1. R
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    27 Jan '10 23:391 edit
    hey all,

    I and a small group af aspiring engineers have a project for school that could involve the re-design/re-engineering of an existing concept, coming up with something new, basically anything that could be theoretically brought to realization with minimal engineering skills. lol

    Any ideas, would be greatly appriciated.
    Thanks

    Eric
  2. Standard memberforkedknight
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    28 Jan '10 01:27
    What level/field of engineering is this? General Freshman? Civil? Mechanical? High School?

    I don't know if you'll get better ideas here than you would brainstorming in a group of students that know the requirements and instructor.
  3. Standard memberAThousandYoung
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    28 Jan '10 02:211 edit
    Originally posted by joe shmo
    hey all,

    I and a small group af aspiring engineers have a project for school that could involve the re-design/re-engineering of an existing concept, coming up with something new, basically anything that could be theoretically brought to realization with minimal engineering skills. lol

    Any ideas, would be greatly appriciated.
    Thanks

    Eric
    How about a bird feeder that sparrows can use but not pigeons?
    Or some sort of system in which mirrors are used to enable the driver of a car to see in the 'blind spots'.
  4. R
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    28 Jan '10 03:11
    Originally posted by forkedknight
    What level/field of engineering is this? General Freshman? Civil? Mechanical? High School?

    I don't know if you'll get better ideas here than you would brainstorming in a group of students that know the requirements and instructor.
    Sophmore, Mechanical, so we really dont know all that much about engineering, we are still hammering out the fundimentals...

    Its supposed to be modest in scope. I'm really just conducting this as a survey to see what people may have come across that they thought could have been done better ect...random simple ideas. Its for a Design course. So we dont actually build a prototype.

    Are first proposal isnt getting great reviews from the prof. becauase of lack of machanical involvment(the electrical major in the group came up with it) And it might not be substantial enough...so we scrambling around try to find an alternative. but the clock is ticking...haha
  5. R
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    28 Jan '10 03:13
    Originally posted by AThousandYoung
    How about a bird feeder that sparrows can use but not pigeons?
    Or some sort of system in which mirrors are used to enable the driver of a car to see in the 'blind spots'.
    i'll put them on the list. Thanks
  6. Subscribersonhouse
    Fast and Curious
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    28 Jan '10 04:03
    Originally posted by joe shmo
    Sophmore, Mechanical, so we really dont know all that much about engineering, we are still hammering out the fundimentals...

    Its supposed to be modest in scope. I'm really just conducting this as a survey to see what people may have come across that they thought could have been done better ect...random simple ideas. Its for a Design course. So we dont ...[text shortened]... al enough...so we scrambling around try to find an alternative. but the clock is ticking...haha
    I have some projects already going so here is a freebie:
    You know how there are waterless toilets, for urinating only, maybe you saw them, I see them showing up at our local cinema's. I was thinking about how to save water in home toilets and thought about this: A friend told me once, 'If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down'. So I was thinking, a way to save water would be if you made up a simple sensor, maybe a laser and APD, something like that, that could tell the difference if the water was more or less transparent or if there was stuff there that blocked the light. Now if women P, they leave behind paper usually, so it would not do a 50% reduction in water, but when a man P's, he usually does not leave paper so in that case, the sensor set would inhibit a flush. Now after a few male P's, the water would get progressively more opaque, so there would be something like a schmitt trigger, like a 339 chip that toggles when the water gets to a certain turbidity. THEN it flushes. See how that would save water and how many toilets there are in the world? If implemented even in just the US, it would clearly save millions of gallons of water. enjoy🙂
  7. R
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    28 Jan '10 04:33
    Originally posted by sonhouse
    I have some projects already going so here is a freebie:
    You know how there are waterless toilets, for urinating only, maybe you saw them, I see them showing up at our local cinema's. I was thinking about how to save water in home toilets and thought about this: A friend told me once, 'If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down'. So I was ...[text shortened]... emented even in just the US, it would clearly save millions of gallons of water. enjoy🙂
    thanks alot sonhouse its now on the list.
  8. Standard memberwolfgang59
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    28 Jan '10 12:54
    Originally posted by sonhouse
    I have some projects already going so here is a freebie:
    You know how there are waterless toilets, for urinating only, maybe you saw them, I see them showing up at our local cinema's. I was thinking about how to save water in home toilets and thought about this: A friend told me once, 'If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down'. So I was ...[text shortened]... emented even in just the US, it would clearly save millions of gallons of water. enjoy🙂
    How about an earth closet for the 21st Century?

    Waterless!
  9. R
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    28 Jan '10 13:44
    Originally posted by wolfgang59
    How about an earth closet for the 21st Century?

    Waterless!
    What is an Earth closet?
  10. Standard memberforkedknight
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    28 Jan '10 15:55
    Originally posted by joe shmo
    What is an Earth closet?
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composting_toilet
  11. Standard memberwolfgang59
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    28 Jan '10 16:051 edit
    Originally posted by joe shmo
    What is an Earth closet?
    In Victorian England there was a bit of a battle between the Water Closet (WC) and the Earth Closet. Unfortunately for the environment the WC won. Possibly time to rethink that!

    http://aj.hd.org/TFTC/E.html
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