On March 25th, we held our annual Mechatronics Engineering Fourth-Year Design Symposium Capstone event, and wow, there was a lot to see! Keep reading to check out some of this year’s projects.
From cookie dough to accessibility innovations, there was certainly a lot to see at this year’s Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Symposium. On March 20th, students showed off their fourth-year design projects, and there was no shortage of the “wow factor.”
We had the chance to chat with some of the students to learn more about their inspiration for their projects and how certain classes in their Mechanical Engineering degrees helped them devise innovative solutions to problems around the world.
Two professors in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering have received funding from the the Canada Foundation for Innovation to support transformative research projects.
On Thursday, March 7th, the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering held a special event to honour the academic excellence of its students who were named to the prestigious Term Dean’s Honours List for spring and fall 2023.
Stefanie Burinsma, a Mechanical Engineering alumna (BASc' 15), has introduced a platform designed to empower women when it comes to car maintenance. The platform connects women needing vehicle repairs or advice with a network of trusted experts and educators to help reduce instances of fraud and discrimination.
While finishing up their undergraduate degrees, two Waterloo Engineering students, Michael Phillips and Phillip Cooper (BASc ’17, mechanical engineering), developed a tiny camera – just one-third of a millimetre in diameter, to diagnose stroke patients as part of their fourth-year design project. This invention also marked the founding of Vena Medical.
Under the leadership of Dr. Ehsan Toyserkani, a professor at the University of Waterloo, Canada's largest metal additive manufacturing facility has opened in Kitchener. This 15,000 square foot, $25 million facility, equipped with advanced technology, aims to be a research hub for metal studies. It includes the Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing (MSAM) lab, where University of Waterloo students can engage with cutting-edge 3D printing technologies. Dr. Toyserkani believes this facility will boost local technological innovation and address global supply chain challenges, emphasizing its position as one of the top five global leaders in academic metal additive manufacturing.
Mary Wells, Dean of Waterloo Engineering and professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering has been named one of Canada’s most powerful women by The Women’s Executive Network (WXN) as a recipient under the Canadian Tire Impact category for her commitment to making the Faculty of Engineering a welcoming community for all by eliminating barriers.
Since becoming dean in 2020, Wells has become a founding partner of the Indigenous & Black Engineering Technology PhD Project, has taken meaningful action towards reconciliation with the creation of a new Elder-in-Residence role, and continues to be a fierce advocate for greater outreach initiatives to encourage equity-deserving groups to pursue their passion for STEM.
The Women’s Executive Network (WXN) is an organization that aims to propel and celebrate the advancement of professional women. The Canadian Tire Community Impact Award celebrates women from many sectors, including education, who bring people together, embrace community outreach, and amplify underrepresented voices.
Learn even more about the prestigious award win by reading the full story.
One of the Schulich Leaders in the Waterloo Community.
Evie Bouganim, a first-year mechatronics engineering student. For as long as she could remember, Evie loved solving problems, learning new things, and spending most of her free time on the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team, where she held several leadership positions. That’s why it’s no surprise that she’s found a great match with the mechatronics engineering program.
Evie says she’s most looking forward to “being in a program that’s tailored to content I love and being surrounded by like-minded peers.”
She has aspirations to lead the design and development of robotics and automation systems with specific application to the biotechnology industry when she graduates.
The choice to attend Waterloo was a no-brainer for Evie after feeling “welcomed” with every EngChat match and club fair she attended on campus, but it is the university’s “prestigious engineering, co-op programs and faculty that made the decision easy,” she says.