Design Notebooks

Background

You are required to keep an up-to-date design notebook throughout the term. This is an essential design practice that documents the history of your work. Your design notebook contributes to a significant portion of the individual component of your final grade .

Notebooks are required in professional practice as they are important legal documents. A notebook is your working design document, and it is populated as you work. Notebooks should not be after-the-fact make-work. At the same time, your notebook should also be something that you are proud of :) something that you could show to a potential employer.

Physical Notebooks

In general, notebooks should be either a 8.5" x 11" spiral-bound book (to make scanning easier) or a standard-bound engineering notebook. Unlined notebooks are preferred. Please obtain an appropriate notebook by the end of the second week of class.

Use your design notebook to document all of your work and contributions towards your team's project. You should always bring your up-to-date notebook to team meetings and any project-related activities. Notebooks are working documents, and they should provide a comprehensible trail for your product development effort. Illegible notebooks will receive a poor grade.

Please be sure to write the date on each page when you make entries and use indelible ink. Design notebooks are legal documents.