EPICS Senior Design Project Description Report
Last Revised 1/18/2018
Instructions (Delete this page prior to submitting the report):
This form is to be completed for each EPICS project on which there are one or more 2nd semester Senior Design students using EPICS registration to fulfill the BSCmpE, BSEE, CS, and MDE senior design requirement. Senior design students on the project should work together to complete the form. Submit one form per project. If an EPICS team has several projects involving senior design students, submit a separate form for each project.
DEFINITIONS:
Engineering Design: The process of devising a system, component, or process to meet desired needs. It is a decision-making process (often iterative), in which the basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering sciences are applied to convert resources optimally to meet a stated object. Among the fundamental elements of the design process are the establishment of objectives and criteria, synthesis, analysis, construction, testing and evaluation.[1]
Multi-disciplinary Team: A multi-disciplinary team is comprised of, and requires the expertise of: 1) students from more than one academic program – e.g., electrical engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, etc.; or ii) students from a single program, but who bring unique skills developed in elective areas of specialization within the field.[2]
Engineering Standards Engineering standards can be defined as a set of technical definitions and guidelines that specify characteristics and technical details that must be met by products, systems and/or processes. Standards help to ensure that products meet minimum performance and safety requirements, that the product/system/process is consistent and repeatable, and are compatible with other standard-compliant products, systems, and processes. Some sources for engineering standards: IEEE (standards.ieee.org), ASTM International ( and ANSI (ansi.org).
Design Considerations:
Technical – relating to functionality, performance, and efficiency of the product, system, and/or process.
Economic - relating to the cost, production, distribution, and consumption of goods and having practical or industrial significance.
Environmental – relating to preserving and possibly improving the surrounding environment.
Ethical – relating to appropriate professional conduct including the principles of honesty, fairness, caring, and respect for others
Health and Safety – relating to the health and safety concerns of a product’s manufacture, use, and disposal.
Manufacturability – relating to how a product can be manufactured efficiently and economically.
Political – pertaining to public policy or relating to affairs of state or administration.
Social – concerned with a broad grouping of people having common traditions, institutions, or collective activities and interests.
Sustainability – relating to the use of a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.
Purdue EPICS Senior Design Semester Report
Course Number and TitleSemester/Year
Advisor(s)
EPICS Team
Project Title
Senior Design Students:
Name / Major / Area of Expertise / Expected Grad Date / On team
1st sem. of senior design? / On team
2nd sem. of senior design?
Other Team Members:
(Names of all project team members of the project team that have participated during the two semesters of the senior design students’ experience on the team.)
Name / Major / Area of Expertise / Expected Grad Date / On team
1st sem. of senior design? / On team
2nd sem. of senior design?
Project Description: Provide a brief (one or two page) technical description of the design project, as outlined below:
(a)Summary of the project, including customer, purpose, specifications, and a summary of the approach.
(b)Description of how the project built upon knowledge and skills acquired in earlier ECE/CS/MDE coursework (include course numbers).
(c)Description of what new technical knowledge and skills, if any, were acquired in doing the project;
(d)Description of how the engineering design process was incorporated into the project. Reference must be made to most of the following fundamental steps of the design process: establishment of objectives and criteria, synthesis, analysis, construction, testing, and evaluation.
(e)Summary of how appropriate engineering standards and multiple realistic design constraints were incorporated into the project (consideration of most of the following is required: economic, environmental, ethical, health & safety, social, political, sustainability, and manufacturability constraints).
(f)Description of the multidisciplinary nature of the project.
(g)Description of project deliverables and their final status.
[1] ABET, 1992
[2] Paraphrased from Criteria 2000: Lessons Learned by C. D. Avers, P.E. in The Interface, Number 2, August 1999.