Student teams of three to ten undergraduates work on single or multidisciplinary projects and are guided by an expert faculty mentor.
Interdisciplinary student teams learn and apply the engineering design process: defining functional requirements, conceptualization, analysis, identifying risks and countermeasures, selection, and physical prototyping. By working in teams they develop leadership skills and group dynamics; dealing with scheduling conflicts, meeting weekly deliverables and deadlines; and communication among team members, project sponsors, and course instructors.
Capstone is a two semester sequence that runs from Fall to Spring and is intended
for seniors or those nearing graduation and have taken the majority of their classes.
During the fall, students spend
their time understanding their problem statement and customer needs, developing concept
variants and proof of concepts and ultimately finish in December with a clear path
forward. In
the spring semester, teams work to optimize their designs and do final implementation.
The course culminates with a Showcase on the last day of class.
