Students exhibit what may be the next great Canadian company during Capstone Design symposia

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Senior-year Waterloo Engineering students will showcase innovative projects ranging from a hockey bag that dries itself, a diabetic foot monitor to a low-cost prosthetic hand, as part of the annual  Capstone Design symposia, which starts March 20.

During the symposia, students in 11 programs will present more than 

Capstone Design project
150 ​projects they have spent months designing and building. Held during National Engineering Month, the event takes place over five days and the public is invited to attend.

On April 2, 15 qualifying teams will compete for $60,000 in a pitch presentation funded by the Esch Foundation. The winner of the Sedra People's Choice Award will receive an additional $3,000 in funding. 

Capstone Design, the culmination of the Waterloo Engineering undergraduate education, challenges students to push their ideas and apply the knowledge and skills learned in the classroom and on co-op work terms,” says Pearl Sullivan, dean of engineering. “The symposia provide a tremendous opportunity to see first-hand the creative technologies and work of our remarkably talented engineering students as they near graduation.”

Other project highlights this year include:

  • UV-responsive marker that indicates when to reapply sunscreen
  • Combination wheelchair and bed that reduces the need for caregiver assistance
  • Technology design to remove arsenic from drinking water in developing countries
  • Handheld device that determines your vitamin levels in minutes
  • Device that uses virtual reality technology for 3-D home tours
  • Personalized trip planner
  • Safe, easy-to-use consumer soldering iron
  • Automated green-roof system
  • Automated tree climber and fungicide sprayer
  • Intelligent brewing machine for making beer at home

Symposia dates and times:

Management Engineering

Friday, March 20 | 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Nanotechnology Engineering

Friday, March 20 | 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Software Engineering

Friday, March 20 | 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Civil, Environmental and Geological Engineering

Monday, March 23 | 1 to 4:30 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Wednesday, March 25 | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Mechatronics Engineering

Friday, March 27 | 1 to 5 p.m. | Great Hall, Davis Centre

Mechanical Engineering

Tuesday, March 31 | 2  to 6 p.m. | Sedra Student Design Centre, Engineering 5

Chemical Engineering

Tuesday, March 31 | 3  to 5 p.m. | Engineering 6

Norman Esch Capstone Design Awards

Thursday, April 2 | 2 p.m. | Sedra Student Design Centre, Engineering 5