Theory Of Technical Systems Unifying Theme For Design

Courses in an engineering program are mostly taught in isolation. Designing, the unifying experience of engineering education, is treated a "an art", without guidance about procedure. A single "capstone" course attempts to unify the curriculum, which is almost impossible to achieve. A formal structure can help to unify the experience by showing the relationships among parts of engineering knowledge. A suitable formal structure to provide a conceptual framework for engineering education is delivered by the Theory of Technical Systems, a section of Design Science. The Theory of Technical Systems shows how one area of science connects to and affects another, and provides a connective structure among the non-engineering subjects. Explicitly teaching the Theory of Technical Systems throughout the years of engineering study should give students a sufficient level of understanding of the reasons for studying each individual subject.