Abstract Shape Optimization is a branch of structural optimization in which the boundaries of geometry are varied. The shape of the boundary is determined by optimizing a set of design variables that form the geometric description of the shape. This paper presents a method of two dimensional shape optimization in which the number of design variables is allowed to change during the optimization process. First an initial design representation is chosen and optimized. Next a new mathematical description of the optimized design is created with an increased number of design variables. This new design is subsequently optimized. This allows the optimization process to work within a larger design space that includes a greater variety of shapes. The process of adding design variables is repeated until no additional improvements in the design are made. Several design examples are solved with this procedure and presented.
Abstract It has been well-established that concept-based active learning strategies increase student retention, improve engagement and student achievement, and reduce the performance gap of underrepresented students. Despite the evidence supporting concept-based instruction, many faculty continue to stress algorithmic problem solving. In fact, the biggest challenge to improving STEM education is not the need to develop more effective instructional practices, but to find ways to get faculty to adopt the evidence-based pedagogies that already exist. Our project aims to propagate the Concept Warehouse (CW), an online innovation tool that was developed in the Chemical Engineering community, into Mechanical Engineering (ME). A portion of our work focuses on content development in mechanics, and includes statics, dynamics, and to a lesser extent strength of materials. Our content development teams had created 170 statics and 253 dynamics questions. Additionally, we have developed four different simulations to be embedded in online Instructional Tools – these are interactive modules that provided different physical scenarios to help students understand important concepts in mechanics. During initial interviews, we found that potential adopters needed coaching on the benefits of concept-based instruction, training on how to use the CW, and support on how to best implement the different affordances offered by the CW. This caused a slight shift in our initial research plans, and much of our recent work has concentrated on using faculty development activities to help us advertise the CW and encourage evidence-based practices. From these activities, we are recruiting participants for surveys and interviews to help us investigate how different contexts affect the adoption of educational innovations. A set of two summer workshops attracted over 270 applicants, and over 60 participants attended each synchronous offering. Other applicants were provided links to recordings of the workshop. From these participants, we recruited 20 participants to join our Community of Practice (CoP). These members are sharing how they use the CW in their classes, especially in the virtual environment. Community members discuss using evidence-based practices, different things that the CW can do, and suggest potential improvements to the tool. They will also be interviewed to help us determine barriers to adoption, how their institutional contexts and individual epistemologies affect adoption, and how they have used the CW in their classes. Our research will help us formulate strategies that others can use when attempting to propagate pedagogical innovations.
The primary goal of this mini-workshop is to assist participants in creating Inquiry Based Learning Activities (IBLAs) that promote better conceptual understanding for their students. This is part of more general goal of transforming engineering classrooms into more interactive formats that promote student engagement and lead to improved student outcomes. Specifically the workshop will introduce participants to the theoretical basis of IBLAs, provide examples of successful IBLAs and finally participants will develop their own IBLAs designed to repair common student misconceptions in the courses they teach. Through a highly interactive hands- on environment, participants are expected to leave this mini-workshop with: 1) Knowledge of the educational foundations of IBLAs, 2) A thorough understanding of the elements of IBLAs, 3) Experience working with several research-tested and classroom-proven IBLAs and 4) A preliminary design of an IBLA for one of their courses, reviewed by the workshop facilitators and participants. The workshop is intended as a forum for educators to learn about and to create innovative and research-based best practices to transform engineering education.
Abstract NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract Integrating Experiment, Modeling and Design using a Hands on Hydraulic Positioning Laboratory for Mechanical Control Systems Education Abstract As part of a laboratory intensive curriculum, Mechanical Engineering students at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo are required to take a senior level class in Mechanical Control Systems. In addition to three one-hour lectures, students attend a weekly three hour laboratory session where course concepts are reinforced through hands-on modeling and experimentation. This paper describes a newly implemented and innovative laboratory experience which is centered on a hydraulic position control system. Often experiments in Mechanical Controls are heavily influenced by non-linearities such as friction or backlash which cause inexperienced students to lose confidence in linear system modeling as an effective analysis and design tool. A hydraulic system was chosen for this laboratory due to excellent correlation between experimental results and the linear modeling techniques taught in the course. This laboratory experience is designed to integrate linear system modeling techniques, experimentation and data collection, control system design, and design verification through physical testing using a variety of hardware and software tools. The main objectives of the laboratory are to give the students practice and confidence in advanced control system modeling, experience with precision hydraulic positioning systems, practice in designing Proportional- Integral (PI) controllers, exposure to digital control systems and experience and physical understanding of the sometimes dramatic condition of instability. The methodology includes a unique procedure that uses root locus concepts and asks the students to drive the system to instability to determine system parameters. The paper describes the laboratory experience in detail and gives some example results and an assessment of student learning. Introduction California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) founded in 1903 is one of 23 campuses of the California State University (CSU) System. Cal Poly is primarily an undergraduate institution with approximately 19,500 enrolled undergraduates and 1180 faculty. Roughly 5000 students are enrolled in the College of Engineering which is comprised of nine departments. The largest department, Mechanical Engineering, has approximately 1000 undergraduates, 40 Masters Students and 23 full time tenure and tenure track faculty. The department awards about 190 BSME degrees each year. Laboratory Intensive Curriculum Cal Poly’s University wide motto is “Learn by Doing,” which is supported by the Mechanical
Abstract Several consensus reports cite a critical need to dramatically increase the number and diversity of STEM graduates over the next decade. They conclude that a change to evidence-based instructional practices, such as concept-based active learning, is needed. Concept-based active learning involves the use of activity-based pedagogies whose primary objectives are to make students value deep conceptual understanding (instead of only factual knowledge) and then to facilitate their development of that understanding. Concept-based active learning has been shown to increase academic engagement and student achievement, to significantly improve student retention in academic programs, and to reduce the performance gap of underrepresented students. Fostering students' mastery of fundamental concepts is central to real world problem solving, including several elements of engineering practice. Unfortunately, simply proving that these instructional practices are more effective than traditional methods for promoting student learning, for increasing retention in academic programs, and for improving ability in professional practice is not enough to ensure widespread pedagogical change. In fact, the biggest challenge to improving STEM education is not the need to develop more effective instructional practices, but to find ways to get faculty to adopt the evidence-based pedagogies that already exist. In this project we seek to propagate the Concept Warehouse, a technological innovation designed to foster concept-based active learning, into Mechanical Engineering (ME) and to study student learning with this tool in five diverse institutional settings. The Concept Warehouse (CW) is a web-based instructional tool that we developed for Chemical Engineering (ChE) faculty. It houses nearly 3,000 ConcepTests, which are short questions that can rapidly be deployed to engage students in concept-oriented thinking and/or to assess students’ conceptual knowledge, along with more extensive concept-based active learning tools. The CW has grown rapidly over the last four years (around 1,000 faculty accounts and 23,000 student users). We propose to expand use of the CW into ME and thereby impact 50,000 students during this project. Although the current CW content is discipline specific, the functions are generic and readily transferable to other engineering disciplines as content is developed. To date, our Statics and our Dynamics Teams have developed 80 and 75 new ConcepTests, respectively. Question development and categorization has included a framework developed by Beatty, and includes utilizing Content, Process, and Epistemological Goals for each question. Beta testing with students is currently being conducted, and includes questions on both clarity and on educational effectiveness. Our goal is to create 150 ConcepTests in each subject by the time of the conference. Twelve instructors from the partner schools have been recruited to help us study how context affects the adoption of the Concept Warehouse. These Phase I participants were asked to use the CW to deploy a Concept Inventory, and were then interviewed to examine the instructors’ perceptions of their institutional and learning context and their histories and beliefs. Phase II participants will be asked to deploy ConceptTests within their classrooms, and site visits will be conducted for additional interviews, classroom visits, and student focus groups. These will be used in conjunction with institutional context at five very different schools (a large research public university, a small private university, a 2-year college serving a large number of under-represented students, a large non-PhD granting public university, and a bilingual research university) to determine the conditions that are most supportive of adopting educational innovations.
Abstract The Studying Underlying Characteristics of Computing and Engineering Student Success (SUCCESS) survey has been distributed at three major universities in the United States to measure how non-cognitive and affective factors influence student success. One goal of this National Science Foundation-sponsored study is to measure these traits and find correlations between the measured constructs and a student's academic performance over his or her career as an engineering undergraduate. After compiling and analyzing data, we benchmarked engineering and computer science student survey results from a large public undergraduate-focused west coast university (Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo) for six traits (Self-Control, the Big 5 Personality Traits, Grit, Test Anxiety, Time and Study Environment, and Mindset) with previous studies of undergraduate students, and in some cases with engineering students specifically. We found differences between the studied engineering students and other student populations in Grit, Big 5, and Self-Control. By understanding the similarities and differences between these studies, we hope to find effective ways to help students be successful. Moreover, by using these data, we hope to develop initiatives that will enhance students' experience in engineering education.
Abstract Extrusion stretch forming is used extensively in the aerospace and architectural industries to add contour to extrusions and roll formed sections. Frame members, stringers, wing spars, curtain tracks and many other important aircraft parts are formed with this process. Forming is achieved by pulling an initially straight part in the tensile direction above the material’s yield point and then wrapping the section around a die to add contour. Local buckling and wrinkling that might appear in a pure bending operation can be avoided. There is current interest in improving the process for greater repeatability and less part rework to reduce cost while achieving tighter tolerances (e.g. [1,2]). The stretch forming die plays a significant role in the process. To this end researchers are interested in quicker die development techniques using non-linear beam theory and non-linear finite element modeling of the forming process. For a complete analytical picture of the process, a close look at the stretch forming machine’s performance must be included in the process model. Two major areas of machine performance are important; machine deflections and hydraulic control system performance. This paper provides a brief overview of the extrusion stretch forming process and then focuses on the structural and control system design of the modern stretch forming machine. Analytical models of the machine deflection as well as its hydraulic control system are developed. A short discussion concerning the difference between traditional “pressure forming” and modern CNC position forming is also included. Insight into the limitations of traditional PID control for the stretch forming machine can be seen from the analysis. It is evident that these machine models must be used to complete the process model to effectively create die designs for close tolerance and highly repetitive part production.
Abstract This research paper explores the role of non-cognitive and affective (NCA) factors in influencing student achievement and thriving. The research team has developed and deployed a survey with evidence of validity and reliability to measure 28 NCA factors from n=2339 undergraduates at 17 U.S. institutions nationally. The factors examined include personality, grit, meaning and purpose, engineering identity, mindset, motivation, test anxiety, test and study environment, perceptions of faculty caring, self-control, stress, gratitude, mindfulness, and sense of belonging. While there are a myriad of ways to characterize each student’s NCA profile, a recently completed cluster analysis using Gaussian Mixture Modeling has identified five distinct clusters of students using these NCA factors, which accounted for 50.8% of participants. In summary, the five clusters can be described as (i) the normative cluster, (ii) high positive NCA factors but experiencing stress, (iii) future-oriented but disconnected from engineering, (iv) disengaged from engineering, faculty and peers, and (v) low stress and supported. A preliminary analysis indicated that membership within any of the five clusters was only weakly, if at all, associated with academic performance, as measured by self-reported, overall grade-point-average (GPA). In this study we explore this association in more detailed and nuanced ways to assess whether (a) cluster membership is truly unassociated with academic performance; i.e., students can achieve academically while having various NCA cluster profiles, or (b) one or more clusters is associated with differential academic performance. If the finding is the latter, the results would naturally suggest the need for interventions to support those students whose profiles may predict poor academic outcomes. Finally, we acknowledge that achievement or thriving by undergraduate engineering students cannot be simply measured by the GPA when, obviously, many other factors are at play. This study is necessary, however, since academic performance is currently the predominant measure of progress and achievement in higher education.
During the 2014-2015 academic year, engineering faculty members and students at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) met monthly in a collaborative inquiry dialogue group to discuss the role of reflection in transforming engineering education. This project is part of the larger Consortium to Promote Reflection in Engineering Education (CPREE) headed by the University of Washington. In this paper we describe the activities of the Cal Poly group involved with CPREE and how these activities have transformed the thinking and actions of participants. Collaborative inquiry dialogue involves self-organizing individuals into a small group to address a compelling question through repeated cycles of experimentation and reflection on the results of that experimentation. In this context, the faculty members involved (including the authors of this paper) have been meeting to discuss how use of reflection in the classroom and/or in a collaborative inquiry dialogue amongst colleagues might lead to transformation in engineering education practice and outcomes. The dialogue group serves as a safe container that allows for the possibility of transformational insights by participants - insights that change their view of themselves, the world, and their relationship to it. Using a qualitative self-report methodology in the tradition of an action research paradigm, we (the authors) reflected on what we believed we had gained from the collaborative inquiry dialogues. Broadly we have noticed that participation in the collaborative inquiry dialogue has led us to reconsider what reflection is and what it could be, to develop a greater appreciation for the role of reflective practices in engineering education, and to better recognize when reflection is occurring (and when it might not be) such that reflective behaviors can be encouraged and practiced. We also began to challenge assumptions we had made about our teaching practices and have noted that the collaborative inquiry provides an environment in which development of new thinking is possible.
Abstract Active Learning in Nepal: A Case Study of Effectiveness, Cultural Considerations and Student Attitudes at a South Asian UniversityAbstractThe growth of engineering education in South Asia is leading to the development of moreinteractions and joint projects with U.S. Universities. A solid understanding of the differencesbetween cultures and how education is delivered and received is a necessary ingredient for thiseducational cooperation. In the U.S., elements of Active Learning are increasingly viewed ascritical to the success of educating engineers. These techniques have been tried in South Asiawith varying success. This paper presents the cross-cultural experience of introducing ActiveLearning elements into the Mechanical Engineering program at xxx University in Nepal. As partof a 2012 Fulbright project, the authors co-taught a second year (sophomore) level class 60students in Strength of Materials and the Fulbright Grantee taught a small graduate class inMechanical Design. Elements of Active Learning where introduced formally into the classroomfor the first time in the Mechanical Engineering Department. Some activities in theundergraduate lecture-based class included think-pair-share, in-class group problem solving,ranking tasks and peer-based concept exercise. The graduate class was made into a ProjectBased Learning (PBL) experience. This paper gives some background on the use of ActiveLearning in a South Asian culture, describes the pedagogy introduced into the two classes andfinishes with an assessment of its effectiveness and of Nepali student attitudes about ActiveLearning.
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