Product Design BSc (Hons) module details

 

Year one | Year two | Year three

Year one (Level 4)

The Principles of Design

In this module you will undertake design projects of increasing complexity and rigour; helping you to gain experience and confidence of working throughout the complete design process. You will draw upon skills and knowledge gained in each of the other modules to deliver creative, aesthetically appropriate and technically robust product outcomes. This module will also introduce and develop your knowledge of professional practice.

CAD for Product Designers 1

This module teaches you the fundamentals of CAD and provides you with the ability to communicate the visual and technical detail of a design through accurate three-dimensional (3D) models and produce both renders and animations of your designs.

Electrical Principles 1

This module provides basic concepts and knowledge for the analysis, design and development of simple electronic circuits. You will also be introduced to the basic operation of the Arduino microcontrollers for building digital devices.  

Electrical Principles 2 

This module will consolidate your knowledge of the fundamental principles in electrical and electronic science. You will develop a basic knowledge and understanding of common electronic systems for the analysis, design and development of simple electronic circuits. You will also explore how various concepts in electricity are linked to the network operation of devices, highlighting their practical use and application.

Mechanical Principles: Statics

This module provides you with a clear understanding of solid mechanics (statics) concepts and the application of these concepts to engineering problems.  You will learn how to apply solid mechanics (statics) concepts, equations and experimental techniques to the analysis of engineering problems.

Mechanical Principles: Dynamics

This module gives you a clear understanding of the concepts and principles of dynamics and their use in solving engineering problems. You will learn about kinematics and kinetics of particles and rigid bodies as well as the use of Work-Energy methods.

Workshop Practice

An important must-pass module in which all students undertake workshop and equipment inductions.

Year two (Level 5)

Design Practise 2

This module is pivotal in providing opportunities for you to develop your understanding of a wide range of design issues, ranging from commercial to social, and aesthetic to technical. The module also develops your ability to apply the design process as an effective tool for decision making and for the progressive exploration, development and definition of innovative design solutions. This module will also prepare you for applying to placements and further develop your knowledge of professional practice.

CAD for Product Designers 2

This module provides you with the opportunity to learn a range of three dimensional modelling techniques to enable you to produce highly effective renderings and detailed technical drawings to BS 8888. The module will introduce a typical work-flow for industrial design beginning with concept modelling and rendering through to final manufacturing definition and technical drawings.

Materials Engineering and Processing

This module focuses on the correct material selection for a given design. To do this you must understand how a materials structure can impact on its mechanical properties and processability. This module will equip you with the tools required to select the correct material for a given requirement.  

Project Management 

This module presents some of the background, theory and practice to enable you to embed project management expertise in your academic and professional development.  You will focus on the wider role of a project manager, such as scheduling, time/resource management and how future environmental pressures can influence a current project.             

Applied Electronics 

This module provides an insight into the practical applications of electronics. You will study basic functional blocks such as microcontrollers, power supplies, amplifiers, oscillators, data acquisition circuits etc. and will also look at methods of designing complex electronic systems. The module is led by a project: you will design, build and test a piece of electronic equipment, including CAD-based PCB design, layout and assembly.                    

Product Design 

This module gives you the opportunity to investigate the design process and apply the principles of product design methodology tools and analysis to solve engineering problems. You will develop your CAD skills and explore more technically advanced modelling and analysis techniques.

Year three (Level 6)

Industrial Design Projects

This major design project is composed of three parts: Firstly, a research Product Design Specification study aimed at establishing an appropriate design brief and objectives. The second stage is the exploration and development of a single concept that best expresses the design brief and objectives. In conclusion you will realise a detailed, fully-specified final design, presented as a 3D prototype and 2D presentation.

Product Communication and Career Launch Marketing

This module has been designed to prepare you for professional practice and employment through firstly enhancing your CV and application skills and then expanding your software skill-set and improving the content of your portfolio through development and design projects.

Electronic and Mechanical Systems

In conjunction with a strict regime of project management methodology this module will enable you to practice the computer aided product introduction process from concept to virtual embodiment and will consolidate your experience from the previous year’s Computer Aided Design and Analysis module.

Note: All modules are subject to change in order to keep content current.