A multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural competition-based capstone design program

This paper discusses the successes and struggles that we have encountered while integrating the two-semester capstone design sequence for both the electrical and computer engineering (ECE) and mechanical engineering (ME) departments at the University of Detroit Mercy (UDM). The ECE sequence has been based on a competition-motivated structure that focuses student efforts on the development of autonomous ground vehicles. The ME program, on the other hand, has used a model which tends to focus on product development. Two principal program changes are discussed - the integration and coordination of the two separate design programs to work on a single project and the addition of a parallel graduate-level design course. The program merger has yielded a stronger and more relevant student experience as well as better autonomous vehicle quality. It has also required the navigation of differences in design methodology, grading structures, and department/discipline cultures. The introduction of a graduate design course provided a strong multi-cultural influence and much needed technical sophistication that directly contributed to increased success at the competition. In this work then, we present the resulting design course structure and process, and provide a frank treatment of the associated successes and challenges.