Announcements
• Open Lab Today
– Lab will be available to finish your towers
• Performance testing next week
• Prepare Material for Oral Presentations
and Written Reports
Tips for Great Written Reports
ENGR 10
5 Oct 2015
Technical Writing is Everywhere
• Annual Report: 12-month summary and
evaluation of finances and activities
• Environmental Impact Report (EIR)
• Feasibility Study: consequences of possible
actions
• Final Report: results of completed work
• Lab Report: results of experiments, procedures
• Incident Report: description of injury or
hazardous material spill
• Justification Report: explanation for actions
taken
• Maintenance Report: product repair and service
record for a given period
• Meeting Minutes
• Personnel Report: evaluation of an
employee's work
• Preliminary Report: task analysis
• Progress Report: work accomplished to date
• Research Report: summary of research
completed
• Sales Report: sales figures for a given period
• Trip Report: expenses and activities
ENGR 10 Reports
Solar Cell Laboratory Report
Wind Turbine Design and Performance
Robot Design and Performance
Goal of your reports
• Reader could replicate what you did
without having to talk with you in person
• Synthesize and summarize what you have
learned
– An important part of the learning process
Getting Started Writing or Speaking
Determine your purpose
What’s my purpose?
Determine your audience
Who is my audience?
What is my purpose?
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Informative
Persuasive
Analysis
Instructional
Who is my audience?
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Business
Technical
General Public
Age Group
Gender
Culture
Write to your Audience
Aim a report you write in this class toward a
fellow engineering student.
Provide enough detail so that an
engineering student who hasn’t take ENGR
10 could replicate what you have done.
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Methods (Experimental Setup)
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Title Page
Title page lists at minimum:
• Title of the project (descriptive and specific)
• Entity
• San José State University, Charles W. Davidson
College of Engineering, E10 Introduction to
Engineering
• Names of the team members
• E10 section number and team number
• Name of Lab Instructor
• Date of submission
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Summary/Abstract
• This section goes after the title page but
before the table of contents
• Designed for the busy person
• Succinctly introduce project (what it is,
what you did)
• Summarize key results (performance data)
• Summarize what you learned
Which might be a good first
sentence of your summary?
A.
In the beginning we sat at a computer station and
brainstormed ideas about the design of our turbine
blades.
B.
The purpose of the project was to construct and
model a wind turbine by designing our own blade to
harness the maximum wind power and a lightweight
support structure, stiff enough to resist deflection.
C.
First we used the glue to attach PVC pipe to the
standard wood base that we were given.
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Table of Contents
• Comes after the Summary
• Start Page 1 as the Introduction page
• Title page has no number
• Other pages before Introduction can be numbered i, ii, iii,
etc.
• It should include all the sections / subsections headings
with the starting page number for each.
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Introduction
Describes relevant background information (1 to 2 pages).
• What the project was about, first in general (main goal)
– Then describe what you did to achieve that goal
• Make sure that you include sufficient sketches, drawings,
and/or photographs and verbiage
– To clearly explain to someone unfamiliar with this
project what it is all about.
– You may use sketches from the Project Guidelines,
but cite your source.
• Refer to the Project Description regarding goals and
specifications found on pages 1-2, Wind Turbine Design
Project.
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Experimental Setup
You are answering the question: HOW was it
Designed, Constructed and Tested?
• Use relevant sketches, drawings, pictures
• Type, shape and dimensions (and possibly cost if
known) of the materials used
• Name/describe the major tools used during the
design and construction (build) stages
• Describe the type of tests performed on the project,
the purpose of each test and its outcome
• Name/describe the major tools/measuring
equipment used during the testing stage.
Use Headings and Subheadings
3. Design, Construction and Test
Blah blah blah
3.1 Turbine Blade Design and Construction
Blah blah blah
3.2 Support Structure Design and Construction
Blah blah blah
3.3 Turbine and Structure Testing
Blah blah blah
State Your Reasoning
• No clear reason
– We decided to create a three blade rotor
because we believed this would give us the
best possible results.
• Clear reason
– We decided to create a three blade rotor
because a three blade configuration is the
most stable (Jones, 2008).
Theories
Describe briefly any theory(ies) that apply to your
project, including any applicable formulas.
Examples: Bernoulli, Betz’ Limit, Power Theorem,…
Use Equations
Instead of a sentence like this:
The factors of the power include voltage (volts),
which is equal to the current (amperes) multiplied
by the resistance.
Just write:
Power (watts) is calculated using the following
equation:
P=VxI
(Eq. 1)
where V is voltage (volts) and I is current (amperes).
Use pictures/sketches
• Here is the description from a report:
We took a geometric view on the matter and
decided to construct a 90 degree angle using
simply two sets of wooden beams after
measuring the angles of each beam. We set
them parallel to one another to maximize the
strength of our design.
• Can you figure out what the structure
looked like?
Using Figures to Clarify
As shown in Figure 1, the
support structure consisted
of a right triangle made of
two wood pieces to provide
stiffness in the direction of
the wind. In addition, two
small triangular elements
were installed at the base in
the perpendicular direction
to resist potential loads from
the side and minimize
oscillation.
Note figure caption
and its location
Figure 1: Turbine support structure provides
resistance to loads in two perpendicular
directions.
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Theory
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Results
• Include tables of key data and graphs of key
results
– MUST include text to describe what is in each of the
tables.
– Data plots for the following parameters and briefly
discuss the performance.
– Turbine Stiffness
– Voltage vs. Current
– Power vs. Current
• Compare the actual power generated versus the
theoretical power, and calculate the efficiency.
• Create a graph of your load and deflection data,
and use Excel curve fitting techniques to
determine the stiffness.
A Table is NOT a Figure
Table1: Displacement Data for Turbine Support Tower
Note Title
Location
Applied Mass
m (gm)
20
100
500
1000
Applied
Displacement
Weight
(mm)
W= m*g/1000
(N)
0.196
0.98
4.9
9.8
0.02
0.09
0.51
1.58
Figure 1: Displacement Data for Turbine Support Tower
Incorrect
What does this results graph
represent?
A. I have no idea
0.7
0.6
B. Voltage vs. current
0.5
0.4
Series1
C. Voltage vs. power
0.3
0.2
0.1
D. Current vs. power
E. Power vs. blade speed
0
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
Can you figure it out now?
Turbine Power versus Voltage
at Wind Speed of 20 mph
0.7
Power Reading (watts)
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
Voltage Reading (volts)
Figure 1: Turbine power generally decreased with
increased voltage. The circled voltage readings are
suspect.
What is wrong with this
stiffness graph?
A. Nothing
C. Load is in kg
0.8
0.7
0.6
Displacement (mm)
B. Load and displacement
axes are reversed
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
D. Scale on x-axis is not
proportional to values
E. B, C, and D
0.1
0
0.1
0.2
0.4
0.5
Load (kg)
1
2
The same data plotted correctly
Stiffness of Tower
Structure
0.9
0.8
Load (N)
0.7
0.6
Stiffness = 1.1N/mm
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
Displacement (mm)
0.35
0.4
0.45
Be Concise –
Eliminate Unnecessary Words
• Wordy:
– In the graph that shows load against
displacement (Figure 1) displays the stiffness
of the structure where the displacement
increases as the load increases. The stiffness
that we got from our project is 6.08 N/mm.
• Concise
– The calculated stiffness was 6.08 N/mm,
which is slope of the linear relationship
between load and displacement in Figure 1.
Write in the Third Person
Instead of
• We found
• Our choice of …
• When plotted, we see
that
• We used a 75 W lamp
as the source
• Our tasks were to…
• In this lab we derived…
Also Try
• Results indicated
• The choice of …
• Plots of the data show
• A 75 W lamp served
as the source
• Tasks included …
• The purpose of this lab
was to derive …
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Setup
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Conclusions
SUMMARIZE
• The work done
• What was learned
• Explanation of any anomalies, errors
• The outcomes of the project,
• Such as how well it worked or didn't
work
• How did the efficiency of your turbine
compare with the efficiency of typical
turbines in use today?
Recommendations
Could be a subheading under Conclusions
• What would you do if you had more time
• What would you do differently, given what you
know now
• Give specific recommendations
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Experimental Set Up
Results
Conclusions
References
Appendix
Cite Reference in Text (APA Style)
Author-date method of in-text citation
– Author (Year) or (Author, Year)
• Ex: Smith (2007) found that…
– Or Title of article (Year)
• According to Betz’ Law, only 59% of the kinetic
energy in the wind can be converted to mechanical
energy using a wind turbine (“Betz’,” 2003).
• Don’t forget referencing Guidelines, if applicable
Reference List (APA)
• Alphabetize by author
• If there is no author, use title to alphabetize
Examples
Betz’ Law. (2003). Retrieved October 28, 2008 from Danish Wind
Industry Association website
http://www.windpower.org/en/tour/wres/betz.html
National Renewable Resource Laboratory (NREL). (2006). U.S.
PV Cell Costs. Retrieved September 27, 2008 from Data360
Web site
http://www.data360.org/dsg.aspx?Data_Set_Group_Id=605
Wind Energy FAQ. (2009). Retrieved January 27, 2009 from
American Wind Energy Association Web Site
http://www.awea.org/faq/rsdntqa.html
Article from Online Journal
Last Name, First Initial, Middle Initial (Year
Published). Title of article. Title of Online
Journal, Volume Number(issue number if
available), pp. Pages, doi:# or Retrieved from
URL
Bernstein, M. (2002). 10 tips on writing the living
Web. A List Apart: For People Who Make
Websites, 149. Retrieved from
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/writeliving
Article from Journal in Print
Last Name, First Initial, Middle Initial & Author, B.
B. (Year Published). Title of article. Title of
Online Journal, Volume Number(issue number
if available), pp. Pages
More examples in Emerging Adulthood Paper
Guidelines
Parts of a Report
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Title Page
Summary/Abstract/ Executive Summary
Table Of Contents
Introduction (what and why)
Theory
Experimental Setup (how)
Results (what you found)
Conclusions (what it means)
References
Appendix
Appendices
Contains any other information that might help someone
trying to do a similar project (data sheets, catalog pages,
etc.).
Required appendix elements
Appendix A - Original data sheet used in
the laboratory
Appendix B - Evaluates teamwork by
answering questions
Pitfalls to Avoid
• Extremely Long Paragraphs
– A paragraph that is one page long is likely too
long
• Identify the main points you are trying to make
• Use the main points as topic sentences
• Use three or four sentences in paragraph to
build on topic sentence.
• One sentence paragraphs
– You can not fully develop an idea in one
sentence
Spellcheck Your Report
I have a spelling checker.
It came with my PC.
It plainly marks four my revue
mistakes I cannot sea.
I’ve run this poem threw it.
I’m sure your please too no.
Its letter perfect in its weigh—
My checker tolled me sew.
Proofread Your Report
Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch sduty at an
Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in
what order the ltteers in a word are, the
only iprmoetnt thing is that the frist and
lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset
can be a total mses and you can still raed
it wouthit a porbelm. This is bcuseae we
do not raed ervey lteter by it slef but the
word as a wlohe.
Good, Solid Tech Writing
Helps You:
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Earn better grades
Get the job you want
Receive promotions
Communicate for a safer world