Initial ideas of interest here are only those that have survived the problem understanding activity.  If, by the time you reach this point in understanding the problem, any ideas that surfaced along the way and were jotted down are no longer relevant… we don’t want to hear about them here.

This section is OPTIONAL.  So, if you don’t have any initial ideas for a solution, then delete this section by selecting the section heading down to but not including the page break before the next section (“Engineering Requirements”).  Google Docs will automatically change the “Engineering Requirements” section number from 5 to 4.

If you do have some initial ideas you would like to put forth for some initial feedback, as indicated in the template, this section should begin with the following sentences:

“While developing our understanding of the problem, some initial ideas for a solution began to surface.  They are offered here in brevity, seeking (a) early-stage validation that we are understanding the needs and wants, and/or (b) correction on how and where we are off track.”

You will have space for up to two (2) at a size large enough to be meaningful.  For each idea, provide a brief verbal description and a neat, annotated sketch.  Note the emphasis on the word “brief.”  The textual portion of this section must not exceed ¼ page; this section should be no more than one (1) page with graphics — graphics are GENERALLY helpful in engineering when annotated; neat hand-drawn sketches are fine here.

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