Need Design Help

[Nathanial K'cansce]

Hey :)


As some might, or some might not know, I'm a junior Mechanical Engineering major. One of the classes I'm taking this semester is Machine Design, where we basically learn the design process that teams of engineers have to go through when brainstorming, conceptual work, testing, redesigning and everything up until the final product. It also includes the study of how to analyze your product in different ways to test for failure criteria.

Well,I've been assigned an open ended project for this class to design, well, anything. It can't be specific just yet, in that the problem I have to solve is one that is suppose to have multiple solutions: ie, different products/designs that can solve said problem.

As of now, I have one idea for a problem I can solve, but I am extremely open for suggestions as to what people would like to see/have better in their every day or not so every day lives.

To give a time frame, I have until tomorrow to come up with the problem statement. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but with my oncoming sickness, 2 exams, and other personal life issues that have been going on this week, my brain has basically been turned into mush.

So, if you have any ideas about what you would like to see designed, or made better, post them.

Thank ya.

PS: God bless the ability to copy and paste.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

^_^; I can't think of anything.

[Nathanial K'cansce]

Yea, not many people have had any ideas either.

My idea is to weigh down the front of of a front wheel drive car, so it has better traction in snowy/icy conditions.

[Morgan Evanar]

Bad idea. When you hit the brakes and turn in an emergency situation, the back end will rotate. AFAIK the ideal FWD weight is 60/40 and for rear drive, 50/50, of course. If I had your resources I'd make a hydraulic hybrid car.

[Nathanial K'cansce]

It's unfortunate that I don't have the time to design a hydrolic hybrid car, cause that would be sweet. Perhaps I could try and design a fueling system that used something other than gas as it's power source. Or maybe that's what you mean?

And with the weight idea, it wouldn't be a large amount of weight, just enough to help the car gain better traction. Also, it would be easy to remove when not needed for spring, summer, and autumn driving. I could also even add a counter weight in the back, to keep the 60/40 ratio incase the device for the front weighted to much.

[Morgan Evanar]

No, I mean use a small engine to power a hydraulic system. Hit the brakes, everything rerses, giving you regenerative braking.

Adding a counterweight would be pointless too, you're just making the car heavier and therefore much harder to stop. All you need in snow is a good set of snow tires.

I'd look to somewhere other than automobiles for this sort of project.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Like... an electric pencil sharpener!!

[Morgan Evanar]

How about converting a regular manual into an SMG so you can just pull/push a lever to change gears? The trickiest part would be modulating the clutch...

[Dalamar DeSang]

My idea is quite simple. They have spa's made out of a kind of white plastic. If someone was to mix some kind of neon into the plastic. It would or should glow in the Dark. Glow in the Dark spa's. Not something we need. But something that people might want. :D

Another idea was to put a hearing aid in the side of sunglasses for kids who would like to look cool. But had hearing problems. Or just in regular glasses. Have the hearing aid built into the frame of the glasses.

Well hope some of that helps. lol...

[Lion El' Jonson]

I think something that monitors the status of a driver and that sounds an alarm or something if they appear to have fallen asleep. I've seen a few dozen car crashes in Bejing that resulted from fools falling asleep on their gas pedals. :(

Of course, that's not really an engineering solution. How about something that warns you if there's somebody on the other side of a door that you're about to open? A teacher broke a 10th Grader's nose last month that way. :lol

I'm really bad at this. ^_^;

[Nathanial K'cansce]

If only there were more time on this. Bad idea or not, I almost had to go with the added weight to the front of the car. Handed in the memo to the professor, and signed up for an "interview" with him, where we discuss the project, and possible solutions.

So the idea still has a chance to be shot down. *shrugs* Maybe I should have reinvented a popsicle stick.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

omg or make toothpicks that are flavored!!

Or build a bridge out of popsicle sticks that you can actually drive a car over. ^_^

[Liam Jinn]

There already is such a thing as flavored toothpicks :p

[Lion El' Jonson]

I'm fairly certain that if it's easy to think of something to invent, it's also quite likely that it has already been invented. ^_^;

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Originally posted by Liam Jinn
There already is such a thing as flavored toothpicks :p :rolleyes Of course there are. Plus, it's not really an engineering design fix.

[Nathanial K'cansce]

Now, making a toothpick that doesn't break - that'd be an engineering fix.

[Lion El' Jonson]

Originally posted by Nathanial K'cansce
Now, making a toothpick that doesn't break - that'd be an engineering fix.

Depends on what it's made out of. I doubt you can reinforce something made out of wood so that it resists force but that is still small enough to maneuver around in your teeth.

Aerogel? :lol

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Make it out of plastic. Ta daa.