Professional and Technical Written

Communication for Engineers

Session Eight

Test Procedure and Discussion of Results

Prototype Demonstration

• 6 minutes/ per group + 2 minutes for Q&A

• You need to cover:• Rationale for the prototype toy• Materials used • How the prototype works

Test Procedure

• Readers of the report need to know how rigorous the team has been in testing the quality of the prototype. The way the device has been tested is written in the same was as other procedure sections• in PAST TENSE, 3rd PERSON and using

PASSIVE VOICE.• Test Procedure instead of Test

ProcedureS• You may use point form or write it in

paragraphs.

Test Procedure

To test the reliability of the mousetrap, a series of tests on the working mechanism of the system were conducted. The system’s working mechanism includes the gate, the switching on of the light bulb and the dropping of the mousetrap sign. A hockey ball was used to substitute for a real mouse since it could simulate the size and mass of a mouse as well as travel along the inclined plane of the base as a mouse might travel.

• Introduction of the mechanism / parts tested

• PAST TENSE is used except “includes” which represents factual information

Test Procedure

The hockey ball was dropped onto the system (as though the mouse crawled there to eat the bait) initially ten times. The gate closed and the light bulb was activated each time. The mousetrap sign failed to drop down four out of ten tests. An examination of the tracks which held the signs showed that the sign was too large and caused friction of the movement. To tackle this problem, the sign was made smaller by 5mm and lubricated by smoothing the edges with sandpaper. A further ten tests showed that the entire mechanism worked well. Test results are shown in tables A and B.

• Describing the test conducted

• Test results

• Problems arisen

• Modification to the original design based on the first test results

• Second test conducted

Critique Task

ResultsAfter testing the mousetrap, it did what it was expected when a mouse was attracted by the bait. It would come under the tin can and ate the mouse bait. The mouse was trapped inside afterward as expected. Sound and light were then activated to indicate a mouse had been trapped inside. It showed that the trap worked properly.

It is not adequate because the reader cannot tell• what was done in the tests,

• what the specific results were, and

• what the significance of the results was.

Discussion of Test Results

• Not only do you need to present the results, discussion of results is also important.

• This section demonstrates to the reader that the results have been analyzed in terms of the accuracy of the findings and the implications of the results.

• Brief summary of the results specific results more general comments, inferences and predictions.

Discussion of Test Results

• Analysis may include one or more of the following perspectives:• Comparing the results with accepted and standard values• Explaining how the engineering theory had an impact on

the results• Explaining errors in the results and the possible causes• Commenting on the suitability of the test procedure or

other procedure• Dealing with problems which arose during the project

• The tense used in this section is predominantly past tense.

Discussion of Test Results

Once the components of the mousetrap were cut to specified sizes, the pieces all fit together so that there was a smooth operation of the system. The initial poor performance of the sliding sign showed how precisely these components needed to be cut and placed. This suggests that the kit would need to make sure that all the dimensions of the parts would need to be carefully measured beforehand, or, that the instructions included in the kit would make suggestions to the kit builder about such problems in a troubleshooting section.

The tests also confirmed that the simple and straightforward design had few problems and would be able to stand up with frequent use.

• PAST TENSE throughout EXCEPT ‘suggests” – which indicates a general finding / problem

• Discuss the results with reference to the design, engineering principles, test procedure, etc.

Practice Task 2

The system was set up and overall tests were carried out ten times. In the tests an orange (mouse) was dropped into the door and the results are shown in table 2.5.1.

• Too simple

• No mention of which parts / mechanism tested

• No mention of modification to the original design despite the animation failure

Practice Task 2

According to the results shown in Table 2.5.1, the net could always trap the mouse and sound could be produced in all the tests. The light bulb lighted up in 82% of the tests (9 out of 11) and the animation started in 91% (10 out of 11) of the tests. The light bulb failed to light up twice while the animation failed to start once. The former was found to be the result of dislocation of the tin plate under the net. This could be remedied by using a larger tin plate. The latter was due to the poor adjustment of the position of the net. This could be remedied by carrying out the independent adjustment before every testing. Although there were some failures, the mousetrap was generally effective and reliable since it could always trap the mouse tightly by the net and then produce at least one kind of signal to inform the user.

Practice Task 2According to the results shown in Table 2.5.1, the net could always trap the mouse and sound could be produced in all the tests. The light bulb lighted up in 82% of the tests (9 out of 11) and the animation started in 91% (10 out of 11) of the tests. The light bulb failed to light up twice while the animation failed to start once. The former was found to be the result of dislocation of the tin plate under the net. This could be remedied by using a larger tin plate. The latter was due to the poor adjustment of the position of the net. This could be remedied by carrying out the independent adjustment before every testing. Although there were some failures, the mousetrap was generally effective and reliable since it could always trap the mouse tightly by the net and then produce at least one kind of signal to inform the user.

Practice Task 2

• The former The occurrence of the former situation…/ the failure in making the light bulb glow…

• The latter As regards the reason of the inactivation of animation, it was…

• Although there were some failures too negative, can be omitted.

Practice Task 3

•  Discuss how you will report on the test procedure of your invention. • How will you record the results?

• Once you have the results, you will need to interpret them so that you can provide the reader with an analysis. • What is the significance of the results

you obtained?

Reminder

• Hand in a hard copy of the Test Procedure + Results + Discussion of Results in class next week

• Make sure each member has a hard copy of the drafts of the sections of the report as you will need them to write the conclusion and recommendations individually in class in Session 10.