Engineering journal

[artdutra04]

In the real world, all engineers and designers use their engineering notebooks every day to record new ideas, notes, drawings/sketches, prototypes, tests/trials, data, and every other aspect of the engineering process.

While not required for FRC, it would be a great learning experience for teams to start and keep their own engineering notebooks to get into the right engineering mindset.

[DonRotolo]

^^ beat me to it.

For legal and patent reasons, most design engineers - particularly in large companies - are required to keep an engineering notebook. Get in the habit now, it'll help you.

[Mr. Pockets]

My freshman year I took to writing daily progress reports for the subgroup I was in. It was highly educational, and it made sure that everyone had a good understanding of where my project was.

I definitely recommend trying it, even if it's just a notepad file on the computer. Additionally, it's very helpful when going back to look for areas of improvement and the like.

[Sue-San]

Is it okay to print out pictures/CADS and stick them in the notebook?

[Jon Stratis]

It's beyond OK... it's great! Pictures of your robot or pictures of a part that was difficult to design will really help to expand your notebook and add some color to your descriptions.