A First Experience with External Senior Design Mentors

Joseph Tranquillo, Donna Ebenstein,

James Baish, William King, Daniel Cavanagh

Bucknell Biomedical Engineering Program

•Bucknell BME curriculum characterized by:• Small class sizes (<18)• Hands-on labs associated with most classes• Eight Project/Design based courses • Two design and manufacturing courses• Progression of open-ended experiences

•Many opportunities to design and build

•Although open-ended, the context is limited• e.g. Signals and Systems Project• Students choose topics

•Have not yet needed to decided which skills to use.

Year 1-3: Build a Skill Set

Course: (Course Coordinator)• Semester 1: Develop problem ID and design solution• Semester 2: Make prototype

Projects: (Faculty Mentor)• Problem originates from external BME expert• Students drive solution to problem• Stay out of the way!

Learning: (Students)• Apply skill set to a real world problem• Create a functional prototype• Drive the process

Year 4: Use the Skill Set

• Mentor is an MD, RN or PhD (not an engineer)• Student: “What bugs you about your job?”• Help student teams

• Identify problem• Develop alternative solutions• Perform feasibility tests• Choose optimal solution• Test prototype

• Read written work and attend oral presentations• Presence at periodic meetings with student teams• Assistance in acquiring materials

Role of the External Mentor

NOT a Client!!!

Positive Characteristics

• Students spend considerable time on Problem ID• Frequent written and oral presentations

• Formal and informal in many formats and settings• Importance of audience

• Professional behavior• Interdisciplinary teams (ABET)

• Core: Student Team, advisor, mentor• Periphery: Regular meetings with BME faculty

•Creating a novel medical prototype• First-hand clinical exposure• Patents

• Life-long learning• Students (ABET again)• Faculty (motivation)

• Press

Challenges• Buy-in from external mentors

• Dedicate time and energy through the year• Sacrifice productivity for education of students• Conflicts between competing objectives

• Institutional legal positions

• Project move at different rates• Variation in expert/advisors and rigid due dates

• Students received little numerical feedback

• Prototypes look simple• Envy of products generated by other departments

Challenges provide many non-technical teachable moments

Our First Prototypes

• Cryoablation

• Zebrafish washing device

• Multi-input Infusion Device

• Pediatric Mixing Unit

• Force Indicator for Trocar

Our Next Iteration

• Held expo at Geisginer Medical Center to generate interest

• All projects mentored by Geisginer staff

• More clear written expectations of all roles

• More regular numerical feedback to students

• Three Week Rapid Design Contest