MAE 2250: Mechanical Synthesis is a course for sophomores at Cornell focused on teaching the fundamentals of mechanical design. We had two major projects: designing a water pump that could pump at least 1L/min, and designing a new product to exhibit user-centric design.
Myself and 5 other students worked to design and manufacture a single-piston water pump. I was chosen by my teammates to be the Scheduling Coordinator and Manufacturing Lead, making sure we got all of the required machine shop shifts and helping people to machine their parts as I had slightly more experience than some others.
Our pump was able to deliver 1.8L in one minute, which was the highest performing in our specific lab section. The entire project was completed over the course of 3 weeks, with a limited material and budget. Despite this, our pumps still performed with minimal leakage where some did not fit in the test fixture or move at all. There are many things in this project that could have been done better, however I am happy with the outcome considering it was the first experience I ever had with such a project and timeline.
My partner and I designed a spray paint booth for miniature model enthusiasts to be able to spray paint their artwork without needing additional ventilation in their homes.