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Record Number of Seniors to Display Projects at Engineering Design Day 2014

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Record Number of Seniors to Display Projects at Engineering Design Day 2014

April 25, 2014
In a dazzling turnout of talent and technology, more than 350 students will showcase an enormous range of innovations at the 2014 UA College of Engineering Design Day.

Creative sparks will be flying at the 2014 Engineering Design Day at the UA College of Engineering, a design extravaganza featuring 64 completely original engineering projects by more than 350 students majoring in various engineering disciplines.

“This is the best day of the academic year,” said Jeff Goldberg, dean of the UA College of Engineering. “This is the day when we when show the world how engineers help people and improve the quality of life by designing engineering solutions to societal problems.”

Many UA Engineering Design Day projects and prizes are sponsored by industry, and projects can go on to be real commercial products. National and local engineering firms also support the projects by providing judges who rate designs and select winners for the numerous cash prizes, also provided by industry partners.

“The Interdisciplinary Engineering Design Program at the University of Arizona allows teams of engineering students to work directly with industry and faculty on real-life projects,” Goldberg said. “Seniors from across the College of Engineering work in multidisciplinary teams to solve design problems identified by industry partners, faculty, and student clubs.”

Student projects on display at UA Engineering Design Day, May 6, 2014, in the North Ballroom of the Student Union Memorial Center, include:

• Unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, for use in hazardous environments or to help search and rescue teams locate lost or injured hikers.
• Wearable technology that identifies frailty in older adults.
• Smartphone app that uses bicycle-mounted radar to warn cyclists about potential collisions.
• Border surveillance system camouflaged as a saguaro cactus.
• Resistance suit for astronauts to counter bone and muscle loss caused by extended periods in zero gravity.
• Smartphone app that tests users’ hearing and works as a customizable hearing aid.
• Robot lawnmower -- just kick back and watch it cut your grass.

>> Design Day Guide Book: Full list of projects on display at Engineering Design Day.

>> UPDATED: List of 2014 Prize Winners

More than $14,000 in prize money, provided by event sponsors, will go to winning teams in several different categories, including Best Overall Design Award, the Fish Out of Water Award, the Innate Art and Beauty of Engineering Award, Best Sustainable Engineering Award, and many others.

Some of the projects on display – such as race cars, robot lawnmowers, and aquaponics projects – are simply to big, noisy or dangerous to house inside the student union ballroom, and an outdoor overflow area will be set up under tents on the UA Mall in front of Old Main to accommodate these industrial strength project demonstrations.

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AT A GLANCE
University of Arizona College of Engineering Design Day 2014 is free and open to the public.

When:
Tuesday, May 6, 2014, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Awards ceremony at 4 p.m.

Where:
North Ballroom, University of Arizona Student Union Memorial Center. For safety and health reasons, some projects will be displayed on the UA Mall south of the Student Union.

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CONTACTS:

Jini Kandyil, Engineering 498 Coordinator
520.621.4692 - rmk023000@email.arizona.edu

Pete Brown, Director of Communications, UA College of Engineering
520.621.3754 - pnb@email.arizona.edu

Karina Barrentine, Marketing Specialist, UA College of Engineering
520.621.0191 - karinab@email.arizona.edu