We report the piloting and initial assessment of a novel cross-college collaboration in which exploration of modern consumer and household devices in an engineering ”device dissection” laboratory is utilized to enhance student learning objectives and achievement in a junior-senior Studio course in Industrial Design (ID). The electric guitar and the compact disc (CD) player were chosen as first round devices. The ID students first explored these devices in teams of 4-5, discussed operation and dissection with senior engineering lab assistants, then returned to their ID studio to execute individual design responses to the initial device challenges. An unexpected dividend was the carryover to the ID Studio and inclusion there of the engineering lab assistants as part of the ideation and prototyping which is central to Industrial Design. Our initial experience was evaluated through interviews with ID students, engineering lab assistants, and design and engineering faculty. Interview results indicated two central positive outcomes: (1) device use and dissection in the engineering lab assisted the ID students in developing stronger technical comprehension and better design proposals, and (2) inclusion of engineering lab assistants in both the device lab and the industrial design studio facilitated achievement of desired, multidisciplinary design proposals. Thus, the addition of a “device dissection” engineering lab experience to an existing Industrial Design studio course demonstrated an enhancement in student performance. Plans for next year’s collaboration are presented.
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