Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

1.  Research and determine the appropriate materials and manufacturing process(es) based on volume, materials, and cost for a product design. 

2.  Identify and define material life cycles for sustainability and manufacturability.

3.  Apply industry standard tolerances to a design and know standard manufacturing process tolerances.  

4.  Create a concept design using CAD that utilizes various manufacturing processes and engineering materials based on functional requirements.  

5. Using CAD, apply design for manufacturing and assembly techniques to mechanical designs.

Students will complete activities, assignments, projects and exams, which demonstrate:

• Selecting appropriate manufacturing processes and materials for a design project; evaluate based on cost, efficacy and capabilities for various design scenarios and requirements.  

• An understanding of materials selection and the effects on sustainability, recyclability, manufacturability and end of life requirements.  

• Application of various manufacturing processes and limits of the process for meeting  design goals in a product design.  Demonstrate industry standard design for manufacturing techniques for a given manufacturing process, including plastics molding, extrusions, sheet metal, machining, die casting, etc.

• The ability to create a design concept using CAD and selection of appropriate manufacturing processes and materials based on various requirements such as volume, cost and lifecycles.  Detail design, using CAD, at least two parts for DFM/DFA and demonstrate fit, form and function at an assembly level.   

• Participation in, and contribution to class discussions and activities.

The following may be assessed:

• Given a cost and volume target for a design, determine the best manufacturing process(es), calculate the return on investment based on tooling and other setup costs.

• Given a series of manufactured parts (either samples or images), identify the process used to manufacture them.  Explain and justify why a particular process was chosen for a given product.  

• Identify, classify and rate various part designs given various manufacturing processes for manufacturability (DFM).  

• Provide a concept design using CAD for a given set of design parameters.  Justify assumptions made to demonstrate knowledge of DFM at the detail part design level and at the assembly level.  

• Calculate tolerance stackup for a given design using standard manufacturing tolerances.  Suggest an alternate process(es) or design concept to eliminate the need for special manufacturing tolerances beyond standard.    

• Evaluate various materials and their characteristics as used in mechanical designs.  Including, but not limited to, cost, weight, machinability, sustainability, etc.  

Assessments must include evaluation of the students ability to arrive at correct conclusions using proper industry standard practices.  

At least two of the following additional measures must also be used:

• Take-home examinations

• Graded homework

• Quizzes

• Projects

• In-class activities

• Portfolios

THEMES:

• Engineering materials, applications and selection for a product design

• Manufacturing processes and application to product design

• Sustainability

• Design for Manufacturability and Assembly

• Problem solving

• Critical thinking

• Economic analysis

SKILLS:

BEST PRACTICES FOR DETAIL PART DESIGN USING VARIOUS MANUFACTURING PROCESSES WITH CAD

• Injection molding process and DFM relating to: parting lines, surface finishes, nominal wall thickness, draft angles, coring, sink marks, warpage, radii, undercuts, ejector marks, ribs, size limitations, tolerances and plastic materials.  Prototype tooling versus production tooling capabilities and cost.  Lifecycle management and recycling.  

• Sheet Metal Process and DFM relating to: bends, counterbores, curls, hemming, dimples, embossments and ribbing, gussets, extruded holes, slots, lances and louvers, notches, welding, plating, tolerances.   Prototype tooling versus production tooling capabilities and cost.   Lifecycle management and recycling.

• Casting Process and DFM relating to: parting lines, surface finishes, nominal wall thickness, draft angles, coring, sink marks, warpage, radii, undercuts, ejector locations and marks, ribs, identification markings, size limitations, tolerances.  Prototype tooling versus production tooling capabilities and cost.   Lifecycle management and recycling.

• Machining Process and DFM relating to:  part size, thickness, tolerances, text, radii and floor radii, surface finishing, fixturing, threaded holes, material machinability, cut depth, virtual sharps, undercuts, countersinks, chamfers, secondary operations, drilling and tapping.  Multi-axis CNC machining and capabilities.  Tooling, fixturing and setup costs.  Lifecycle management and recycling.

• Extrusion Process and DFM relating to: wall thickness, symmetry, size limitations, channel features, corner radii, profile shapes, cavities, secondary operations, tolerances, finishes, joints, tooling capabilities and cost.  Lifecycle management and recycling.

IDENTIFICATION AND SELECTION OF MANUFACTURING PROCESSES AND PRODUCTION VOLUMES

• Knowledge of common manufacturing processes:

  • Casting

  • Machining (Material removal)

  • Molding

  • Forming

  • Joining

  • Rapid Prototyping methods

• Calculation of cost per unit based on low, medium high manufacturing volumes relative to manufacturing process(es) including setup costs.  

• Secondary machining and plating operations and the effect on cost.

• Cost for production tooling and prototype tooling and application for various manufacturing volumes.  
   

ENGINEERING MATERIALS

• Intimate knowledge and basis for selection of common engineering materials used for product and mechanical design and as used in a manufacturing process.

  • Plastics: ABS, Acetal, Acrylic, Nylon, Polycarbonate, Polyester, Polyethylene, Polypropylene, Polystyrene, Polyurethane

  • Metals:  Aluminum 2024, 6061, 7075 series.  Steel: 1018, 1095, 12L14, 4130/4140 series.   Stainless Steel: 303/304/316, 17-4 series.  Tool Steel: A-2, D-2, O-1, S-7 series.  Brass: C314, C360 series.  

  • Overview of other common metals: Zinc, Beryllium Copper, Titanium, Nickel.  

• Properties of engineering materials that may affect a design:

  • Heat treatment

  • Tensile yield strength

  • Thermal/electrical conductivity

  • Hardness

  • machinability