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3.1 notes.

Standards and patents.

• ·      There are often failures along the way and it is important to learn from them.
  
• ·      “All this accumulated experience, success and failure , is brought together into a standard.” 
  
• ·      Standards are made to critique features of the designs, the construction methods and the use of safety testing of the product.
  
• ·       Standards govern the design and construction of nearly everything that carries any safety implications.
  
• ·       Standards don’t just apply to products but also places for example building sites.
  
• ·       Standards are one way that engineers ensure their knowledge about a particular product.
  
• ·       No one knows everything, engineers rely on previous failures to solve problems.
  
• ·       Standards are good practice and ensure products are safe and fit for purpose.
  
• ·       Authorities hold responsibility for making sure standards are kept up to date.
  
• ·       Standards are there to protect the client from bad engineering.
  
• ·       Not all standards are enforced some are simply codes of practice – These set guidelines rather than legal requirements.
  
• ·       All major engineering countries have their own engineering standard authority’s.
  
• ·       Patents provide a means to protect new designs and allow the inventor to profit from the work.
  
• ·       There are both national and international organisations for managing patents.
  

Scientific Methods.

• ·      “Much of what engineers understand derives from science, engineering is often thought of simply as the ‘appliance of science’.”
  
• ·       Scientific models, despite limitations are extremely helpful to engineers and allow them to understand the way in which forces interact and behave in the real world.