Bioengineering Capstone Sponsorship

About bioengineering capstone projects

Submit a project intake form

Capstone in the bioengineering department is a collaboration between the bioengineering Undergraduate Program and the Master of Engineering Program. The department of bioengineering invites capstone design projects sponsored by industrial and clinical entities. The companies may provide information on their products or processes that is used to formulate interesting projects for students. In turn, the students benefit from working on a project that is relevant to current engineering practice.

Bioengineering students receive very broad training, completing coursework in the life sciences, physical sciences, biomaterials, biomechanics, electronics, and bioinstrumentation. In addition, they have extensive training in their concentration area (therapeutics, biomechanics, tissue engineering, imaging and sensing, computational biology/bioengineering). Groups are made up of 3-4 students depending on project needs.

The main criteria for a project are that it be design oriented, have a biological application and be well defined but open-ended. They should not be "research projects" exclusively, but should involve creation of a prototype, device or instrument. The design project should be of realistic scope and time frame for both development and prototyping in 6 months and one for which some design concepts exist, but you are flexible about the solution. As a sponsor you will be providing ideas about problems to be solved, asked to meet with students periodically to serve as a client, and provide expertise related to the problem.

If a project requires specialized materials or parts, the sponsor is responsible for purchasing the parts and shipping them to the University.

In exchange for accepting sponsorship, you will receive concept generation and selection, consideration of alternatives, development of a working prototype or device (in MOST cases), test data, consideration of patentability, and suggestions for further testing. As a client, you will not be responsible for grading or other administrative details, but you will be asked to assess the design team at the end of each term, and this assessment will contribute significantly to each student's grade. If you are interested in assisting with this effort, please fill out this form. If you would like to participate but are not sure about an idea to submit, please contact us at any time and we would be happy to work with you to come up with an appropriate design problem.