CVUSD HOMEAt the annual Lugo Engineering and Design (LEAD) Showcase on April 18th, 2024, LEAD students demonstrated and explained their innovative senior projects to their peers and Lugo staff as part of the senior capstone class in the LEAD academy program. Five unique team projects were on display, each one the result of months of team brainstorming, resourceful crafting, and in-depth schematics to make each team’s idea a reality.
Guided by LEAD coordinator and engineering senior design teacher David Robinson, Don Lugo’s engineering design and development Career Technical Education (CTE) pathway is one of the oldest pathways in the district. “Seniors pick a project and work on it from the beginning,” explained Robinson. “They think of a problem or something that they want to make and go through the entire design process and draw it up on the computer. They order the parts, build it, test is. They really go at it.”
When it comes to a unique way to dry and preserve the integrity of cotton-based clothing, the Wardrobe Wind project is built to hang and dry clothes simultaneously with a built-in fan attached to the top of a clothing rack. Kayden R., Nathanael C., and Ignacio R. used recycled pieces such as a bike wheel, scrap metal panels, and the bottom of an office chair which is used to make the rake mobile.
An automated bassinet assembled by Evelyn P., Michael Z., and Gonzalo M. is built for newborns up to 6 months, is battery powered allowing it to be placed anywhere, and is controlled via remote to trigger the rocking mechanism. Having a newborn baby brother herself, Evelyn got input from her parents to find ways to make the team’s design intuitive and practical.
Leaky sprinklers plague homeowners everywhere and Megan and Katelyn R. sought to create a solution with their sprinkler system detector and leak cover project. Their contraption funnels leaking water into a container that will trigger a flag that signals a leak in a sprinkler’s main valve. Megan also crafted a wooden shelter that houses the sprinkler system to shield it from the elements.
Inspired by the television show “Wild Kratts,” Timothy T. and Justin S. wanted to create something that no toy maker has yet to market: a toy drone based on the flying turtle vehicle in the show. Called the “Tortuga,” Timothy and Justin used 3D printing to create the flying turtle shell, navigating trial and errors to find that “goldilocks spot” to make sure the print is sturdy enough to withstand flight.
A desert truck built for competition is the passion project of Kole S. Mikey B. Travis B. and Issabela M., who spent 4 months transforming a red Ford Ranger truck into an off-road racing machine. The team stripped down the Ranger, swapped in a Chevy Silverado V8 engine and a turbo 400 transmission system, and installed a cage inside the truck. The team hopes compete in off-road races in Laughlin, Nevada later this year.
These senior projects are the culmination of the fantastic engineering pathway at Don Lugo. Our bright and inventive students gained the skills and knowledge needed to pursue a college degree in engineering. Excellent work on all the outstanding projects and kudos to the supportive engineering and design teachers at Lugo!
