Open 2012: NCIIA 16th Annual Conference

Nature provides a rich source of engineering solutions, but undergraduate engineering students often have difficulty making the conceptual leap required to apply natural solutions to open-ended design problems. It is imperative that students uncover evidence that will enable the useful application of the laws of nature. The authors developed biomimicry cards to help students apply nature's laws to design problems. The prototype biomimicry cards are designed to expose students to the fundamental mapping problem between function and form. One stack of cards presents biological principles that might be applied to design problems. Another stack of cards presents design problems to be solved. The authors developed a card-based activity in which the students explore links between biological principles and engineering problems. This activity is designed to provide a quick, fun, interactive introduction to biomimicry.