the design synthesis exercise

20-04-23

Challenge the future

DelftUniversity ofTechnology

The Design Synthesis Exercise

Joris Melkert, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering

2The Design Synthesis Exercise

Overview

• The educational philosophy and program• The Design/Synthesis Exercise• Four examples

• Message: For Engineering studies it is better to focus on undergraduate design than on undergraduate research

3The Design Synthesis Exercise

The educational philosophy and program

Bachelor (3 year)

Master (2 year)

4The Design Synthesis Exercise

The educational philosophy and program

Aerospace Engineering

(e.g. Calculus& Physics)

General Engineering courses

year 1 year 2 year 3

5The Design Synthesis Exercise

The educational philosophy and program

Engineering design is the process of devising a system, component, orprocess to meet desired needs. It is a decision-making process (often iterative), in which the basic science and mathematics andengineering sciences are applied to convert resources optimally to meet a stated objective. Among the fundamental elements of the design process are the establishment of objectives and criteria, synthesis, analysis, construction, testing and evaluation.

The engineering design component of a curriculum must include most of the following features: development of student creativity, use of open-ended problems, development and use of modern design theory and methodology, formulation of design problem statements and specification, consideration of alternative solutions, feasibility considerations, production processes, concurrent engineering design, and detailed system description. Further it is essential to include a variety of realistic constraints, such as economic factors, safety, reliability, aesthetics, ethics and social impact.

6The Design Synthesis Exercise

History• Design Synthesis Exercise:

• Start in 1997 • Based on earlier aircraft design exercises• Planning: 10 weeks - full time - for all BSc students• Conclusion of the Bachelor’s Programme (Q4 of third year)

• 1997: 4 groups of 10 students• 2002: 15 groups of 10 students• 2008: 19 groups of 10 students• 2009: 24 groups of 10 students• 2010: 28 groups of 10 students

7The Design Synthesis Exercise

The Exercise

• Synthesis of knowledge and skills of Aerospace BSc Curriculum (Student gets an idea about how far they are – w.r.t. knowledge and skills – after 2.5 year)

• Design of• objects (e.g., a 100-seater aircraft)• missions (e.g., to discover water-ice on the Moon)

• Design is much more than to• conceptualize / draw / dimension

• Design is to come up with a solution for a problem/assignment in a structured way:• Analysis of the problem• Define (and review) requirements• Come up with more than one solution• Do a trade-off based on pre-defined criteria

8The Design Synthesis Exercise

• Each year: innovative ideas• Challenging for both students and staff• All sections in the faculty have to contribute• Very high study efficiency

• Students are extremely motivated• 15 ECTS in 10 weeks is a nominal score!• Hardly any drop-outs!

• Each year: evaluation (may) result(s) in changes• Finalized projects sometimes lead to:

• New insight• Follow-up DSE assignments• Internationally accepted papers• Actual projects (DelFly, DART, …)

The Exercise

9The Design Synthesis Exercise

• Conclusion of DSE:• Poster• One-day symposium• Professional Jury (ESA, NLR, Dutch Space, European

Universities, …)• Award for the winner!

• DSE book• Each team provides an "executive summary"• Book contains overview of all projects• Not only a nice overview ….• High PR value: we can show “the world” what our students

can do!

The Exercise

10The Design Synthesis Exercise

As it is now: the main players …

• Organization Committee• “Assignment-evaluation committee” – partially external• Student-assistants• Educational office – admittance to the exercise• Study counselors – handling complaints on admission• Principal tutors – in charge of a project• Coaches – helping the principal tutor (2 per project)• (External clients)• Lecturers and coaches for Project Management/ Systems

Engineering, Oral Presentations and Library Instruction• Jury during the symposium• THE STUDENTS!!

11The Design Synthesis Exercise

As it is now: prerequisites

1. Completed first year

2. Completed second year1. no more than one course with 5 (max. 5 ECTS)2. all other courses grade 6.0 or more3. all projects completed4. all exercises and practicals completed

12The Design Synthesis Exercise

As it is now

•No holidays•Supporting courses on project management, systems

engineering, library utilization and oral presentations•Concluded with a report, a poster presentation and a

presentation on the concluding one-day symposium.•Both group and individual performance will be judged•Peer and self evaluation•Team of three coaches (1 principal tutor and 2 additional

coaches from three different discipline groups)•Limited resources (project room, computers, small

budget)•Students as a group are responsible for the outcome

13The Design Synthesis Exercise

Grading

Technical QualityTeam Organisation Aspects

• Commitment• Attitude• Initiative• Management of Resources• Communication

14The Design Synthesis Exercise

Peer evaluation

Consistent thoughout project

Something happened??

15The Design Synthesis Exercise

Geyser Hoppingon Saturn’s Moon Enceladus

16The Design Synthesis Exercise

17The Design Synthesis Exercise

METOPE

• Investigate geysers and determine composition• Establish existence of subsurface ocean at south pole of

Enceladus• Characterize this ocean• Investigate surface, subsurface and mantle dynamics• Repeat measurements at different location(s)

• Customer: Dr. Andrew J. Ball, ExoMars Instrument Engineer, ESA/ESTEC

18The Design Synthesis Exercise

METOPE

• Cost Enceladus lander segment <1000M€ • No contamination of Enceladus environment during and after

mission• Use off-the-shelf technology and hardware, where possible• Operation window 2020-2030• Mission duration lander 6 months • Mass < 500 kg (TBC)

19The Design Synthesis Exercise

METOPE

Power – Mass – Cost – Reliability???

20The Design Synthesis Exercise

METOPE

Cost: M€ 806

Peak power: 140 W (6 hrs)

Landing mass: 335 kg

Design down to sub-system level:

• Instrumentation• Propulsion and

Repositioning• Power• Thermal Control• Guidance, Navigation and

Control• Command & Data

Handling• Communication• Structure• Mechanisms

21The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

Design a Micro Aerial Vehicle that can fly like a bird or insect and is able to do this autonomously with the use of an onboard camera.

Key technical requirements that are imposed on the design are:- Fly using flapping wing technology- Be autonomous using vision-based technology- Be structurally sound

22The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

Constraints on the design:- Weight: close to 15 g- Wingspan: less than 45 cm- Cost: within a budget of € 5000- Noise level: less than 60 dB at a distance of 15 m- Endurance: at least 5 min- Slow flight: less than 5 m/s- Use of COTS components

23The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

24The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

25The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

26The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly

27The Design Synthesis Exercise

Delfly