Assessments of Material Selection Activities in Undergraduate Reverse Engineering Projects

This work involved the assessment of the material science activities in reverse engineering projects associated with the sophomore engineering course “Introduction to Mechanical Engineering Practice.” About 180 students in the class were broken into groups of four students and each group chose a specific product to be dissected and analyzed in detail. Two lectures were devoted to material selection in mechanical design where the Ashby charts were introduced. One of the areas that the students looked at was to determine the material and manufacturing process used for each component within their chosen product. The products ranged from electric drills, radio controlled cars, door knobs, Nerf guns, etc. The students were expected to explain in detail why a particular material was chosen for a subcomponent of their chosen part and also why a particular manufacturing process was used for the production of that part. They were also required to suggest alternative materials and rank the various materials that can be used for their products. This would then require them to investigate the mechanical properties of the component materials and relate them to the product performance, the life cycle, manufacturing process and the environmental impact. This work summarizes the overall experience of the students on the material and process selection for a wide range of commercial products and possible ways to improve the teaching of this course.