Enhancing Student Design Experiences by Integrating Computer-Aided Engineering into the Curriculum

该项目将计算机辅助设计（CAD）和计算机辅助工程（CAE）集成到四门工程课程的学期项目中：计算机辅助设计，固体力学，有限元分析和顶点工程设计。 学生们热衷于在工程课程中进行学期项目，但往往在他们试图将讲座中学到的理论应用于应用项目中面临的实际挑战时感到沮丧。 这种挫折感主要来自于允许隔离潜在效应所需的简化，以及便于相关控制方程的简单封闭形式解。 这种简化在理论和实践之间造成了一个鸿沟，工程专业的学生往往认为这是不可调和的。 该项目通过在四个目标课程中引入CAD和CAE数值方法的知情使用来弥合这一差距。 为实现这一目标，正在建立一个有16个座位的计算机实验室。 该实验室被用于教授专业CAD（实体建模）和CAE（有限元分析，动态模拟和数值分析）软件应用程序，通过教师监督下进行的结构化练习。 学期项目的复杂性每年都会增加，并以前几年学到的技能为基础。 因此，高年级学生可以进入他们的顶点课程，掌握一系列CAD和CAE技能，他们可以要求进行他们的动手设计项目。 这项工作可以导致本科工程项目经验的整合，展示了工程科学的现代应用，包括实际工程设计问题的所有挑战。 这项工作的成果可以提交给工程教育界和其他有兴趣将计算机辅助工程分析纳入本科课程的学校。 *

The project integrates computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided engineering (CAE) into the term projects in four engineering courses: Computer-Aided Design, Solid Mechanics, Finite Element Analysis, and Capstone Engineering Design. Students are enthusiastic about conducting term projects in engineering courses, but are often frustrated in their attempts to apply the theories learned in lecture to the practical challenges faced in applied projects. The frustration stems largely from the simplifications needed to permit isolation of underlying effects, and to facilitate simple closed-form solution of relevant governing equations. Such simplifications create a gap between theory and practice that engineering students often view as irreconcilable. The project is bridging this gap by introducing the informed use of numerical methods of CAD and CAE in the four targeted courses. A 16-seat computer laboratory is being established to accomplish this objective. The laboratory is being used to teach professional CAD (solid modeling) and CAE (finite element analysis, dynamic simulation, and numerical analysis) software applications through structured exercises conducted under faculty supervision. Term projects can increase in sophistication each year and build on skills learned in prior years. Therefore, seniors can enter their capstone course with a range of CAD and CAE skills that they can call upon to conduct their hands-on design projects. This work can result in the integration of undergraduate engineering project experiences that demonstrate the modern application of engineering science and include all of the challenges of actual engineering design problems. The outcomes of this work can be presented to the engineering education community and other schools interested in integrating computer-aided engineering analysis into the undergraduate curriculum. *