2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Hands-on learning in engineering is one of the most effective ways to understand basic theory and its application to practice. Several first and second year lab courses utilize standardized labs in which students are introduced to a step-by-step procedure to complete the exercises. A different approach was used in two upper level courses in Mechanical Engineering, wherein students are required to design an experiment in order to demonstrate some of the basic concepts and principles learned in their earlier semesters. Students were given a broad definition of the problem and divided into groups to design an experimental set-up which included sensors, instrumentation, and procedure to carry out the experiment. Through these experiments, students are expected to collect and analyze data using LabVIEW; subsequently interpreting the results and relating them to the theory. In addition, they were required to simulate the system response using SolidWorks, compare theoretical responses to experimental data and generate a report. The objective of having the hands-on design experience is for students to apply theory to practice and appreciate the possibilities when it comes to experimental design. The courses also consider the impact of the students’ work in the context of ABET outcomes (1, 5 and 6) relating to working in teams to design experiments, analyzing and interpreting data and drawing appropriate conclusions. This paper presents sample experiments that were designed by the students involving the use of basic concepts in vibrations, mechanics of material and heat transfer.