What do I do as a Mechanical Engineer?

Summary

The video script offers an insightful look into the daily life of a mechanical engineer, debunking the myth that engineers are akin to superheroes capable of single-handedly designing and building entire machines. It outlines the complex process of product development, which involves collaboration across various teams and can span years. The script details the stages of a product's life cycle, from introduction to decline, and the six key steps in the development process, including conceptual design, prototype design, detailed design, validation, optimization, and production. It also highlights the importance of understanding manufacturing processes, selecting materials, and the iterative nature of design. Additionally, the video emphasizes the non-technical aspects of an engineer's role, such as meetings, communication, and administrative tasks, painting a realistic picture of the engineering profession.

Takeaways

• 🔍 **Misconceptions Cleared**: The video aims to dispel common myths about engineers, emphasizing that they work collaboratively over long periods不像电影中那样夸张和简化工程师的能力。
• 🚀 **Product Lifecycle**: Products go through stages of introduction, growth, maturity, and decline, with engineers responsible for the entire development lifecycle. 产品有自己的生命周期，工程师负责整个产品开发生命周期。
• 🛠️ **Development Process**: The product development process generally includes six key steps: conceptual design, prototype design, detail design, validation, optimization, and production. 产品开发过程通常包括六个关键步骤：概念设计、原型设计、详细设计、验证、优化和生产。
• 🤝 **Collaboration**: Mechanical engineers work with teams including electrical, manufacturing, optical, and software engineers, highlighting the interdisciplinary nature of the work. 机械工程师与包括电气、制造、光学和软件工程师在内的团队合作，突显工作的跨学科性质。
• 📈 **Design Iteration**: The design evolves through stages, from concept to mass production, with constant refinement based on feedback and testing results. 设计从概念到大规模生产不断演变，根据反馈和测试结果不断改进。
• 📊 **Material Selection**: Engineers use systematic methods like Ashby charts to select optimal materials based on functional and technical specifications. 工程师使用系统方法，如Ashby图表，根据功能和技术规范选择最佳材料。
• 📐 **Detailed Design**: In the detailed design phase, engineers incorporate all mechanical features, consider manufacturability, and create production drawings. 在详细设计阶段，工程师整合所有机械特性，考虑可制造性，并创建生产图纸。
• 📝 **Documentation**: Engineers create bills of materials, quality tests, and manufacturing plans, ensuring thorough documentation for production and assembly. 工程师创建材料清单、质量测试和制造计划，确保生产和组装的详细文档。
• 🔬 **Validation Testing**: Rigorous testing, including environmental and battery testing, is conducted to validate the product before mass production. 在大规模生产之前，进行包括环境和电池测试在内的严格测试，以验证产品。
• 🔧 **Optimization Stage**: The final stage before production involves identifying and addressing any weak points in design or manufacturing. 生产前的最后一步涉及识别和解决设计或制造中的任何弱点。
• ⏭️ **Production Phase**: Mechanical engineers are often less involved in production, focusing instead on new projects or supporting minor issues as they arise. 机械工程师通常较少参与生产，而是专注于新项目或解决出现的次要问题。
• ⏰ **Time Allocation**: A mechanical engineer's time is divided among meetings, designing/testing, and administrative tasks, with meetings often taking up a significant portion. 机械工程师的时间分配在会议、设计/测试和行政任务之间，会议通常占据了很大一部分时间。

Q & A

What is the common misconception about engineers in movies and shows according to the script?

The script highlights that movies and shows often exaggerate and oversimplify the abilities of engineers, portraying them as individuals like Tony Stark who can design, build, and test complex machines almost instantly, whereas in reality, engineering is a collaborative and time-consuming process.

What are the key stages of product life cycles mentioned in the script?

The script mentions four key stages of product life cycles: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline.

How many steps are in the product development process described in the script, and what are they?

The product development process described in the script consists of six key steps: conceptual design, prototype design, detailed design, validation, optimization, and production.

What role do product managers play in the product development process?

Product managers define the product vision, feasibility, and pricing. They specify the product's features, dimensions, and requirements like color options and resistance qualities, which guide the engineering teams.

How does the use of CAD software benefit mechanical engineers during the prototype design phase?

CAD software allows mechanical engineers to create high-level preliminary 3D models and corresponding technical drawings, which facilitate the visualization and fabrication of each component, aiding in proof of concept development.

Why might the manufacturing processes differ between the proof of concept and the final product?

During the proof of concept, manufacturing processes like 3D printing are used for speed and flexibility to test ideas. For the final product, more cost-effective and efficient methods like CNC machining or casting are used for mass production.

What is an FMEA, and how is it used in the product development process?

FMEA stands for Failure Modes and Effects Analysis. It is a method used to identify potential failures in the design, their causes, and effects, helping engineers preemptively address issues before the product is manufactured and sold.

What is the significance of the validation stage in product development?

The validation stage focuses on ensuring that the product meets all functional requirements through rigorous testing, including regulatory and environmental tests, thereby verifying the product's readiness for mass production.

What is an Engineering Change Notice (ECN), and when is it required?

An Engineering Change Notice (ECN) documents any changes made to the design after the design has been finalized. It is required whenever a design change needs to be made to address issues or improvements, ensuring all modifications are tracked and justified.

How does the engineer's role evolve from the beginning to the end of a product development cycle?

Initially, engineers are deeply involved in designing and testing the product. As the cycle progresses to production, their role becomes more supervisory and less hands-on, with a focus on addressing any minor issues that arise as they start new projects.

Outlines

00:00

🔍 The Reality of Engineering: Beyond Hollywood Stereotypes

This paragraph discusses the common misconceptions about engineers perpetuated by movies and television shows, which often exaggerate and oversimplify their abilities. The speaker, a mechanical engineer, aims to clarify these misconceptions by sharing the day-to-day responsibilities of their role. The video outlines the life cycle of products, which includes stages such as introduction, growth, maturity, and decline, and emphasizes that engineers work collaboratively over long periods to develop products. The speaker also introduces the product development process, which consists of six key steps: conceptual design, prototype design, detail design, validation, optimization, and production. Each step is crucial for transforming a product from an idea to a market-ready item.

05:01

📐 The Product Development Process: From Concept to Consumer

The second paragraph delves into the intricacies of the product development process. It begins with the conceptual design phase, where product vision, feasibility, and pricing are determined primarily by marketing and product managers. Industrial designers create a digital surface model based on these requirements, which mechanical engineers import into CAD software to understand spatial constraints. The prototype design phase involves collaboration with various engineering disciplines to create a proof of concept, using CAD software to develop 3D models and technical drawings. This phase focuses on material selection, component feasibility, and the evolution of the design to fit manufacturing processes. The paragraph also highlights the importance of considering manufacturing factors, such as the differences between prototyping and mass production techniques, and the need for design iteration and refinement throughout the development process.

10:01

🛠️ Detailed Design to Production: The Mechanical Engineer's Role

The third paragraph covers the detailed design phase, where mechanical features are incorporated into the 3D CAD model, and critical questions about manufacturability and assembly are addressed. Production drawings are created and released, detailing dimensions, tolerances, and material specifications. The bill of materials is compiled, and quality and manufacturing plans are developed. The paragraph also discusses the collaboration with electrical and optical engineers to finalize designs and conduct a tolerance stack-up analysis. Technical design reviews and failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) are used to identify potential issues. The validation stage involves rigorous testing of the product, followed by the optimization stage, where weak points are addressed before mass production. The design is frozen, and any changes require an engineering change notice (ECN). Finally, the production phase is mentioned, where mechanical engineers may handle minor issues and often move on to new projects. The paragraph concludes by acknowledging the significant portion of non-technical and administrative tasks that are part of a mechanical engineer's job.

Keywords

💡Engineers

Engineers are professionals who apply scientific and mathematical principles to design, analyze, and build various structures, machines, devices, and systems. In the context of the video, the speaker clarifies the misconception that engineers can single-handedly design and build entire machines, which is not the case in reality. They work collaboratively in teams and often with hundreds or thousands of people to bring a product from concept to production.

💡Product Development Process

This refers to the systematic method that companies use to take a product from an initial idea to a finished good available for sale. The process includes stages like conceptual design, prototype design, detail design, validation, optimization, and production. It is central to the video's theme, as the speaker explains the role of mechanical engineers throughout this process.

💡CAD Software

Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software is a tool used by engineers to create precise technical drawings and three-dimensional models of components. In the video, the speaker mentions using CAD software like SolidWorks to create preliminary 3D models and technical drawings, which are essential for manufacturing the parts of a product.

💡Prototype Design

A prototype is an early sample or model of a product that is built to test a concept or process. The video emphasizes the importance of prototype design in demonstrating the product's basic features and feasibility. The speaker talks about using 3D printing to create multiple iterations of a phone's chassis for the proof of concept.

💡Detail Design

Detail design is the stage where all mechanical features of the actual product are incorporated into the 3D CAD model. It is a critical step where questions about manufacturability, assembly, tolerances, and fits are addressed. The speaker describes creating and releasing production drawings during this stage, which are essential for manufacturing.

💡Validation

Validation is the process of testing a product to ensure it meets all functional requirements and regulatory standards. The video script mentions sending units for rigorous testing such as burning drop, environmental, and battery testing. This stage is crucial to ensure the product's quality before mass production.

💡Optimization

Optimization refers to refining the product design to improve its quality, efficiency, or performance. In the video, the speaker discusses identifying weak points in the product during this stage and working with manufacturers to fine-tune manufacturing processes. It is the last opportunity to make changes before the product is mass-produced.

💡Engineering Change Notice (ECN)

An ECN is a formal document used to record changes made to a product design after the initial design has been completed. The video mentions that any subsequent engineering change requires completing an ECN, which documents the change and the reason for it, ensuring transparency in the design evolution.

💡Tolerance Stack Up Analysis

This is a method used to analyze and predict how the tolerances of individual components will accumulate to affect the overall performance of an assembly. The speaker mentions performing a tolerance stack-up analysis to ensure that all parts fit together correctly and that there are no interference issues.

💡Non-Technical Duties

While engineering roles are primarily technical, they also involve non-technical tasks such as attending meetings, communicating with team members, and administrative work. The video script highlights that a significant portion of an engineer's time is spent on these non-technical duties, which are essential for the smooth operation of engineering projects.

💡Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical engineering is a branch of engineering that involves the design, analysis, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is a broad discipline that can encompass product design, process design, and more. The video provides insight into the daily work of a mechanical engineer, emphasizing the collaborative and multifaceted nature of the role.

Highlights

Engineers often work in large teams, collaborating with hundreds or thousands of people to bring a product from idea to mass production, which can take a year or even a decade.

Products have a life cycle consisting of four key stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline.

The job of a mechanical engineer is to design, build, analyze, test, and optimize the hardware components that make up a functional product.

The product development process consists of six key steps: conceptual design, prototype design, detail design, validation, optimization, and production.

In the conceptual design stage, product managers define the product vision, feasibility, pricing, and key features based on marketing input.

Industrial/product designers create a digital surface model of the product based on requirements, which mechanical engineers import into CAD software.

In prototype design, engineers from various disciplines collaborate to create a proof of concept demonstrating the product's basic features and feasibility.

CAD software is used to create preliminary 3D models and technical drawings of each component for the proof of concept.

Manufacturing processes for the proof of concept, such as 3D printing, may differ from those used for the final product, like CNC machining or casting.

During detailed design, all mechanical features are incorporated into the 3D CAD model, and production drawings are created and released.

Suppliers provide valuable manufacturing feedback and quotes based on the production drawings.

A bill of materials (BOM) is created, listing all parts, sub-assemblies, their part numbers, and quantities needed for the final product.

Quality and manufacturing engineers help create quality tests and manufacturing plans to control product quality and define assembly processes.

Electrical and optical engineers provide finalized PCB layouts and optical designs so the mechanical design can be finalized and checked for interference.

Failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) is used to identify potential failures and their causes and effects before manufacturing.

In the validation stage, 50-200 units are rigorously tested for regulatory compliance, such as burn, drop, environmental, and battery testing.

Smaller companies may design fixtures for product testing and assembly, while larger companies partner with contract manufacturers.

The optimization stage focuses on refining the product design and manufacturing processes to address any weak points found during testing.

Once the design is frozen, any subsequent engineering changes require completing an engineering change notice (ECN) to document the change.

In the production stage, mechanical engineers are usually hands-off, with the project manager assigning them to new projects.

Mechanical engineering roles also involve non-technical and administrative tasks, such as meetings, emails, and ordering parts.

Transcripts

movies and shows often and accurately

portray Engineers they tend to

exaggerate and oversimplify our

abilities this is what I mean I said you

were done making weapons it is

a flight stabilizer it's completely

as much as I wish Engineers were like

Tony Stark who can single-handedly

design build and test entire machines in

a blink of an eye the reality is we work

and collaborate with hundreds if not

thousands of people to bring a product

from an idea to mass production which

may take a year or even a decade so I

decided to make a video to clear up some

common misconceptions and share what I

do day to day as a mechanical engineer

just like humans products have their own

life cycles and go through four key

stages introduction growth maturity and

decline the job of a mechanical engineer

is to design build analyze test and

optimize the hardware components

sub-assemblies and assemblies that make

up a functional product we are

responsible for a product throughout the

entire development stage of the product

life cycle in the development stage we

closely followed a product development

process which is used to take a product

from initial concept to store shelves

this process can vary slightly from

company to company but in general it

consists of six key steps conceptual

design prototype design detail design

validation optimization and production

it's very important for mechanical

engineers to be familiar with this

process so I'll explain the work I do

and the people I work with in each of

these six steps the first step consists

of deciding on a product concept that

has the greatest potential for success

and that customers will love as

Engineers we don't have to worry about

this problem as much and it's primarily

marketing's job to define a product

Vision feasibility of the product and

pricing product managers will tell us

how many colors will be offered the

overall product dimensions and what type

of features the phone must offer such as

Dynamic Island and how many lenses the

camera has to have they'll also tell us

that it must be Splash dust and water

resistant to start out industrial or

product designers will create a digital

surface model that details what the

product will look and feel like based on

the requirements provided by marketing

they will then send us this digital

surface model as a step file so that we

can import it into our computer-aided

design or CAD software such as inventor

SolidWorks Creo NX or Katia this way we

know precisely how much space we have to

work with and how big or small to make

internal components next is the Second

Step prototype design here we will work

with other mechanical engineers in the

same team as well as electrical

manufacturing Optical and software

Engineers create a proof of concept that

demonstrates the product's basic

features and feasibility in this stage

we'll use CAD software say SolidWorks to

create high level preliminary 3D models

of each component and corresponding to

the technical drawings so that each part

can be made later on however keep in

mind that the manufacture factoring

processes used to make the parts of the

proof of concept will ultimately differ

from the processes used to make the

parts of the final product for example

let's say we're designing a phone we

would use 3D printing to create multiple

iterations of the phone's chassis for

the proof of concept and in the next

stage we refine the part design so that

it can be mass produced using CNC

Machining or casting and a

cost-effective and efficient way we will

also begin to gather initial information

from electrical and Optical Engineers to

see how big the Apprentice circuit

boards sensors battery camera lenses and

wiring need to be and how everything

will fit together be mounted and sealed

obviously the design will constantly

evolve and change as we move through the

product development process and all

aspects of the design is fine-tuned for

example in the final product the

internal electrical components will be

secured via mounting features such as

screw bosses using a combination of

screws and special adhesive but for the

proof of concept these mounting features

would not be included and double-sided

tape will be used instead many features

and components like buttons and side

switches will be replaced by dummy

components in the proof of concept in

this stage we will also begin selecting

materials for each component based on

functional and technical specifications

of the product for example if the

phone's chassis needs to be corrosion

resistant dissipate heat quickly

lightweight impact resistant weldable

and easily machinable then we will need

to use a systematic method to choose the

optimal material such as an Ashby chart

moving on to the third step we have

detailed design this is a very critical

step where we design and incorporate all

of the mechanical features of the actual

product into the 3D CAD model for each

component and sub-assembly you need to

ask questions like can this undercut be

produced if yes will it drive a park

cost can these parts be assembled and

disassembled easily should I use snap

features or screws to mount this part

does this part require a loose or tight

tolerance do these two parts require a

clearance transition or interference fit

once the design is pretty much nailed

down we create and release the

production drawings which look like this

these drawings show different views of

the component and call out critical

dimensions tolerances and specify

information about the component's

material surface finish and revision

number we then send these drawings to

different suppliers who give us valuable

manufacturing feedback as well as a

quote which details the total cost

needed to make assemble and ship these

parts we will also create a bill of

materials or bomb which is just a list

containing all of the parts

sub-assemblies their part numbers and

quantities of each needed to make the

final product we will also work with

quality and Manufacturing Engineers to

create the quality test and

Manufacturing plans explaining how the

quality of the product will be

controlled how the product will be

tested and what processes equipment and

how much labor will be required to

assemble the final product in this stage

electrical and Optical Engineers also

need to provide us with the finalized

printed circuit board layouts and

Optical designs containing important

information Nation such as sensor

location so that we can begin to

finalize the cad model and perform a

tolerance Stack Up analysis to make sure

that everything fits together and that

there are no interference issues the

entire engineering team will have

several technical design reviews to

identify weaknesses in the design

potential failures that might occur such

as battery leakage and the effects of

these failures before the products is

actually manufactured assembled and sold

a common approach used in industry for

identifying failures causes and effects

is fairer modes and effects analysis or

FMEA which most schools don't teach

finally the last thing we do is Source

parts to build 20 to 50 units using the

intended materials and Manufacturing

processes for engineering design

validation testing or EVT to ensure all

functional product requirements are met

if say a design flaw is discovered

during testing we will go back to the

drawing board improve the design by

adding structural ribs and and then run

a finite element analysis study to

validate the performance of the design

change we then move into the validation

stage this stage focuses on testing the

out of the product typically we

send 50 to 200 units for rigorous

regulatory testing such as burning drop

testing Ingress Protection testing

environmental testing and extensive

battery testing take an iPhone 14 for

instance Apple advertises that it has an

ip68 rating under IEC standard

60529 which just means that this phone

is water resistant up to a depth of 6

meters for 30 minutes in order to

receive this rating Apple probably had a

certified test lab perform the Ingress

Protection test for smaller companies

you might also be responsible for

Designing fixtures used to test a

product or fixtures and jigs used to

hold components in place during assembly

of the final product larger companies

like apple will partner with contract

manufacturers like Foxconn who does

everything for them after putting the

product through so much testing we move

into the optimization or refinement

stage in this stage is very likely

you'll find some weak points in the

product whether it's design quality or

manufacturing related this is the last

opportunity for you to figure things out

and get things right before the product

is mass produced and sold we'll also

work with manufacturers to ensure that

manufacturing processes such as tooling

are fine-tuned quality assurance and

control procedures are finalized so that

high quality parts are coming off the

line and any outstanding issues like

packaging is addressed the design

becomes Frozen at this stage which

simply means that any subsequent

engineering change that needs to be made

will require us to First Complete an

engineering change notice or ecn whose

purpose is to document the design change

and the reason for the change so for

example sample if I were to leave the

company and two years later a new

engineer was working on the same product

he or she could see all the design

changes that were made and when exactly

they were made finally the last stage is

production and at this point mechanical

engineers are usually completely hands

off some minor issues that require your

support might come up from time to time

but it's very likely you already be

assigned to a new project by your

engineering manager all of the things I

mentioned so far are engineering related

but keep in mind that almost every

engineering job will come with a lot of

non-technical and administrative duties

which I like to call busy work if I had

to break down a time I spend doing all

the different types of work as a

mechanical engineer I'd say 40 of my

time is spent in meetings which includes

design reviews one-on-one meetings

department meetings and meetings with

suppliers 40 is spent designing

analyzing or testing products finally

the remaining 20 is spent talking to

people replying to emails writing

reports ordering parts or raw materials

and completing engineering change

notices obviously every mechanical

engineering role will be slightly

different because mechanical engineering

itself is a very broad discipline if

your job is product design oriented it's

very likely the work will be very

similar to mine and if it's process

design oriented you'll more likely work

on designing and optimizing the

manufacturing processes used to create

products anyway that's it for today guys

as always thank you so much for watching

and if you found this video helpful

don't forget to like subscribe and

comment and I'll see you in the next one

peace

[Music]