Fourteen schools vie for top design prize at Congress

ASME student members from around the globe will put their design skills to the test once again this year at the ASME Student Design Competition finals during the ASME Congress. This year, the student teams were assigned the challenge of designing and building a prototype of a fishing rod and reel that a quadriplegic could operate.

Teams from 14 universities will convene at the Chicago Hilton for the ASME Student Design Competition championship round, which will run from 1-5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5, in the Grand Ballroom on the second floor of the hotel. ASME sponsors the annual Student Design Competition with major funding provided by the Chicago-based Boeing Co.

The 14 universities, which include Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Indian Institute of Technology, were winners of their respective regional design competitions held earlier this year.

The devices employ a "sip and puff" input controller, commonly used to maneuver wheelchairs, which will be simulated by switches mounted on the rod and reel. In the competition, the fisher must cast a simulated lure and attempt to hit targets set at varying distances. The distances from the targets are measured and the lowest score wins. Other judging criteria include cost effectiveness, testing methodology, and reliability.

The winners will receive trophies and monetary prizes, plus an additional sum that helps fund their student mechanical engineering sections at their universities.

The 2006 finalists are Baylor University, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Indian Institute of Technology, McGill University, Michigan State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, New Mexico State University, Oregon State University, Pennsylvania State University, University of Alabama, University of Missouri at Columbia, University of Nevada at Reno, Virginia Polytechnic University, and Western Kentucky University.

The 14 finalists advanced from a field of 117 entries in 73 of ASME's student sections around the world. A total of 466 students participated in the regional competitions.

To find out what else is happening at the 2006 ASME Congress, visit www.asmeconferences.org/congress06.

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