Student teams searched for smart solutions to problems in the DESING+ project

In the 20th edition of the interdisciplinary project, students from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, the Faculty of Design and Art, the Faculty of Health Care Studies, and the Faculty of Economics worked in six teams, with half of them making it to the finals.

Six teams from four faculties of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen worked on projects like a smart adapter for a prosthetic hand or a workspace for testing components for space exploration. Students from various disciplines spent months developing innovations in collaboration with companies in Pilsen. On Wednesday, April 24th, they presented their final ideas at the concluding workshop of the international project DESING+. This year, their partners were STREICHER, spol. s r.o. Pilsen and Otto Bock ČR s.r.o.

STREICHER tasked students with creating a complete design and construction proposal for a workspace for testing space components. The workspace includes a modular vacuum chamber for simulating space conditions, a thermal unit, a vacuum pumping system, and a workspace for preparing and processing tested components. "We had to devise not only functional technology but also how this workspace should look visually. Colleagues from the Faculty of Health Care Studies also had to focus on the project from the perspective of employees' health to ensure the workspace was safe," describes Hedvika Pavelková, the manager of the student team from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering.

Another team had the same task but came up with a different idea. "We wanted to replace the chamber opening system and propose the movement of samples around the room, adding a QR code reader for samples," said team leader Adam Kič from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering.

Under the guidance of OttoBock representatives, teams were tasked with preparing a design and construction of a special smart adapter for a child's upper limb prosthesis that could be used even during sports activities. "We wanted our design to be easily and quickly printable on a 3D printer, inexpensive, allow 360-degree rotation, and still securely hold, for example, bicycle handlebars," explains Jakub Starec from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, who was responsible for the construction solution in his team.

Design and Mechanical Engineer ing – together DESING+ is an educational project of interdisciplinary cooperation among students of the University of West Bohemia faculties in designing technical innovations commissioned, consulted, and ultimately evaluated by well-known companies in Pilsen. This year, students from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, the Faculty of Design and Art, the Faculty of Health Care Studies, and the Faculty of Economics worked in six teams, with half of them making it to the finals. "At the beginning of the winter semester, students from several faculties do not even know each other, making it more difficult for them to come up with these innovations within weeks," says one of the project organizers, Stanislav Hosnedl.

After several months of designing and engineering work, students presented the results to businesses, educators, and the public. "The main significance of these projects cannot and should not lie in the depth of elaboration due to the short time for their solution, and thus 'doing things right,' but primarily in the interdisciplinary cooperation of students and non-construction, yet essential support disciplines, which contribute to problem-solving. Thus, 'doing right things'," explains the project's intent, Stanislav Hosnedl.

The DESING+ project has been held for the 20th time this year, with its final international workshop where students presented their topics in English, then for the 15th. The Language Preparation Institute assists students with preparing and delivering presentations. Topics and companies that assign them change annually. The goal is to encourage students to think beyond their own fields and learn to collaborate with other professions, which is essential for their future practice.