First-year engineers take on everything from oily bike chains to campus puddles

Nearly 900 first-year engineering students have gotten a head start on solving some of
the world's problems in their Introduction to Professional Engineering course.

The students, who tackled projects ranging from eliminating puddles on campus roads
to developing a way to replace a bicycle chain without dirtying your hands, took part in
a poster session last week at which their work was evaluated for quality, depth of
research and degree of emphasis on engineering. The top nine projects went on to
compete in the Engineering 1 showcase, held December 7 in the Engineering
Technology Building.

The top projects were then voted on by faculty, staff and guests, who named Kinshuk
Kumar, Ryan Martin, Bowen Qian and Jing Wen tops in the competition for their
interactive online map of the University campus.

The software developed by the students allows for voice directions and descriptions of
buildings that are clicked online, and includes a section where announcements and
events can be posted and updated in real time. The application is meant to reside on
the web or be available for smartphones.

“We took a look at the standard map and realized that there isn't much you can do with
it,” said Martin. “With our software, we were able to add a great deal of functionality
while showcasing the possibilities of computer software engineering.”

Second place went to David Black, Sean Bryans, Evan Skeete, Sarah Mishriki, and Lucas
Rowleythe who together developed the “iDropper”, a soft, flexible, protective plastic-
like casing for the MacBook Pro made from Sorbothane. Not surprisingly, the
inspiration for the project came after team members dropped their own laptops a
number of times. Sorbothane is known for its shock-absorbing qualities and can help
protect against damage to monitors and internal computer components.

Genevieve Conant, Eric Lesiuta, Joseph Span, Jinbin Yang and Igor Zoudanov rounded
out the top three with their trash compactor, which allows people to compact their
garbage into cubes, minimizing pick-up frequency and allowing for easy diversion
from landfill to incinerator.

“While the competition is fun the real objective is to develop teamwork skills, improve
problem-solving abilities, and address situations from an engineering perspective,”
said course instructor Robert Fleisig, assistant professor of mechanical engineering.
“The students like it because it gives them a chance to show their work to others who
may be interested, and the finalists all get to add it to their resume as a way of
distinguishing themselves.”