Creative Engineering
This creative engineering project was one of the most enjoyable projects for me this year. We were given the task of finding a practical solution to a problem of our choice. There were many problems my group considered tackling. At first, we considered trying to solve the problem of broken pencils, but soon realized that it was a silly idea so we moved onto the problem of the energy crisis. Our solution was to create a lightning farm to create a way to store and capture energy. We found that it was not feasible and were unable to agree on any further solutions for this problem. In the end, my group, Spencer Shifs, Patrick Heslip, and Erik Cheng, and I decided to find a solution for the problem that is affecting millions. TANGLED HEADPHONES.
Engineering Cycle
1. Identify the need: We decided to attempt to find a way to make the world tangle-free.
2. Research the problem: We found out that one in three Americans have at least one pair of headphones and that headphones get tangled because of their "Y" shape.
3. Develop possible solutions: We were going to construct a prototype with a motor to make the task simpler for the user, but due to the lack of time at school because of the storm, we had to make it so you would wind up the headphones manually.
4. Select the most promising solution: After much brainstorming, we decided to develop the prototype that we used in our presentation, the SEGP.
5. Construct a prototype: We made the SEGP, due to limited resources, out of a broken ruler, tubing, and hot glue.
6. Test and evaluate: Spencer used the device we made throughout his school day and it kept his headphones tangle-free 99% of the time.
7. Communicate the design: To communicate our design, we created a power point presentation addressing the problems of tangled headphones and the pros and cons of our product.
8. Redesign: N/A
9. Repeat: N/A
Prototype
To solve the problem of tangled headphones, we created a prototype, better known as the SEGP, that acts as a carrier for the consumer's headphones. (SEGP is an acronym for Spencer, Erik, Grace, and Patrick who were the creators of this life-changing product.) We were cut on time so we were unable to attach the motor to our prototype that was meant to make the task simpler for the user. To use the SEGP, you simply put the headphone jack into a hole in the tubing and wrap the cord of the headphones around it allowing you "to got tangle free with the SEGP!"
Reflection
Overall, I felt like the majority of this project was full of many highs and not too many lows. One of our peaks was how we worked together. Not one person was doing all the work and we all collaborated and shared ideas. We generated so many ideas that it led to one pit, our indecisiveness. We went through three problems. Our first didn't last long and our lightning farm idea was not feasible, but both led to us losing time on our final product. Our second pit as a group was our time management. This has lacked from every group I have been in so far and this time, because of it, we were unable to improve our prototype or create the video we wanted to make to add to our presentation piece. On the other hand, another peak was that I felt much more motivated during the course of this project than past projects. I felt I had better work ethic and generated quality ideas that I feel improved our project as a whole.
Engineering Cycle
1. Identify the need: We decided to attempt to find a way to make the world tangle-free.
2. Research the problem: We found out that one in three Americans have at least one pair of headphones and that headphones get tangled because of their "Y" shape.
3. Develop possible solutions: We were going to construct a prototype with a motor to make the task simpler for the user, but due to the lack of time at school because of the storm, we had to make it so you would wind up the headphones manually.
4. Select the most promising solution: After much brainstorming, we decided to develop the prototype that we used in our presentation, the SEGP.
5. Construct a prototype: We made the SEGP, due to limited resources, out of a broken ruler, tubing, and hot glue.
6. Test and evaluate: Spencer used the device we made throughout his school day and it kept his headphones tangle-free 99% of the time.
7. Communicate the design: To communicate our design, we created a power point presentation addressing the problems of tangled headphones and the pros and cons of our product.
8. Redesign: N/A
9. Repeat: N/A
Prototype
To solve the problem of tangled headphones, we created a prototype, better known as the SEGP, that acts as a carrier for the consumer's headphones. (SEGP is an acronym for Spencer, Erik, Grace, and Patrick who were the creators of this life-changing product.) We were cut on time so we were unable to attach the motor to our prototype that was meant to make the task simpler for the user. To use the SEGP, you simply put the headphone jack into a hole in the tubing and wrap the cord of the headphones around it allowing you "to got tangle free with the SEGP!"
Reflection
Overall, I felt like the majority of this project was full of many highs and not too many lows. One of our peaks was how we worked together. Not one person was doing all the work and we all collaborated and shared ideas. We generated so many ideas that it led to one pit, our indecisiveness. We went through three problems. Our first didn't last long and our lightning farm idea was not feasible, but both led to us losing time on our final product. Our second pit as a group was our time management. This has lacked from every group I have been in so far and this time, because of it, we were unable to improve our prototype or create the video we wanted to make to add to our presentation piece. On the other hand, another peak was that I felt much more motivated during the course of this project than past projects. I felt I had better work ethic and generated quality ideas that I feel improved our project as a whole.