Self-Stirring Coffee Cup Earns a Top Spot in Student Design Competition
While pouring a cup of coffee one evening, Daytona Beach Mechanical Engineering freshman Nolan Alexander ran into a problem: he had no spoon to stir sugar into his mug.
That dilemma sparked Alexander’s idea to create a self-stirring travel mug for an Engineering Fundamentals design competition with teammates David Roquebert and Matthew Pendleton.
The project, designed in the CATIA computer-aided design (CAD) program, won Most Creative Design Award during the third annual EGR120 Poster Competition Dec. 9.
By replicating the heat-trapping capabilities of a YETI tumbler cup and integrating a self-stirring element with a friendly interface, the students designed a mug that would keep beverages hot or cold for hours and eliminate the need for a spoon. By simply pressing an outside button on the mug, a battery-operated motor and mixing blade would kick into gear and stir the drink.
“As a freshman, this was the first time doing a project that was this in-depth,” Alexander said. “It was fun to come up with an idea and take it where you wanted. Our next step is to make a 3-D print of it.”
Engineering Professor Dr. Lulu Sun encouraged students to use their interests to design a real world product and make it better.
“The goal is to improve students’ study skills to prepare them to be the next generation of engineering professionals,” Dr. Sun said. “The expected outcomes are increased and improved innovative thinking, communication and teamwork skills while helping students develop their critical entrepreneurial mindset and skills.”
She said several students plan to conduct further research and development on their projects to take them to the next level.
More than 200 students participated in the competition, including 60 who presented their projects. Judges included: Dr. Marc Compere, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering; Dr. Hongyun Chen, assistant professor of Civil Engineering; Dr. Sally Blomstrom, Digital Studio Director and associate professor of Communication; Kaloki Nabutola, a Mechanical Engineering doctoral student; Matt Clark, an Aerospace Engineering graduate student; Dean White, a Mechanical Engineering graduate student; and Jaclyn Wiley, a Digital Studio student assistant.
Other winning projects
Best Presentation
- Longboard Breaks by Santiago Mujica, Samuel Feldman and Alexis Smith
- Alarm_U by Shane Leyden and Kurt Wiest
Most Sophisticated Design
- Contra-Rotating Propeller Drive Mechanism by Colin Nix and James Bennett
The People’s Choice
- Riddle Rocket by Ayotunde Gibert, Lezlee Roopchand and Joseph Zabbatin
The Best Poster Design Award
- KEG Engineering by Adam Eveleth, Andrew Guggenheim and Brittany Kinman
The Most Sustainable Design Award
- Balisong by Ruel Murant, Cole Simpkins and Austin Cassels
The Best of the Best Award
- Self-Performing Earphones (SPE) by Wanjiku Kanjumba and Alyssa Crystal