Engineering Notebook Tips

Here are some general notebook tips submitted by the Exothermic Robotics club:

• Start early! Don’t wait until the last second to start. It’s pretty obvious to the judges who actually spent time on their notebook.
• A good notebook does not mean a perfect notebook. The purpose of an engineering notebook is for you to document what you did wrong so you don’t make the same mistake again.
• Look through the rubrics (The rubric is at the bottom of the page) for different awards so you know exactly what the judges are looking for.
• Fill out the table of contents as you write the meetings. It takes a lot longer than you think to fill out the table of contents for a whole notebook of meetings.
• Format your notes in a way so people actually want to read it. Don’t write everything in one big paragraph.
• Write an entry each time you have a meeting. You don't want to wait until you've forgotten what you've done in the meeting to write it. It'll be much harder to write, not to mention it'll probably be less detailed.
• Write neatly! No one wants to decipher messy handwriting, and they probably won't bother to read it if that's the case. Also, good handwriting makes an excellent first impression.
• Consistency is key. Try to format each entry the same, so the judges can easily find information.
• Everyone should contribute. Even if you have one designated notebook person, having someone that was actually at the meeting help write the notes will make it a lot more detailed and useful.
• Include pictures and diagrams! Pictures contribute a lot of information, and also takes a lot less time to deliver that same amount of information as a page of writing.
• Try to get a bound quad-ruled notebook. It's neat and makes a great first impression even before someone opens it up. Additionally, you get extra points on the rubric if you have a bound notebook!
• Write notes about each competition. It will be a good way to reflect on your performance, and help you figure out how to improve your robot based off your performance in the competition.
• Get creative! The notebook documents your team’s unique journey throughout the season, so make it personal!
• Check for proper spelling and grammar! Proper conventions makes the notebook seem more professional and allows whoever is reading it to understand it more easily.
• Label all your pictures and number them. This will make the notebook look neat and organized, plus it also makes it easier for you to refer to them in your entry.
• Never erase or remove anything from the notebook. If you made a mistake, simply cross it out with a single line. The notebook is supposed to be where you document everything, even all the bad ideas and designs.
• Use Computer Aided Designing (CAD) to come up with designs. It also helps you improve already existing designs. The notebook doesn’t only have to include what you did with the robot – it should also include your brainstorming and ideas!
• Write in pen or permanent ink, but at the same time, make sure it doesn't bleed through the pages. Also, try to avoid smudging as much as possible.

Here is a general framework for a good engineering notebook:

• Table of Contents: Make sure to keep updating it! Once you're behind, it's hard to catch up again.
• Introduction to Team: A general description of who your team consists of and your values.
• Member Introduction:
• Grade
• School
• Role
• Other information (get creative!)
• Goals for the season
• Description of Current Game:
• Summary of game
• Rules
• Scoring
• Description of Challenges and First Thoughts
• What's going to be easy
• What's going to be hard
• Strategies
• Design Ideas
• For each meeting, record some of the following:
• Who was present
• Length of meeting
• What was accomplished
• Problems encountered in meeting
• Solutions or possible solutions
• Graphs! Tables! Pictures! Drawings!
• Signature of person who wrote the entry
• Date

Here is an example of Exothermic Creation's (10C) notebook. They won the Design Award at MTHS VEX Tower Takeover Competition!

Here is the rubric for the Design Award:

Download Link: Here