School of Engineering & Computing

ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS (ENGM 404) - COURSEWORK II

ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS – Major Coursework

Submit by: 30th April 2008

This coursework carries 35% of the overall module mark. (Exam 50% + Major Coursework 35%
+ Minor Coursework 15% )

PART 1
[Total marks 40%]

Q1. (a) Using the CES-5 software package, identify the material(s) that satisfy ALL
of the following constraints:
i) Young’s modulus E > 90 GPa;
ii) Ultimate tensile strength > 170 MPa;
iii) Thermal conductivity > 160 W/mK;
iv) Fracture toughness > 25 Mpa/√m
v) Cost per unit weight no more than 20 times that of aluminium.
(Only the final materials list is needed here)
[5]

Q.2 Obtain appropriate plots of various material properties using CES and find the
best THREE materials for components with the material index:

E
i) M1 = ;
Cm ρ
σF
ii) M2 = ;
Eα
E3
iii) M3 = .
σ F2
(Include a copy of the graphs plotted with the answer.)
[10]

A De Silva March 2009

 School of Engineering & Computing

ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS (ENGM 404) - COURSEWORK II

Q3. Electrical plugs

The electric plug is perhaps the commonest of electrical products. It has a number
of components, each performing one or more functions. The most obvious are the
casing and the pins, though there are many more (connectors, a cable clamp,
fasteners, and, in some plugs, a fuse).

Select the materials and manufacturing processes for the casing and pins of
plugs:

Materials selection
• Formulate the design requirements for the casing and the pins, and list the
constraints each must meet. What are the functions of the casing and the
pins? What properties must the materials for them have if the plug is to work
properly and safely? If the plug is to be cheap, what limits are imposed on the
materials and processes? List these to give a specification for the material,
organising them under the headings Function, Constraints and Objectives.
• Use the CES software to select materials for both casing and pins.

Process selection
For both casing and the pins:
• Summarise, with the aid of a table, the design requirements to
indicate Material Class; Process Class; Shape Class; Mass; Minimum
Section; Precision; Surface Finish; Quality Level; Batch Size.

• Construct appropriate process selection charts in the CES and decide on the
best process.
[25]

A De Silva March 2009

 School of Engineering & Computing

ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS (ENGM 404) - COURSEWORK II

PART 2
Total marks [60%]
In this section you are free to select “any” item/component you wish to design and
manufacture.

The requirement is to produce a written design report showing convincingly that you
have been able to select the best material(s) for the selected product and that you
have been able to clearly identify the important objectives and constraints on your
design. This analysis should be as quantitative as possible and rely on the
systematic methodology developed in class as much as possible.

Steps in the process:

1. Select a product
2. Dissect your product into its individual components – identify the function of
each component, the materials currently being used, the shape and size, the
history of the product in relation to materials usage.
3. Identify the objectives for the selected component/s of your product.
4. Identify constraints and free variables. Discuss the constraints in terms of
those that are hard (nonnegotiable) and soft (negotiable). Discuss what free
variables are available in the design and what constraints can be used to
remove them.
5. Propose the materials indices that best characterize the performance of your
product. It is important to consider not only the mechanical and/or physical
properties but also the cost of the component (if cost is an important factor).
6. Using appropriate materials selection charts choose materials which are
appropriate for your application based on the materials indices above.
7. Examine the role of shape in your design.
8. Propose a possible method for manufacturing your product.
9. Discuss issues related to aesthetics, environmental concerns and life cycle of
the product.
10. Summarise your work in a way that brings all aspects together to form a tight
argument for your particular selection strategy.

Remember: the design process is ITERATIVE. You will likely want to consider more
than one objective and several constraints. You may wish to refine your preliminary
selection based on other criteria. It is very wise to consider carefully the results of
your analysis and their validity in the ‘big picture’ before coming to a final
conclusion.

A De Silva March 2009