UBC APSC 100 Midterm 1 2020

What are the 5 stages of the design process? (+ what else goes in between?)

1. Study and Clarify Problem

2. Generate Potential Solution

3. Identify Most Promising Solution

4. Develop and Test Solution

5. Implement Solution

*Ongoing iteration when necessary

What do we mean by "Engineering Design"?

The process through which engineering knowledge and skills are applied to solve real-world, open-ended problems.

*Differs from scientists through the fact that the knowledge is applied to real-world.

When making a presentation, what about your AUDIENCE should you consider? (x3)

- Knowledge of Material

- Opinion on Material

- Wants from presentation

When making a presentation, what about your PURPOSE should you consider? (x3)

- Importance of presentation

- Material being delivered

- How it is being delivered

*Delivered through informing/persuading

The two main purposes of presentations

Inform (describe, review, explain, demonstrate, instruct, teach)

Persuade (convince, influence, recommend, justify)

When making a presentation, what elements of CONTEXT should you consider? (x3)

- Reason For Delivering Presentation

- Setting of Presentation

- Time, resources, environment

When making a presentation, what makes for good Organization and Structure? (x3)

- Easy to Follow

- Logical Order

- Not redundant

When making a presentation, what makes for good Content? (x4)

- Grammar

- Centered

- Break up text

- Relevant imagery

Describe the Assertion Evidence method.

- 'Topic' Sentence at Top

- Graphical representation of point in main area

When making a presentation, what makes for good Themes and a good Background? (x3)

- Contrast well

- Easy to Read

- Simple

What are 5 ways of Dealing With Presentation Anxiety?

- Cue cards

- Focus

- Breath

- Recognize anxiety but don't worry what the audience thinks of you

- Practice don't memorize

When giving a presentation, what makes for good Delivery? (x3)

- Voice (Tone, Speed)

- Body Language (gestures, eye contact)

- Compelling, confident, expressive

When giving a presentation, what makes you seem professional? (x3)

- Attire

- Enthusiasm

- Attentiveness

When giving a presentation, what should you wear?

- As good or better than audience

When making a presentation, what makes for Language?

- Clear

- Appropriate for Audience

- Appropriate level of simplicity/

complexity

What is a system?

- Individual components working cohesively (common enterprise)

Hydroelectric Advantages (Economic, Environment, Social)

- Economic: high energy output, low cost, long life, reliable and consistent

- Environmental: Less global warming

- Social: Majority of stakeholder needs, creates jobs

Wind Advantages (Economic, Environment, Social)

- Economic: Cheapest

- Environmental: Lowest GHG Emissions, sustainable, minimum damage

- Social: less impact on community, short construction

Natural Gas Advantages (Economic, Environment, Social)

- Economic: Highest energy density (bang for buck)

- Environmental: Is there?

- Social: possibility of reviving local economies

What are the advantages of using WDM?

- Scores of different criteria are quantifiable

- Scores of different criteria can change

- Allows you to justify your decisions

What are the weaknesses of using WDM?

- Lack of quantifiability in certain values

- weights of items can be subjective

Prototypes: Physical vs. Virtual

You can feel / touch them, v.s. you cannot.

Advantages & Disadvantages of using a Focused Prototype (and when would you?)

- 'Focused' on a single aspect

- Simple

- Cheap

- Quick

- May not represent the final product accurately

- Used most heavily in the early stages of design process (low risk)

Advantages & Disadvantages of using a Comprehensive Prototype (and when would you?)

- Complex

- Takes long to develop

- Expensive

- Are useful for experiencing the final product and/or presenting to others

- Used most heavily in later stages of design process (high risk)

Purpose of Prototypes

Reduce risk in the engineering process

Define: CAD

- Software used to create 2D or 3D models

Define: Profession

Someone who:

- has Specialized knowledge or skills

- has Received special training or education

- Adheres to ethical standards

- Applies knowledge and skills in interest of others (ethics)

- Is Regulated by a code

Engineers of Canada

- Governing body for engineering in Canada

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC

- Governing body for engineering in BC

Requirements to be a Professional Engineer (P.Eng)

- Undergraduate degree

- 3 years of work beside a P.Eng

- Pass exam

What energy conversions occur in a hydroelectric power plant?

Approximate Magnitude of Power?

1) Potential energy of water in reservoir

2) Translational kinetic energy

3) Rotational kinetic energy (turbine)

4) Electrical

Approx. 1 GW (one oil tanker)

List the steps by which hydro power is generated (7 steps)

1) Open control gates

2) Water flows to powerhouse through a penstock to the turbine

3) Turbine contains a set of curved blades (a runner) inside a scroll case (curved tube), and gates to control how much water flows to the runner.

4) Water turns the runner blades; spins generator above

5) The generator converts potential energy to electrical

6) Step-up transformer

7) Water exits the turbine through a draft tube (slows down water)

What kind of energy transitions occur to produce wind power?

Approximate Magnitude of Power?

1) Translational kinetic

2) Rotational kinetic

3) Electrical

700 Wind Farms = 1 Site C Dam

List the steps by which wind power is generated (5 steps)? How is the direction of the turbine controlled?

1) Wind turns blades

2) The nacelle (middle of turbine blades) contains a rotor hub that converts Translation Ek to rotational

3) Gearbox converts low speed rotation to high speed rotation (to high speed shaft)

4) A spinning magnet converts rotational Ek to electrical energy.

5) Step up transformer

- An anemometer measures wind speed

- A wind vane measures wind direction -> tells turbine which way to change yaw (the yaw drive)

Iteration

Revisiting earlier stages of the design process to improve a solution

What happens during the first stage of the design process? (Study and Clarify Problem) [4]

- Define the problem

- Identify stakeholders

- Rank stakeholders importance

- Identify stakeholder needs

Define: Stakeholders

- Anyone who is influenced by the project or has influence on the project

Define: Needs (What are they, how are they determined?)

- What the stakeholders expect from the project

- Qualitative descriptions of the product of the project

- May be different/contradictory between stakeholders

- Can be found through research or inferences of things that were not explicitly mentioned

Describe the concept of Scale in the context of engineering, and why it should be considered

- Differing temporal and spatial contexts in which the problem can be viewed

- Different scales have different stakeholders and needs

- A problem must be analyzed from all scales to create a comprehensive understanding of the perspectives of the problem

Define: Target Design Specification

- Specific features that final design should include

- Quantitative

- It is the engineer's job to convert needs into target specifications

Define: Requirements

- Necessary Attributes of a design

- Designs that do not have these are failed and do not proceed in the design process

Define: Evaluation Criteria (Objectives)

- Used to rank solutions

- Qualitative

- Optional

Define: Validation

- Asking the stakeholder if the target design specifications coincide with their needs/wants

- Partial completion of design process validation

What happens during the second stage of the design process? (Generate Potential Solutions)

- Generate as many solutions as possible

- Generate a variety of creative solutions

- Resist fixation/anchoring (attaching to a single idea)

List 5 tips that lead to Effective Concept Generation

- Quantity over Quality

- Maximize variety

- Avoid fixation/anchoring

- Avoid shooting down unconventional ideas

- Do not develop or evaluate ideas at this stage

Describe C-Sketch (6 steps)

- Team gathers around table with one paper each

- All silently sketch for a duration of time

- When the duration concludes paper is passed to person on the left

- They overall enhance the idea for the same amount of time

- This process cycles like so until every member has touched each idea

- Once complete, the team discusses the ideas

What happens during the third stage of the design process? (Identify the Most Promising Solution)

- Narrow down possible solutions

- Identify the solution to be developed (through: Screening, Ranking, and Scoring)

What are some mistakes to avoid during the third stage of the design process? (Identify the Most Promising Solution) (3)

- Having little tangible data on the designs

- Being completely objective.

- Comparing advantages and disadvantages without detailed analysis

Describe what the WDM is, what parts are objective/subjective, how weights are determined, and how the robustness of WDM can be analyzed.

- A matrix that analyzes criteria based on weight and score of each design in the criteria

- Scores are objective

- Weights are subjective

- Both are based on stakeholder needs/wants

- If weights can be changed and the conclusion of the WDM is the same then the decision is robust

Verification

- Asking stakeholder if the selected solution is what they expected / how well it meets design requirements

- End result = verification

What happens during the fourth stage of the design process? (Develop and Test Solutions)

- Prototypes are created to test and gather real data

- Optimize the final design

Sustainability

Balancing environmental, social, and economic needs throughout every stage of the design process and during the entire lifetime of a project.

4 Principles of a Sustainability Society

1. Avoid removing resources at a rate faster than replenishing

2. Avoid releasing harmful things faster than they can break down

3. Avoid degrading the environment at a rate faster than regrowth

4. Move towards the well-being of everyone in society

Simple System

- Closed and Predictable; Determinisitic

Complex System

- Unpredictable; with feedback loops, risk-oriented

System Thinking

- Viewing systems in a qualitative fashion, by considering how the most important components interact with each other

- Basically what we do with CLDs

What happens during Screening? What should be done to ideas that fail the process?

- Eliminating all solutions that do not meet requirements

- Always attempt to modify ideas before failing them

- Use good components from a failing idea to improve a passing one

What happens during Ranking? What assumptions do you make in doing ranking? What are two methods of doing ranking?

- Ordering ideas approximately by their supposed performance (qualitative)

- Performance at this stage is what you'd EXPECT from an idea

- Methods include: individual voting, and objective-based ranking

Scoring

- Ranking ideas quantitatively (using data, calculations, measurements, etc.)

Reinforcing Loop

When the parameter of a node is increased it will continue to increase throughout the loop

Balancing loop

When the parameter of a node is increased it will decrease once the loop is complete

Nodes

Objects in a causal loop diagram

Positive Sign in a Causal Loop Diagram

- The nodes being connected will change in the same direction

A Double Line in a Causal Loop Diagram

- Shows a delay in the effects of the relationship

Types of Sustainability (Three Pillars and Subcategories)

- Environment

- Society

- Economy

- Viable (Economy and Environment)

- Equitable (Society and Economy)

- Bearable (Environment and Society)

What is the "voting" method of ranking? List a con of this method.

- Each person rates each concept

- Most highly rated advance to scoring

- Since everybody's opinion is weighted the same each person's knowledge on the subject must be equal for it to be successful

What is the "Pairwise Comparison" method of ranking?

- Each concept is directly paired against each other

- One concept in each pair advances based on whichever evaluation criteria is better

- Whichever wins the least amount of pair battles is dropped

What are the two ways in which we categorize prototypes in Apsc 100? Classify each of the following by these categories: sketches, CAD, a 3d mechanical prototype of one part of the product, and a pre-production test model.

- X(L TO R): Focused to Comprehensive

- Y (U TO D): Physical to Virtual

- Trend going up and to the right representing final product location in plane

- Sketches: virtual focused

- CAD: virtual focused/comprehensive (in between)

- 3d mechanical: physical focused

- pre-production: physical comprehensive

What is the Solution Space? What is placed on it, what does it show, and how are objects categorized?

- A diagram showing the relationship between variety of ideas and time

- A darker shaded dot means it is a better idea

- The best space has variety of ideas becoming greater and greater over time

How does a novice do design?

Trial and Error

Which stages in the design process dictate how expensive the project will be?

Early stages

What happens during stage 5 of the design process?

The design is sent to the customer