Category Archives: Design Challenge

Design Challenge, Design Thinking, Fabrication, NOVA Fab Lab

Spotlight on a NOVA Design Challenge Award Winner

Tariq Aldalou, winner in the post-secondary division, brought in some middle eastern enrichment with his design.

Tariq triumphed in the Design Challenge by creating a unique musical instrument inspired by his origins in Damascus, Syria. He designed a Mini-Oud, a variant of the Arabic Oud, that resembles a lute.

Aldalou’s version, crafted from PLA (polylactic acid filament) using a 3D printer, measures 60cm by 30cm (an Oud traditionally measures 67cm by 36cm). It features lasercut wood hexagon sound holes and maintains the conventional 11 strings of a traditional Oud. To preserve its authenticity, he applied a matte finish and included dust remnants from the sanding process, also creating two smaller prototypes.

Encouraging participation, Tariq advises, “Join the challenge, even if you’re starting from scratch or your tools aren’t perfect. It’s all about learning and growing. My friends and I, despite time constraints, are eager to dive in, ready to embrace mistakes as part of our progress. We encourage everyone to get involved and explore, even with the simplest of ideas.”

Tariq initially got involved when he sought guidance for an engineering project from his physics professor, Francesca Viale. She recommended utilizing the resources at the Fab Lab.

After completing the NOVA Makers course on Canvas, Aldalou took an in-person class led by Kai Le, an evening support specialist. He also received aid from Mihai Ziu, a dual-enrolled high school student, in mastering the Tinkercard program and Autodesk Fusion 360 software.

Additionally, he took an online Zoom course taught by Ziu to become proficient in the Prusa slicer. Currently, he dedicates two evenings a week, from 5 pm to 9 pm, to his lab projects.

Aldalou shared, “I’m involved in various projects, including circuit design and signal transmission. I tend to procrastinate, but the deadline for the design challenge kept me focused.”

With the design challenge behind him, Aldalou is now focusing on a remote-controlled plane project, echoing his childhood passion for making and selling toy planes in Syria. In those days, he applied simple mathematics and basic materials like glue sticks, A4 paper, pens, scissors, and paper clips to bring his creations to life.

Pursuing degrees in engineering and math, Aldalou’s initial career aspirations leaned towards piloting. However, frequent relocations and a desire for family time shifted his focus to computer engineering, fueled by his love for math and experience in building computers in Lebanon.

He credits his NOVA success to professors like Viale and Chinthaka Hettitantri, his calculus instructor, and appreciates the ongoing support from his high school counselor, Michael Todd, and the Fab Lab team, especially Kai Le.

Aldalou aims to graduate from NOVA this year with associate degrees in engineering and math, planning to transfer to George Mason University for a bachelor’s degree in computer science. His ultimate goal is a PhD in mathematics, aspiring to make significant contributions to quantum computing.

 

Design Challenge, Design Thinking, Digital Fabrication, Fabrication, NOVA Fab Lab, STEM Awards

Design Challenge Winners Awarded

In early February, winning students for NOVA’s 5th bi-annual Design Challenge were honored at an award ceremony at the Fab Lab. The challenge this time was for middle school, high school, and post-secondary students to design and fabricate a unique musical instrument.

Mary Ratcliff, Fab Lab coordinator and organizer of this year’s challenge, said, “I didn’t realize I had put together the toughest challenge yet. Not only did I ask students to create a one-of-a-kind unique product, but I also required that it produce repeatable, predictable sounds.”

There were awards for participants at each school level, with NOVA students Ethan Cortes and Tariq Aldalou taking home the grand champion and post-secondary division titles, respectively.

Ethan Cortes from NOVA was named the Grand Champion with his innovative creation, the “Tri-Blown.” With a deep passion for brass instruments, Ethan designed an instrument that covers the full spectrum of brass sounds. Made from 3D printed PLA and tubing, the “Tri-Blown” can switch between three tubes and adjustable mouthpieces, emulating the deep resonance of a tuba, the rich tones of a trombone, and the bright notes of a trumpet—all in one instrument.

Cortes enthusiastically recommends the Design Challenge, noting his efforts to encourage participation among his STEM friends, despite their time constraints. He found the experience both enjoyable and educational, enhancing his skills in 3D printing and Autodesk Inventor design. “Winning aside, the experience has been incredibly valuable for my education and future. I’m grateful for being named the grand champion and look forward to involving my friends in the next event,” he said.

Tariq Aldalou, representing NOVA, clinched the Design Challenge title in the Post-Secondary Division with his innovative Mini Oud, made from 3D printed PLA and laser-cut wood. Tariq’s creation raises the bar for future competitions. Encouraging participation, Tariq advises, “Join the challenge, even if you’re starting from scratch or your tools aren’t perfect. It’s all about learning and growing. My friends and I, despite time constraints, are eager to dive in, ready to embrace mistakes as part of our progress. We encourage everyone to get involved and explore, even with the simplest of ideas.”

Sawyer Degregori and Trevor MacDuffee from Woodgrove High School were crowned the High School Division Champions for their creation, the “Double Quena.” Made from PVC, their design offers a contemporary twist on one of the oldest known instruments, the whistle, resulting in a flute-like instrument that has gained popularity within their school. Trevor shared, “All of the band students have really enjoyed playing it.”

Max Choe, representing Kilmer Middle School, was named the Middle School Division Champion for his creation, the “Air Keys.” Crafted from 3D printed PLA and integrated with microelectronics, this innovative instrument features small caps for the fingers. By flexing the fingers within these caps, users can produce sounds reminiscent of piano keys. The “Air Keys” stand out for their creative design, merging technology and traditional musical elements in a novel way.

The panel of judges for the challenge included Ilya Tëmkin, a professor at NOVA; Justin Owen, the NOVA IET CTE Coordinator; Chris Russell, Project Manager for the Information and Technologies division at NOVA; and David Tuohey, a Senior Process Engineer at BAE Systems in Manassas. BAE Systems has generously supported the design challenges through financial sponsorship since 2022.

Opened in January 2020, the Fab Lab stands as a premier makerspace welcoming students, faculty, staff from NOVA, and the broader educational community. It is dedicated to enhancing knowledge of digital fabrication by providing access to advanced fabrication techniques and 3D modeling training. The Fab Lab focuses on Design Thinking and problem-solving to foster innovation skills, launching a design challenge in Spring 2021 to encourage creative solutions to a specific issue.

The Next Challenge

Looking ahead to the next event, Physics Professor Elena Ziu and her son, Mihai, both avid NOVA Makers, will be lending their expertise to the upcoming spring design challenge. This challenge calls for participants to design a product to help improve the well-being of an animal.

Entries will be evaluated based on creativity, aesthetics, feasibility, and effectiveness. The competition is open to middle school, high school, homeschool, and post-secondary students, welcoming individual participants or teams of up to three.

The submission deadline is set for April 14. The Grand Champion will be awarded a Prusa MK4 3D Printer, while each Division Champion will receive a Prusa Mini+. For more details and to submit your entry, visit: https://www.nvcc.edu/academics/divisions/iet/fablab.html.

3D Printing, Community Partnerships, Design Challenge, Design Thinking, Fab Lab, Fabrication, Makers By Design NSF Grant, NOVA Awards, NOVA Fab Lab, STEM Awards

Spring Fab Lab Design Challenge Winners Awarded

Congratulations to the winners of the Spring ’23 NOVA Fab Lab Design Challenge!

The theme for this semester was Upcycling, where we challenged college, high school, and middle school students to use their innovative skills to design a product that reuses discarded objects or materials to create a product of usefulness and quality.

Grand prize winners Anirudh Holavanahalli, Rohan Matta, and Ajay Penugonda designed tires into a functional bookshelf, called “HigherTire”. They were awarded $1000 to split and their product was fabricated by the Fab Lab staff.

Anirudh Holavanahalli reflected “I like the concept of the design challenge and I’m also happy with the design that we as a team created. We reused old tires and added some wood and mechanics. I really like how the design looks, it’s hard to create. [The fabrication] looks exact and identical.

Fellow grand champion Rohan Matta added “I really like the design challenge because you don’t really see these types of upcycle designs, where it’s not just about how cool it looks. I never thought the final product would come out this good.”
Northern Virginia Community College students were well represented in the post-secondary division. Champion Makayla Draper participated in her second design challenge, also winning last Fall, and said she enjoyed “the theory aspect of this challenge.” Fellow NOVA compatriot Joe Le Sage also enjoyed the challenge, saying “it was fun to participate. I needed an excuse to design something and this was a good excuse.”

Mary Ratcliff, one of our Fab Lab Coordinators, started at NOVA in the fall and from week one was involved in conceptualizing the upcycling idea for the challenge and spearheading the logistics of communicating with participants and fabricating the product alongside Fab Lab Coordinator Richard Sewell and technician David Burn.

Ratcliff said “the Spring Design Challenge Awards Ceremony was a celebration of creativity, innovation, and resourcefulness. Winners from middle school, high school, and post-secondary divisions were honored for their imaginative, yet practical applications of upcycling. Wood pallets, CDs, and plastic bottles were just a few of the transformed materials incorporated into the winning designs. Congratulations to all Spring Design Challenge participants!”

One of the judges, John Hicks, owner of Fillagreen, loved the sustainability potential for upcycled products and reflected on his involvement:

“It was a great experience to see the creativity and thought leaders in today’s students. I look forward to seeing the great positive impact these participants will make on the world! Sustainability is within reach and is attainable through small steps.”

Thank you to our sponsors and community partners BAE Systems, Inc., Micron Technology, and Fillagreen as well as our judges John Hicks, David Tuohey, and Jim Crane.

We will be announcing our next Fab Lab Design Challenge in the Fall. For updates sign up for our monthly IET Newsletter at newsletter.novastem.us

#WeDoSTEM #DesignThinking #Upcycling