Technology to allow car buyers to make more informed choices and a new app to teach elementary and middle-school students the fine art of finance are among the student projects that will be on display at this year’s Design Day.
The annual Michigan State University College of Engineering event begins at 8 a.m. Friday in the Engineering Building. It’s a time when as many as 140 projects are showcased, projects that not only offer an educational experience for the students, but benefit people and businesses throughout the region.
A total of 105 teams, composed of more than 400 students, will participate in Design Day, which is now in its 19th year.
Here are several examples of the projects that will be part of Design Day.
- Computer science and engineering seniors will present what’s called an augmented reality automobile guide application. It’s an app that lets car shoppers point their smart phone at a new car to collect all the information on it instantly and store it for easy access during the final buying decision. The project was funded by General Motors.
- Another team of CSE seniors will showcase a smart start savers iPad application that helps local elementary and middle school students learn about banking and saving. The project is funded by the MSU Federal Credit Union to reinforce the importance of teaching children how to save.
- Mechanical engineering seniors will present ways to improve the use of carboline paint containers and a new means of handling unused paint, which now has to be disposed of at a significant cost. Students will be suggesting a nonhazardous option. Union Pacific Railroad funds the project.
In addition, nearly 150 Michigan precollege students also will visit the campus during the day to take part in Design Day activities.
Award ceremonies are at 1:15 p.m. Friday in 1281 Anthony Hall, located on the east end of the Engineering Building.
This semester's Design Day sponsors include General Motors, Whirlpool, ArcelorMital, Bosch, MSUFCU, Norfolk Southern, TechSmith and USAA.
For more information, visit http://designday.egr.msu.edu/.