MEEN 601: Advanced Product Design

Fall 2023 Course Introduction

Dr. Richard Malak

rmalak@tamu.edu
J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering
Welcome to MEEN 601
Instructional Team

Instructor
Dr. Richard Malak
Associate Professor, J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering
rmalak@tamu.edu

Teaching Assistant
Mr. Jonathan Frutschy
J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering
jfrutschy@tamu.edu
 A Little about Me
Dr. Richard Malak
Associate Professor, J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering
Director, Design Systems Laboratory

Research Interests:
• Computational methods (including optimization, machine learning, AI) for
engineering systems design
• Decision making in engineering systems design
• Design and systems engineering theory
• Applications to materials design, smart structures, and complex systems

2016-2019: National Science Foundation

Served as Program Director, Engineering Design and Systems Engineering (EDSE) Program @ US
National Science Foundation (on leave from TAMU)
Oversaw portfolio of fundamental research on theory and methods for supporting engineering design
and systems engineering activities (i.e., things we talk about in MEEN 601 and other design courses)

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 3

 Welcome to MEEN 601: Advanced Product Design!

ADVANCED? PRODUCT? DESIGN?

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 4

 Advanced Product Design
Everyone designs who devises courses of action aimed at changing existing Historical Designs
situations into preferred ones.
- Herbert Simon, The Sciences of the Artificial

Engineering One of the oldest

Product
human endeavors

Industrial

Architecture Archimedes screw

Design disciplines
(simply check Wikipedia Process
out)
Service

Electronic

Software

Cam Hammer Ball bearing

(Da Vinci) (Da Vinci)
The list is quite long… http://www.leonardodavincisinventions.com/
Wikipedia (Archimedes)

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 5

 Advanced Product Design

Design vs. Analysis: some refer to design as an “inverse problem”

“Forward Problem”
Find the behavior of the system
System Dynamics Usability Analysis
Analysis

System
Aerodynamic Analysis Structural Analysis
Attributes

“System”

“Reverse” or “Inverse” Problem

Find a system with the desired behavior

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 6

 Advanced Product Design

A physical artifact to be used by someone

Typical context is artifact to be sold for
profit, but this does not have to be the
case (could be given away, made for
internal purposes, etc.)

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 7

 Advanced Product Design

Pertains to “design” not “product”

We will go beyond what you learned about design in your capstone course

• More emphasis on (foundations and limitations of) methods

• High value placed on critical thinking

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 8

 Most of your engineering courses focus
on one or both of the following:

Analysis Knowledge: Domain-specific Design Knowledge:

Principles and methods for determining the Rules and relationships (often approximate or
properties, behavior, performance of a heuristic) for designing particular types of systems in
particular system in a particular situation. particular situations that already are well structured.
Examples: Examples:
• Solid mechanics • Design codes
• System dynamics • Part sizing guidelines
• Fluid dynamics • Empirically-determined correction factors
• … (e.g., in machine design)
• …

MEEN 601 is about domain-independent design knowledge—principles, methods and

processes that are general and can be adapted to specific design contexts (application area,
organization, etc.) and useful for unstructured & “wicked” problems.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 9

 Characteristics of Design Problems
You’ve seen something like this before
Design mechanical gearing that has a speed
ratio of 1.75:1 and can handle loads up to
1500 Nm at speeds up to 10,000 rpm.
Engineering design problems are often:
• Ambiguous
• Open-ended
• Subjective
• Have more than one viable solution
• Could be impossible
• Involve incomplete information
“Wicked Problems”
MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design
Looks like a “design problem” from an
undergrad class…
But this is a narrow view of design and
this type of problem is not hard to solve
Design a means for removing plastic waste from oceans
Design a system for transporting humans and their belongings
from one planet to another
Design a chair that reduces back fatigue and is pleasing to the
user
Design a means for monitoring an individual’s health over time
These design problems require more than
plugging numbers into formula
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Importance of Good Design
Importance of Good Design

Even the highest standard of detailed design cannot compensate for a poor design
concept formulated at the conceptual design phase – Hsu and Liu (2000)
 Alone, this course will not make you into a great designer

You still need domain expertise to go with

your knowledge of design methodology

Better view: this course will help you wield

your domain knowledge more effectively

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 13

Time for some exercise!

TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK

 In-Class Activity

What makes a product design good…

from the standpoint of the customer/user?

from the standpoint of the designer/design firm?

Take a couple minutes to think about these questions. We will discuss.

Keep your notes for submission (Canvas assignment).

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 15

Topics, Evaluation, Expectations, Potential Modifications

COURSE STRUCTURE
Overarching Philosophy

Design success requires a holistic perspective

• Systematic Methodology
• Models for design practice
• Formal Underpinnings
• Generalizations
• …
• Creativity & Innovation
• Design Thinking
• Business & Society
• Anecdotes
• …

https://www.healthline.com/health/left-brain-vs-right-brain#left-brainright-brain-theory
Course Topics

Core • Major phases of a design project

Methodology & • Needs analysis & project planning
Fundamentals • Formulating design objectives Including both conventions
• Formulating design requirements and scientifically-founded
• Functional modeling approaches
• Idea generation methods for conceptual design
• Decision methods: rigorous and non-rigorous
• Trade-space analysis / design exploration

Advanced Specific topics TBD and may include:

Methodology • Product families and platforms
• Flexibility, modularity and upgradability
• Technology Evolution
• Impact of new technologies (e.g., 3D printing)
Tentative Course Calendar
22-Aug Introduction, Design Problems, Course Overview
24-Aug Design Methodology Conceptual foundations
29-Aug Product Planning, Design Thinking
31-Aug Needs, Product-Opportunity Gap
5-Sep Tools for Needs Gathering
7-Sep Finish Tools for Needs Gathering
Techniques for understanding the problem and
12-Sep Objectives and Requirements defining it in engineering terms
14-Sep Quality Function Deployment
19-Sep Problem Decomposition using Functional Modeling
21-Sep Functional Modeling Continued
26-Sep Concept Generation I
28-Sep Concept Generation II
3-Oct Concept Geeneration III Techniques for identifying, evaluating and selecting
5-Oct
10-Oct
Intro to Decision Making
FALL BREAK – NO CLASS
design alternatives
12-Oct Rating Matrices for Decision Making
17-Oct Relative and Ordinal Scoring Schemes
19-Oct Voting Schemes
24-Oct
26-Oct
Embodiment Design, Models in Product Development
Prototypes as Experience, Product Architecture
Techniques for embodying a design alternative
31-Oct Product Strategies I
2-Nov Product Strategies II
7-Nov Risk Assessment, FMEA, DFX
9-Nov Finish Risk Assessment, etc. Advanced design strategies and considerations
14-Nov Pareto Dominance and Trade Studies
16-Nov tbd
21-Nov tbd
23-Nov THANKSGIVING BREAK – NO CLASS
28-Nov FINAL PRESENTATIONS
30-Nov FINAL PRESENTATIONS
Course Outcomes (Terminal Behaviors)

• Understand the role of a given task in the context of an overall design

methodology or design process model.
• Conduct a thorough needs analysis for a design project.
• Create and interpret abstract representations (functional models, process
models, activity diagrams) commonly used to understand a design problem.
• Create and interpret requirements for a design project.
• Identify design concepts or embodiments using idea generation methods.
• Apply systematic decision methods to make design decisions (e.g., concept
selection).
• Interpret and critique proposed design methods or design process models.
• Develop a healthy relationship with ambiguity [no way to evaluate this!]
Source Material

• No required text
• Lecture slides and supplemental material will be
posted on Canvas

• Texts used when developing lectures:

– G. Pahl & W. Beitz, Engineering Design: A Systematic Approach.
Springer. 2nd Ed. 1995.
– K. Otto & K. Wood, Product Design. Pearson. 2001.
– G.A. Hazelrigg, Fundamentals of Decision Making for Engineering
Design and Systems Engineering. 2012.
– R.T. Clemen & T. Reilly, Making Hard Decisions. Brooks/Cole. 2001.
 Assignment Types

In-class Activities (5% of grade) Brief exercises completed individually or in small groups. They
begin in class, but may require a small amount of effort outside of class. Submission of results on
Canvas. Credit predominantly based on effort. [Students in Section 700 will be given around a week
from the original lecture to submit the assignment.]

HW Assignments (35% of grade) Assignments to be completed individually outside of the classroom.

Usually 1-2 weeks are given to complete.

Design Project (60% of grade) Team-based product design project. Begins with problem identification
and culminates with an engineering specification of the product embodiment. Milestone reports, design
reviews, and final presentations will be graded.

There are no exams.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 22

 Grade Distribution & Evaluation

In-class Activities 5% Grade Range

A >= 90% <= 100%

B >= 80% < 90%

C >= 60% < 80%

Team
Project D >= 50% < 60%
60%
Homework F >= 00% < 50%
35%

This is a project heavy course! Important: grade thresholds are firm.

“Almost a B” is still a C.
Did you say something about a…

DESIGN PROJECT
 Design Project

• Use systematic methodology to design an engineered product

• Take from opportunity to problem to product plan through
concept selection and finally an abstract prototype
• Physical prototype encouraged but not required
• Team project (3-4 members per team)
Shot tracking basketball net designed by MEEN
undergrads(MEEN 401/402)
(https://engineering.tamu.edu/news/2023/06/n
othing-but-net-students-design-shot-tracking-
basketball-hoop.html)
Aims:
• Give you experience working through the design process
• Force you to confront parts of the design process you may have glossed over previously
• Provide an opportunity for you to practice advanced methods taught in MEEN 601

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 25

 Design Project Considerations

• Teams must be hybrid (members from section 600 & 700 on each team)
• Your team selects the project topic from a list of problems to be distributed
by the instructor
– You can propose your own problem, but must get instructor permission
• Must have an engineering aspect to your solution & proper application of
engineering principles will be a grading consideration
• Multiple milestones & design reviews throughout semester
• Grading driven by successful application of systematic design methodology,
not market viability of the product

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 26

 Progress Reports and Reviews

Twice during the semester, your team will submit a progress report and we will hold a
30-min design review via zoom

Progress reports and reviews will be an opportunity for formative feedback on project
direction & summative feedback on application of design methods and processes

A final report and presentation are required. For students in Section 600, attendance at
final presentations is required. For students in Section 700, (virtual) attendance is
encouraged but not required.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 27

 CLASS POLICIES AND MISC INFO

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 28

 Canvas LMS

Class content (lecture notes, videos, assignments, etc.) will be distributed via Canvas

All submissions must be made via Canvas. Email submissions will not be accepted.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 29

 Remote Collaboration

There are numerous technologies out there to support remote collaboration,

many of which are free or are no cost to you while enrolled at A&M.

Things you may find useful:

• File sharing: Google Drive, Dropbox, eLearning, others
• Messaging: Slack, good ol’ fashioned txt, others
• Voice and/or video Conferencing: Zoom, Teams, Skype, others

Note: I am not endorsing any of these. This is just for your information. Use at own risk. I have not
personally tried everything listed. Some have compatibility issues with particular browsers. Etc., etc.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 30

 Late Submission Policy

Loss of 10% of assignment value per 24 hours late (including weekends).

For example, if your submission is late by slightly more 48 hours, the submission will get a
maximum of only 70% of the total grade for a given home assignment. However, for a delay of
47 hours, a maximum of 80% of the total grade will be given.

Late penalty is not negotiable.

Important: Work delayed due to University Excused Absences is not considered late.
See Student Rule 7.

MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design 31

 Academic Misconduct
You are going to work in teams so
there will be lots of collaboration
If you are not sure about
something, come talk to me!
MEEN 601 - Advanced Product Design
Some things you must not do:
• Plagiarize text
• Use figures without attribution
• Present the work of others as your own in
any way
• Submit work in this class that you
submitted for a grade in another class
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Questions?