Deep thoughts in second week ended me in glasses

Second week of seed started with more expectations and fun. June, 19th marked the beginning of this promising week. I personally felt that we were going to learn and do a lot within the week. We began by making low fidelity prototypes for the designs that scored highly in the Pugh scoring matrix, this was for the Okapi enrichment device at the Houston zoo. Several prototypes were made and each was critically analyzed to find its strengths and weaknesses.Some of the low fidelity prototypes that our team came up with are  shown in the images below:

After this was done, we came up with the best prototype by combining different  features from different prototypes. The resulting  model incorporated a rotational effect as well as the concept of feeding the Okapi through chain link. The initial design did not provide anything as mental stimulation as such we thought it wise to add the spinning effect to keep  the Okapi engaged . The medium fidelity prototype that was developed from this concept is shown in the following image

The week progressed with much work to be done. By Wednesday morning, the Okapi enrichment device prototype was completed, but we were introduced to a new challenge, Bio engineering projects. Since we were given the chance to choose the projects we were comfortable with, i chose to rework on the diabetic foot ulcer checker. This project had already been done by a group of Rice students.Our task was to make modifications to the device if any or to completely come up with a new solution to the problem.  We began by analyzing their design criteria and mark those which were accomplished in their design. By Thursday 11:00AM, we talked to our client to have a better understanding of  the limitations associated with diabetic patients. You could grasp some info and of course missed some, much attention was needed. Our interview with the client cleared some mist in those things that we did not understand about diabetic patients and that gave us a clear view of the situation.

More fun………………..

All work and no play makes “Chris” a dull guy.Ooh!!, this is not true for me. I had fun all throughout the week. Group competitions were what excited me the most. We were given the task to create a Bujaj, a bike like vehicle that is used in most African countries for short distance journeys. Together with Caz, we built our own Bujaj. When the competition began, we had the hope that we would be the winners but one ‘Jeremy’, our TA dominated the competition with his heavy Bujaj. Anyway it happens, but i think he won because his Bujaj was “heavy”, just kidding, all due to his creative design.

 

Is this All?

There is more fun in this video, it explains why my week was a success, à la semaine prochaine