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2.009
3 ideas presentation sketch model review mockup review technical review final presentation
2.009
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Course Description

In 2.009, Product Engineering Processes, students work in large teams of approximately 14 to 16 individuals to design and build working alpha prototypes of new products. Students learn about creativity, product design, working within a budget, and gain unifying engineering experience.

The effort spans the early phases of product development, including: opportunity identification; generating ideas; gathering customer and market data; selecting ideas, devising concepts and building sketch models; building and testing mockups; customer evaluation of mockups; embodiment design; and construction of a high quality functioning alpha prototype.

The large teams must work effectively to realize this task, so students also learn about group dynamics, team roles and management, consensus building, and the value of communication.

Each year the teams work on projects unified by a theme. At the end of the class teams present their work to an audience of approximately 150 practicing product designers and entrepreneurs.



Key Goals

2.009 is about experiencing the process of developing new product ideas, improving design skills, and learning strategies/processes for successful innovation. Detailed goals follow.
• Improve creative-thinking capability.
 
• Improve ability to identify the significant porduct opportunities and to develop appropriate solutions through a structured product development process.
 
• Improve expertise in constructing models for reasoning about design alternatives. These include estimations, sketches, sketch models, spreadsheets, geometric models, mockups and prototypes.

• Improve engineering expertise and proficiency in techniques for building high quality product models and prototypes.

• Learn about and experience structured methods for working in large teams on a project that requires teamwork to be successful.

• Improve presentation skills using a wide variety of media.

• Develop an understanding of, and enthusiasm for, the engineering activities involved with designing a new product.
   


• Develop an appreciation for the significance of societal contributions that can be made as a technological innovator.


Lectures

Monday, Wednesday and Friday 1-2 in 3-270. See the class schedule for details. Notes are posted on-line shortly after each class.


Labs
Tuesdays 2-5 PM, 7-10 PM; Wednesdays 2-5 PM, 7-10PM; Thursday 9 AM-noon, 2-5 PM. All lab meetings are in the Pappalardo Lab (3-069). See the lab schedule for additional information. Lab notes with recommended activities are posted on-line at least two weeks before each lab.


Grading

Lab instructors are responsible for grading students in their section. Grades are primarily determined based upon the product design and prototype; design reviews; presentations; and peer reviews. Some components of the grade are individual, some are common to a class section, and others are shared by entire teams. The project workflow illustrates how section s are combined to make teams and you can see examples from the major milestones in the 2005 gallery.