M.Eng. Projects
M.Eng. Project Information for Potential Employers
The M.Eng. program is an excellent opportunity for potential employers to work with some of our top students. In the M.Eng. program, students who have just completed their B.A.Sc. work in industry on a large project that integrates mechanical systems, electronic instrumentation and computer controls. Supervised by both a senior engineer at the employing company and an advising professor, projects are a year in length, and are usually completed by pairs of students.
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Students in the M.Eng. program complete two project courses, MECH 551 and 552.
MECH 551 (6) Electro-Mechanical System Design Project I - The design, analysis, manufacturability, instrumentation and computer control of a selected dynamic machinery assembly will be studied. [0-4-2]
MECH 552 (6) Electro-Mechanical System Design Project II - The full assembly, instrumentation, computer and electronic interfacing, and testing of a dynamic machine. [0-3-1] Prerequisite: MECH 551.
The courses are usually done in tandem, with two students working on a single industrial project. At the end of their M.Eng. program, students are required to submit two M.Eng. theses, one for each aspect of the project. The contents of the M.Eng. Theses reports must be of sufficient quality and technical complexity to to meet the University's Graduate Studies requirements. As such, the projects selected for Mechatronics students must be of sufficient quality that the work done in the project can be reported in the theses.
Students are required to submit one page weekly progress reports to both their industry and faculty supervisors. At the end of the first four months of the project, students must submit a progress report, which serves as a basis for the review of the project and the M.Eng. theses. The students are also required to present their work to other Mechatronics students at a seminar session held after the first four months of the project.
The marks distribution of an M.Eng. project is as follows:
| Mechanical Design | 25% |
| Electrical Design | 15% |
| Software Engineering | 15% |
| Justifying the design using the fundamentals of engineering principles (solid mechanics, controls, dynamics, thermofluids, electronics) | 20% |
| Drawings | 10% |
| Presentation (Report and Oral Exam) | 15% |
| Total | 100% |
Students must fulfill all six requirements in order to complete the M.Eng. project requirements. The academic and industrial supervisors / examining committee will assign marks for each category.
Employers must be committed to providing the workspace, tools, equipment and engineering supervision necessary for completion of the project. Faculty supervisors will assist where possible in the project definition, design, analysis, etc. of the project. As part of a teaching and learning enhancement grant received by the Mechatronics program, we have tools available, such as a digital oscilloscope, portable data acquisition system, image acquisition system, and sensors. This equipment is available for students to use on a short-term loan basis to assist in analyzing project data, or to assist in determining the type of tools that the company may need to obtain for their business needs.
Companies are expected to negotiate salaries with Mechatronics students. Typical Mechatronics salaries are similar to graduate student salaries and reflect the fact that, during the M.Eng. year, the students must also take six courses. The salaries are capped at $21,000 per student per year. These salary guidelines reflect the fact that Mechatronics students and companies are expected to support and fulfill the academic requirements of the program. It is up to the companies and the students to determine the exact salary, benefits, and pay periods.
The timeline for an M.Eng. program is as follows:
| Month(s) | Activities |
| February | Mechatronics Industry Night
Students and Industry connect to explore project possibilities |
| May after B.A.Sc. graduation | Begin M.Eng. project |
| Weekly throughout M.Eng. | Weekly progress reports to faculty and industrial sponsors |
| Late August | Formal Progress Report due |
| Early September | Progress Report Presentations |
| December | First M.Eng. Thesis report due (near final draft form) |
| March | Second M.Eng. Thesis report due (near final draft form) |
| April | M.Eng. Exams
Final M.Eng. Thesis Report due |
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Last reviewed 
12/15/2009 10:15:46 AM