Project Proposal

The first step for the project will be a clear statement of the objectives, a set of hand drawings, and a proof-of-concept device demonstrating a key principle.

Project Brief (Draft)

Revised for 2026.

Our goal is to create a kinetic object which sparks joy for another person and test it in a public space.

By kinetic, I mean it involves some element of mechanical movement. This might incidentally create sound or create a visual effect, but the core principle should involve mechanism.

Many things can spark joy: toys and play, beauty, love, memory, instinct. But our challenge is not to create the experience for yourself, but for others. We will discover this by choosing public spaces in which to demo and test our objects using both friends and strangers.

This is an abstract goal which we will incrementally refine through experiments and case studies. But it is quite open-ended.

Technical Constraints

Revised for 2026.

There are no firm technical constraints: the best technology is one which suits the needs of the user. If you have questions about the requirements or limitations for a specific idea, please do not hesitate to ask.

But here are some considerations:

  1. We would like to keep projects relatively small. They might be hand-held, wearable, or table-top sized. Please remember even small machines can achieve larger presence through the use of light, sound, and motion.

  2. We will primarily fabricate parts using the laser cutters. Specific parts may justify 3D printing.

  3. Often devices are best powered by a human or battery to avoid the need for finding power outlets. Human power can include hand-cranks, direct manipulation, or wearables. Solar power is potentially an option to explore.

  4. Devices will likely have no more than two motors or actuators. We can use mechanism to add articulation if needed.

  5. Devices will usually require a microcontroller, but for some ideas a case can be made for purely mechanical control.

Objectives

After this exercise, you should be able to:

  1. Collaborate with a partner on concept development.

  2. Articulate a narrative of machine behavior and form.

  3. Partition a system design between mechanical, computational, and electrical domains.

  4. Write a clear and concise description of a mechanical system combining computation and mechanism.

  5. Draw multiple views of a machine at a precision to reveal design and engineering concerns.

  6. Identify an specific attribute suitable for proof-of-concept testing.

Prompts

After identifying a specific machine idea, a full design consideration involves thinking through the entire development process even in the presence of unknowns and contingencies. Ideally, at this point the process will raise all the major questions which the project might encounter and provide tentative answers, even though many more questions will be discovered during development.

This initial consideration of your idea will answer many of the following prompt questions:

  1. What is your big idea, in a sentence or two?

  2. If you apply Why-How Laddering, can you identify an essential underlying question? What is the simplest abstraction of your idea? (See also Ideation and Brainstorming).

  3. Who is the audience? This might include users, viewers, passive bystanders, or remote persons.

  4. What is the experience of the audience? What might they remember?

  5. Where would the machine be used or located, and under what circumstances?

  6. Does the work reference existing projects? Please include citations.

Proof of Concept

We have defined ‘proof-of-concept’ as the smallest possible demo which supports that the concept will work both artistically and technically. Most projects usually start with one or more unanswered questions, and this demo is the chance to test the most critical of these.

Please design and fabricate a small device which demonstrates some critical aspect of your idea, using the same means and materials we have explored so far.

You might choose to:

  • build at reduced scale

  • test a sound-producing process

  • test a specific mode of physical interaction

Motors are fine, but I recommend focusing on mechanism and not including a microcontroller at this stage.

Checklist

The following represents a minimum result, please extend this as appropriate for your given idea. The result should be complete enough to give you confidence that your idea is both feasible and meaningful.

  1. Narrative description.

    • Title.

    • Short summary of the purpose or application.

    • A brief narrative description of a typical experience.

    • How might your audience respond?

  2. Technical outline.

    • Short summary of the first-draft technical solution.

    • How does it work? What are the physical principles?

    • What kind of materials, structure, and mechanism?

    • What kind of sensors, actuators, and algorithms?

    • What are the key technical challenges?

  3. Drawings. These are not production drawings; they may be hand-drawn. The purpose is to identify approach and structure, not necessarily fabricate parts.

    • Isometric or perspective view of the overall device or installation. Please include scale and units.

    • Detailed two-view or three-view drawings for any mechanical elements (structure, bearings, linkages, motor drives, circuit boards, etc.) Please include scale and units.

    • Visual depiction of the project in context.

  4. Proof-of-concept test device (discussed above). This is intended to demonstrate one principle and should be simpler than the full project.

    • Photo and video of the device in operation.

    • The SolidWorks CAD files for the test device.

Deliverables

  1. By Monday: please bring concept sketches to class and be prepared for brief individual meetings to review your ideas.

  2. Please post your project text and drawings in the shared folder on the course site. Please create only one post per group (if working with a partner).

  3. For Wednesday: please be prepared to give a short (5 minute) verbal presentation of your idea in class using your post as media, to be followed by questions and critique.

  4. For Wednesday: please be prepared to demonstrate your proof-of-concept device and explain its purpose.