UC College of Engineering and Applied Science Presents 2013 MET Tech Expo

As a senior enrolled in the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering and Applied Science, students are required to complete senior projects. These projects serve to demonstrate their knowledge gained over the course of their studies and also fulfill a graduation requirement.
 
The MET (mechanical engineering technology) Tech Expo is a way for MET seniors, in the School of Dynamic Systems, to display the projects they have been diligently working on throughout the entire school year. Seniors often begin work on these projects as early as late summer. “Once their projects are accepted, the students go into the information gathering stage where they do surveys of the potential customer base and come up with alternative designs,” said mechanical engineering technology adjunct professor Sam Antoline. “They then use various engineering methods to determine the most appropriate design against the metrics provided by their customers from their survey.”
 
The final projects are oriented towards the improvement of current products, processes and problems. “The idea behind the project is the students look for some type of a new product or a modification of something existing,” said Antoline. “And sometimes these are projects for the students’ employers.”

This year there are 60 seniors expected to present 40 projects.  Expo attendees can expect to see an array of designs from a pick up mechanism for RV’s to a Battle Bot to a wheel chair accessible ATV. According to Antoline, every year there are also intercollegiate team repeat projects. The SAE’s (Society of Automotive Engineers) Baja racing vehicle project is one example.

Another design on this year’s agenda is the Basic Utility Vehicle Project. “This project is to make a vehicle that can be easily built with off-the-shelf components in developing countries [and is] something that can carry passengers as well as cargo,” explains Antoline.

The expo will be held Thursday, April 4 on the first floor of the Victory Parkway campus in the cafeteria and on the front and side of the #42 parking lot. The event is from 2-5 p.m. rain or shine.