Last week, the School of System Design and Intelligent Manufacturing (SDIM) at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) oversaw the closing ceremony of its “New Engineering Summer Course and Da Vinci Challenge Camp – Summer Camp 2019.” This is the summary and report of six-week study. Students implemented their knowledge study based on projects development with the methodology and concept of New Engineering Education(NEE).

SDIM’s first NEE course “Introduction to Integrated System Design” was officially launched on June 24 and designed by SDIM faculty team. The course covered the introduction of Design Thinking, Introduction to Product Design, Field Trip and User Research, Market and Comparable Product Research, Sketching and CAD, Parts Manufacturing and Assembly, Materials Selection, 3D Printing, and Introduction to Embedded Systems.

The theme of this course is “Care Products for the Elderly”. Through on-the-spot investigation and user pain point analysis, students have developed products for the elderly, such as medication, wheelchair travel and mental health. In the final project R&D report, the students demonstrated the knowledge and skills acquired in the six-week study of the new subject curriculum system in a range of different areas.

Prof. Wu Jingshen, Dean of SDIM, said in the closing ceremony that the purpose of the New Engineering Education is not only to teach students to design products, but also seeks to cultivate their curiosity, enthusiasm and ability for lifelong learning, team work ability and skills. It also aims to help students to form a conscious paradigm of systematic and innovative thinking while gaining entrepreneurial and global vision. At the same time, students should have clearly and fully understanding on how to become excellent engineers who can meet society’s future needs.

Prof. Wu Jingshen, Dean of SDIM, and Prof. Zhou Limin, Vice Dean of Engineering School of Hong Kong Polytechnic University, awarded certificates for domestic and foreign coaches, who comes from famous universities such as the Olin College of Engineering (USA), the Technical University of Denmark, University of California Irvine (USA), University of East Anglia (UK) and Nanjing University. Based on their learning experience and knowledge, the coaches delivered excellent guidance for students to study in their project research and development during the summer camp. This is a very fruitful trial for SDIM’s NEE course.

At the end of the summer camp, several projects stood out. The project, “Intelligent Night Lighting Slippers”, won the “Most Creative Award”. It can automatically identify dark environments and foot pressure to illuminate the nearby area, while being both waterproof and skid-proof. The “Best Team Award” was won by the team who developed “Pop Chair, an electric wheelchair.” By applying the system the team developed, the manual wheelchair can be upgraded to an electrical one with very low cost, which could greatly help more elderly people to enjoy more convenient wheelchairs. The “Best Prototype Design Award” was received by the team behind the “Safe Medicine Distribution Machine,” whose device is intended to assist those who need to take regular medication for an extended period of time at consistent intervals.

The Summer Camp is SDIM’s first attempt at its new undergraduate curriculum system. SDIM has accumulated valuable knowledge and experience for its continuing curriculum development.