For this project, we brought in objects to reverse engineer. We first took apart individual items, and then decided on one object for our groups to focus on. My first item was a lantern, and I was able to discover how it worked before moving on to my second object. My group reverse engineered an Oster toaster. We followed the steps in the reverse engineering process to learn as much as we could about the product. The process is outlined in the presentation and report below.
This is the GANTT chart we made to keep track of our deadlines.
Concepts
reverse engineering - the reproduction of another manufacturer's product following detailed examination of its construction or composition. We used the reverse engineering process to find out how a toaster works.
Identify the purpose
Develop a hypothesis
Disassembly
Analyze the elements
Prepare the report
Product redesign
engineer - a person who designs, builds, or maintains engines, machines, or public works. We acted as engineers in this project. conceptual sketch - helps to show how groups of elements are connected together to form systems. We made conceptual sketches of our toaster. You can see some of them in our presentation. exploded view - a diagram, picture, schematic or technical drawing of an object, that shows the relationship or order of assembly of various parts. We drew our schematics using exploded view. research/data analysis - the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. We researched our product using the Internet, but couldn't find anything, so we researched generally how toasters work. materials - the things from which products are made. We found the materials that made up our toaster. motion - the action or process of moving or being moved. The motion in our toaster was the movement of electricity throughout the circuit. energy - the capacity or power to do work, such as the capacity to move an object (of a given mass) by the application of force. The energy in our toaster was electricity that came from the plug. information - facts provided or given about something. The information that our toaster contains is the bimetallic switch that knows when the toast is done. systems - a set of connected things or parts forming a complex whole. The system that we analyzed was a toaster.
Reflection
During this project, I learned a lot about reverse engineering. It was great to start the year off with a very hands on project. When we started the project, we had a lot to do and we knew exactly what we had to get done. It was great to know that and we were very productive during that time, making it one of the best parts of the project. Another time I was proud of myself was when I learned how toasters worked even though we couldn't find anything about it on the Internet. I was able to find very detailed sources that explained how it worked very well. This was a great moment because everything clicked and I really understood the product. Related to this positive, one area where we struggled was finding information about our individual toaster. It was so old that we couldn't find anything on the Internet, so we had to use the functionality of a general toaster. Another area where we struggled was in managing timelines. Because we had so many different projects going on at the same time, it was hard to figure out a schedule to get everything done. Luckily, the GANTT chart that we made helped us keep track of the many things that were due. During this project, I learned what reverse engineering was and was able to put it into practice. I also learned many new terms and basic engineering concepts. I also learned to compromise better in this project, because there were some things I thought would be better one way, but my group didn't agree. In this case, we looked at each option in depth and made the best choice. This was a very responsible way to handle the disagreement and resulted in a cohesive project.