University of Pittsburgh: Engineering Analysis Project

Steppe - Modern-Day Energy Production to Run the World

Throughout my time in Intro to Engineering Analysis (course code: ENGR 0011), a class I took during the fall semester of my freshman year at the University of Pittsburgh, I was tasked with creating a product with a team of two other students to encourage sustainability in students. My team designed a user-propelled treadmill that generates electricity as it is used, called Steppe.

In order to land on this specific idea, we completed a number of ethnography tasks. As an example, we observed electricity usage in different University-owned buildings and interviewed students about their usage habits. After gathering this data, we brainstormed different solutions. Once we decided to pursue the idea of a user-propelled treadmill, we had to prototype different designs.

At the end of the class, we presented our design for Steppe to our peers and professor. We received positive peer comments, with students indicating that Steppe would motivate them at the gym, and that many thought that the idea would be simple and fun to use.