Engineering projects are judged against criteria you set, so set them explicitly and in advance.
Problem statement. One paragraph. Who has this problem, and what does the current solution fail to do?
Design requirements. Each one measurable, each with a target and a minimum:
| # | Requirement | Target | Minimum acceptable | How measured | |---|-------------|--------|--------------------|--------------| | 1 | Mass | < 250 g | < 400 g | Balance, ±1 g | | 2 | Battery life | > 6 h | > 4 h | Continuous run to shutdown | | 3 | Cost of materials | < $40 | < $60 | Receipts |
Constraints. Budget, available tools, materials, time, safety limits.
Test protocol. For each requirement: the procedure, the number of trials, and the pass condition. Write this before the first prototype.
Iteration log. One row per version: what changed, why, and what the test showed. This log is the single most valuable artefact in an engineering project — judges look for evidence of a design cycle, not a finished object.