April 24 engineering capstone showcase offers glimpse into future

An electric bike that uses pedal rotation to charge its battery, a system for sustainable crop production in space, and a programmable device that plays guitar are just a few of the 200-plus innovations on display from undergraduate engineering students on Tuesday, April 24 at The Ohio State University.

With more than 850 students representing 14 engineering majors and 20 non-engineering majors, the 11^th annual Engineering Capstone Design Showcase will be the event’s largest installment yet.

As part of the College of Engineering’s focus on experiential learning, all undergraduate engineering students must spend one to two semesters tackling a real-world problem before graduation. Other projects on display at the event include a web platform that supports healthy child development, an intelligent car that measures the driver’s biometrics to predict anxiety, and a system that reduces post-harvest loss in one of the least food secure countries in the world.

More than 70 companies sponsored engineering capstone projects at Ohio State over the past academic year, including Coca-Cola, EduTechnologic, EnergyEne, Honda, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams, NASA, NetJets and The Wendy’s Company.

Sponsored by ArcelorMittal and organized by the College of Engineering’s Department of Engineering Education, the showcase attracts several hundred visitors from industry, the general public and the university community.

Held from 12:00-3:30 p.m. in the Ohio Union, the event also includes the 15th Annual Fundamentals of Engineering for Honors Research Showcase. It features lab-on-a-chip devices designed by teams of first-year engineering students to detect a disease from a blood sample and solve a real-world medical problem. 

WHAT: The Engineering Capstone Design Showcase is a culmination of more than 200 senior undergraduate engineering capstone design projects. Individual students and teams present their projects and selected findings to industry representatives and the Ohio State community. 

WHEN: 12:00-3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 24, 2018

WHERE: Ohio Union, Archie Griffin Grand Ballroom (2^nd floor) and Cartoon Room (3^rd floor), 1739 N. High St., Columbus, Ohio 43210 

Editors: Students and faculty will be available for interviews. Photographers and videographers are welcome to attend the event and take photos or video. RSVP to Meggie Biss at biss.11@osu.edu or 614-292-7713.

Meet a few teams from the 2017 Engineering Capstone Design Showcase: