Summary: This project was about learning the process of reverse engineering- the strategy used to find answers to questions about already existing products in order to improve upon the design or create a new product. The process follows a reverse engineering design cycle with six steps. These include identifying the purpose, developing a hypothesis, disassembly, analyzing the elements, preparing a report, and resigning. This process allows an engineer to focus on what they want to improve or change about an existing product.
My group's chosen product to reverse engineer was a portable fan. Although seemingly simple, a portable fan hosts a surprising amount of complexity in its parts. We first started by developing a hypothesis on how we thought the fan worked. Next, we deconstructed the fan, making sure to depict multiple sketches of all the parts and how they fit together. The four main sub systems within a fan are the outer plastic casing, the batteries, the circuit, and the electric motor which powers the fan blades. We then analyzed each component part to gain a better understanding of the whole product. Finally, we presented our findings to the class in order to share our discoveries.
My group's chosen product to reverse engineer was a portable fan. Although seemingly simple, a portable fan hosts a surprising amount of complexity in its parts. We first started by developing a hypothesis on how we thought the fan worked. Next, we deconstructed the fan, making sure to depict multiple sketches of all the parts and how they fit together. The four main sub systems within a fan are the outer plastic casing, the batteries, the circuit, and the electric motor which powers the fan blades. We then analyzed each component part to gain a better understanding of the whole product. Finally, we presented our findings to the class in order to share our discoveries.
Key Vocabulary:
Electrode: An electrical conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit Anode: The negatively charged electrode of a device supplying current Cathode: The positively charged electrode of an electrical device that supplies current Electrolyte: A substance that produces an electrically conducting solution when dissolved in a polar solvent, such as water. The dissolved electrolyte separates into cations and anions, which disperse uniformly through the solvent. An electrolyte solution is electrically neutral. Electromagnetism: The study of the interaction of electric currents or fields and magnetic fields. |
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Reflection:
The reverse engineering project was very informative. Specifically, I gained much insight into the process of what an engineer follows to learn about a foreign object. In class, I learned about the steps of the reverse engineering design cycle, and was able to apply them to my own object. I chose to reverse engineer a bluetooth speaker. I felt this project was especially helpful to me because I now am capable of applying this process to other problems in order to direct and better understand an issue.
My group's chosen object to reverse engineer was a plastic portable fan. One area I did well in during the group period of this project was analyzation of our chosen object. I really enjoyed the process of having to completely disassemble the fan and try and work out how every part functioned and interconnected with other parts to make a working machine. The fan works by using an electric motor. It is interesting how the application of the principles of electromagnetism can lead to such a widely used and cheap creation--the dc motor--that is so present in today's world. I felt that the analyzation process really boosted my understanding of how our product actually worked.
An area where I could improve if I were to redo this project was the final presentation of my group's work. We were lacking visual aids to our presentation, which noticeably undercut our findings since we could not show our physical object and had to rely on diagrams of the underlying principles. Instead, I would have liked to use our physical object to explain each function. For example, when explaining how a motor works, I would demonstrate by turning on an actual motor, rather than just using a picture to explain. This physical example would help improve in sharing my findings and explaining more complex concepts.
The reverse engineering project was very informative. Specifically, I gained much insight into the process of what an engineer follows to learn about a foreign object. In class, I learned about the steps of the reverse engineering design cycle, and was able to apply them to my own object. I chose to reverse engineer a bluetooth speaker. I felt this project was especially helpful to me because I now am capable of applying this process to other problems in order to direct and better understand an issue.
My group's chosen object to reverse engineer was a plastic portable fan. One area I did well in during the group period of this project was analyzation of our chosen object. I really enjoyed the process of having to completely disassemble the fan and try and work out how every part functioned and interconnected with other parts to make a working machine. The fan works by using an electric motor. It is interesting how the application of the principles of electromagnetism can lead to such a widely used and cheap creation--the dc motor--that is so present in today's world. I felt that the analyzation process really boosted my understanding of how our product actually worked.
An area where I could improve if I were to redo this project was the final presentation of my group's work. We were lacking visual aids to our presentation, which noticeably undercut our findings since we could not show our physical object and had to rely on diagrams of the underlying principles. Instead, I would have liked to use our physical object to explain each function. For example, when explaining how a motor works, I would demonstrate by turning on an actual motor, rather than just using a picture to explain. This physical example would help improve in sharing my findings and explaining more complex concepts.