Graduating engineering students will showcase their capstone design projects in the Student Union Building ballroom on Friday afternoon, marking the end of another year of hard work and determination.
Steven Devine | Argonaut
Caleb Morgan, left, Heinrik Goettsche, under, and Sushant Kshetri work on the Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle project that will be featured at the Engineering Design Expo which will take place today from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. in the University of Idaho Student Union Building ballroom.
This six credit project is for practical, real-time clients and spans an entire year. Unlike projects engineering students have done throughout their undergraduate career, this is open ended, said Becky Gibson, event coordinator for the University of Idaho Engineering Design Expo.
“The teachers don’t even know the right answers,” Gibson said. “The students have to find the solutions themselves.”
There are 240 undergrads presenting projects, divided into 57 groups. Future employers love that these engineers already know how to work on a team and troubleshoot problems that arise, Gibson said.
Students have clients from engineering firms, other groups at the university, state departments and companies like Avista, Boeing and NASA, Gibson said.
Teams have unique experiences, but also gain an understanding of the design process from beginning to end. These projects are practical, but are meant to be engaging and fun, Gibson said.
One group in particular has a special project for NASA, which is currently in its second of three phases spanning several years and sets of graduating seniors.
This task is different than others because it does not revolve directly around the Expo. It is a research venture that includes five graduate students and three faculty members in addition to the undergraduate students, said Vince Colson, a senior mechanical engineering major on the team.
“Our project is a flywheel energy storage system,” said Andy Ivy, also a senior in mechanical engineering.
This means that the team is attempting to create a storage system for energy gathered on the moon during its two weeks of sunlight, to use in contrast to its two weeks of frigid night.
Each phase of the project lasts about a year and a half, and this one ends in December. If it is a complete failure — that is, if the project shows no proof of a working concept — next year’s team will not be granted phase three.
The team was particularly drawn to this project because it has long term effects in space and on earth, and is unique in its application. The research they’re doing could impact hybrid car technology, life on the moon and sustainable energy, Ivy said.
“I think this was all of our first picks,” Colson said. “We all wanted to be right here.”
This capstone project makes the first three years of an undergraduate career worth it, Colson said, and this is their final hurrah of the four-year program.
“I would say all engineers look forward to this,” Colson said. “We all wanted to be here, and I think all of us picked this project for different reasons.”
Ivy said this was an exceptional opportunity and involves interdisciplinary learning, as well as a resume boost.
Dan Schneider, a sophomore studying mechanical engineering who is not officially on the team, has a lot at stake with the future of the project.
“Have you ever seen a superconductor with magnets floating on it?” Schneider said. “That right there is enough for me.”
Ivy said it looks like voodoo magic. The project takes extensive knowledge of physics, as well as computer and mechanical engineering, which is why the research team is so large.
“We have a grad student who is trying to make a computer model to describe how the heck the thing is floating,” Schneider said. “But like I said, it’s magic.”
While the Expo is a big date for the team, the project as a whole will continue beyond the seniors’ graduation dates.
The team said they did not know each other before they began, and mechanical engineers are typically separate from computer engineers until the end.
“As we came more together, we discovered that there are all these other people on the project and it starts to become one project instead of a series,” said Nick Frazey, another mechanical engineer on the team.
Colson said no one knew exactly what the project would take, or what would need to be done to make it work smoothly.
“Our team dynamic is pretty good,” Colson said.
Ivy said they all get along, which is part of the reason for the project’s success.
The team said they have learned each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and work well together because of the intense work they have done.
Gibson said some of the other projects are fun and lighthearted. For example, the College of Agriculture has contracted one team to make a pumpkin cannon for the annual corn maze event that happens in Lewiston.
“They wanted to spice up their event offerings,” Gibson said. “So they have made this giant cannon that pumpkins can fit in.”
This particular plan was a continuation project for teams from the last few years as well, Gibson said.
“They’re working on some safety issues,” Gibson said. “But hopefully that’ll be available at the corn maze next year.”
A hands-on experience is the peak of an engineering education, and provides an opportunity to apply this passion to benefit other people on the planet.
“It’s the tying together of everything they’ve been working hard for over the last four years,” Gibson said.
Gibson said it is really important for all engineering students to attend the Expo and see what they have to look forward to.
“It’s a day to celebrate engineering,” Gibson said. “And it’s pretty amazing.”
Alycia Rock can be reached at [email protected]
