Course Description
This hands-on design studio course requires students to engage in design and work on creating technologies for underserved communities in developing countries. The course consists of case studies, hands-on labs, guest speakers, and a guided design process with reviews by experts and professionals in development and design. Students work in multidisciplinary teams on term-long projects in collaboration with community partners, field practitioners, and experts in relevant fields. Students are exposed to many hands-on fabrication and prototyping skills relevant to product development at Cal Poly and manufacturing in their partner community. This course builds on Poly D-Lab-1, however it is not a required prerequisite.
Course Goals
- To learn about the design process
- To develop technical solutions for underserved communities
- To practice creative design in a real-world context
- To understand the constraints when designing for the developing world
- To learn hands-on prototyping and manufacturing skills
- To develop problem solving and critical thinking skills
- To recognize the potential impact of engineers in the world
Required text and readings
There are four books that will be assigned in this class: Gaviotas by Alan Weisman, Small is Beautiful by Ernst Schumacher, Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, and Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid by C.K. Prahalad. Each student will be responsible for reading (at least) one of them and leading an in-class discussion with the rest of the class. Additional required reading material will be posted in Blackboard.
Course Structure
The course is comprised of four main components: lectures, design team projects, lab modules and design reviews. Instructors and guest speakers will offer lectures and case studies on a variety of technologies and how they relate to design for developing countries. Students will apply the material presented in class to their own design projects. A series of lab modules will be offered that provide hands-on instruction in topics such as: welding, sheet metal fabrication, water jet cutting, basic machining, computer-aided design and other topics that are particularly relevant to prototyping the design projects. There will be two design reviews where project teams present their ideas to a panel of consultants—the first review will be a poster session, the second, oral presentations. The course will culminate with final presentations at the Cal Poly Science Fair, or similar event.
Design team meetings
The design projects are an integral part of the class and will be done in teams of three to five students. Each group will schedule a project meeting time and will meet regularly throughout the semester with their project mentor.