a refinement of the design prototype.

MEDIUM

The level of statistics is minimal in our curriculum. This course should really apply knowledge of statistics that students have learned earlier. It either needs to be covered better in a previous course such as ME107A or we may need to require statistics.

(iv) the ability to work professionally in both thermal and mechanical systems areas including the design and realization of such systems

Mechanical systems product design.

 

HIGH

The product design is more oriented towards mechanical systems. However, much depends on the scope of the project. The goal is to cover all disciplines in Mechanical Engineering to some extent.

 

Implementation Schedule

It is difficult to map out what we need to do during the next academic year because this two-semester course depends highly on decision of the shop committee, material committee and ME 107B committee. The four options described on the second page of this document show this interrelationship. It seems to us that option a on page 2 are the most optimal paths for 1999-2000:

For the 2nd year SMP II will be offered as an alternative to ME 107B with limited enrollment.

Spring and Summer '99

Organization of SMP I and SMP II.

Precise definition of course material.

Organization of material into modules.

Identification of instructors and available resources.

Fall '99

Initial offering of SMP I

Reorganization of Student Shop within existing space with existing equipment to become SMP Design Studio

Spring '00

Initial offering of SMP II

SMP II is a technical elective for design (Should we offer SMP I also?)

Limit of 15 students

(SMP Design Studio is limited to former student shop space)

Summer '00

Expansion of Design Studio area.

Additional equipment, including CNC machines, in place

Addition of electronics area to Design Studio

Addition of CAD area to Design Studio

(Will require funding)

Fall '00

SMP I is offered (Should SMP II is offered as an alternative to ME 107B during fall?)

If SMPII is offered, then limit the class to 20 students

(SMP Design Studio is greatly expanded)

Spring '01

SMP II is offered as an alternative to ME 107B

Limit of 30 students

 

Important Items to deal with during spring of 1999

Faculty Involvement and Teaching Load

The faculty who are interested in this two-semester course will be identified in 1999. At this time Alice Agogino, David Auslander, Hami Kazerooni, Dennice Lieu, Paul Sheng, Paul Wright have shown interests in teaching at least one module of this two-semester course. We should identify which module of the syllabus is taught by a particular professor and how these courses affect our teaching loads. The faculty duties are teaching, supervising a few groups of students, writing proposals to HP and NSF and continuous contact with industry.

Role of MEIA and Fund Raising

MEIA plays an important role in logistics of fund raising and relationship with industry. The committee believes MEIA office can help the faculty members in identifying and contacting the appropriate industry for students projects, preparation of proposals to NSF and HP, facilitating the meeting with industry representatives, preparation of the final presentation and reports to industry. During the spring of 1999, we need to map out the extend MEIA can help this two-semester course.

Infrastructure (Design Studio, Computers, Equipment)

Adequate space, equipment and support staff are crucial for the success of this two-semester course. The computers in the 2nd floor will be used by students for this course; no extra fund is needed to purchase more computers. The standard equipment needed for this two-semester course include standard manual and CNC machine tools, hand tools, work benches and mechatronics components (similar to what we use in ME 136 and ME 135). Most of the required equipment are already available in the department; in spring of 1999 we need to identify the available equipment and space for this two-semester course.