Brendan Person's Individual Reflection

Brendan Person

Course Reflection (Individual Weblog)

ME250 has taught me much about the aspects of design, teamwork, and machining.  I worked previously in a machine shop; however, I never used the mills or lathes before this class.  The project really helped me understand all of the steps of the design process.  First, we started with a basic strategy to use, then we picked a concept for a vehicle that seemed appropriate, then we designed a prototype that we thought would work.  Finally we used SolidWorks to model our vision, and then finally put our machining skills to work in the shop.  The SolidWorks training in this course was excellent and I am happy that I have gained much experience in the subject. 

This project involved a great deal of time, and therefore, time management.  We started on this project towards the beginning of the year, but somehow it still ended up being a tight fit to the deadline.  The machine shop got really packed after the break because every group had the essentially the same time schedule to work with.  Our team managed time pretty well, but the major problem with time occurred with our machine malfunctioned or a piece wasn’t machined correctly. For example, we had originally planned on using wheels that we bought online, but when we inserted the axle into the bushing, the hole was too small and the axle bent.  This problem forced us to act quickly and reinvent our machine using the wheels that were provided.  

The course was run very smoothly, except in my opinion, the lectures.  The lectures seemed too long and didn’t give enough useful information relative to the goals of the class.  Needless to say, the lectures did provide a strong base for the exam, but the 1.5 hr lectures seem too much for the material needed for the course.  The lab sections were run very well, and the grading was always very fair.  Jean was a great GSI, and even helped us earn a second chance in the competition when our wires were taken out by the other team.  In my opinion, the course can be improved in three ways: shorter lectures (or only 1 day a week), smaller discussion sections (it can get very packed), and a better spacing of requirements.  The requirements were spaced fine until about the last 3 weeks of class.  We went from having to have the MCM completed, to having 90% done within about 4 days.  I feel that if the MCM would have been due sooner, people would have spread out the times, and the machine shop wouldn’t have been so packed in the last week.

I could have improved my performance in the course by allotting myself more time to go into the machine shop earlier.  If I would have gone into the machine shop to work on this before break, I would have had better skills at using the machines, and I wouldn’t have taken so long to do the parts.  Another way that I could have improved my performance is to not mess up on the last problem of the exam (I lost 10 points from that one problem).  Overall, the class was actually entertaining and I was able to learn a great deal.  I am actually looking forward to 350 after taking this course.