Microscope Phone Adaptors: A Cross-Disciplinary Project

In my Engineering for Social Good elective I instituted "Lab Practicals" rather than formal exams and quizzes. Mastering Computer Assisted Design (CAD), via Fusion360, has been a constant thread throughout the class. CAD mastery was facilitated through weekly challenges organized in a private Padlet shelf where students would respond to a video tutorial by repeating it, then making four alterations of their own. Students would upload their product and explain their modifications inside the class space. This process facilitated mechanical and algorithmic knowledge of Fusion360, while integration of CAD into our projects and practicals promoted application of CAD.

For the final practical, I wanted students to embrace the mission of service central to the engineering elective while applying their CAD knowledge. At the same time, my Biology class was investigating red blood cells under compound light microscopes. Capturing stable phone images through the eyepiece was difficult, which created an authentic design question: could the engineering class develop a phone adaptor that worked across different student devices and microscopes?

The assessment template asked each designer to document dimensions, justify revisions, and test transferability across multiple phones and microscopes. The most successful prototype was not simply the cleanest model. It was the design that transferred reliably across the widest range of devices.