This past week 5 of Fall quarter, we began the process of sketching possible designs for the Mechanical Pet Feeder. Our assignment was to attack each need and design a way to satisfy that need. A technique to brainstorm collectively is using half sheets of paper in which the ideas were roughly sketched and discussed. We came together as a group and proceeded to analyze each need that our Sponsor has requested. We all presented our brainstormed ideas and collectively voted on the best ideas to create our draft design. Some of these designs included the overall sleek design of the Feeder, accurately measuring the dispensing of food and supplements, properly sealing the storages and cartridges to ensure freshness, and the individual storages and cartridges needed for the feeder. One of the problems with our design was the way we measured the dispensing of food. Our initial method was using a scale to measure weight of the kibble, but the Sponsor requested we use a method that involves volume (per cup) of kibble. We are currently in the process of redesigning our Feeder so that the Sponsor’s needs are taken care of.