January 05, 2026
Mechanical engineering students used Mizzou’s 3D printing resources to develop a device to help people stay dry when loading children into vehicles in the pouring rain.
Mizzou Engineering invests in hands-on learning experiences. Senior capstone projects are just one way we prepare students for their future careers and advance solutions to real-world issues. These group projects encourage innovation, creative problem solving and collaboration.
Here’s how a team of mechanical engineering students develop a device to help people stay dry when loading children into vehicles in the pouring rain.
Team
Emeila Amone, Kate Barnard, Eric Buffa, Andrew Meisner, Madison Weishaar, John Wood
Challenge
We wanted to help people stay dry when loading children into vehicles in the pouring rain.
Process
We started out by developing prototypes using SolidWorks 3D modeling software. We then used Mizzou’s 3D printing resources to produce a physical prototype, which we tested on various vehicles to ensure functionality.
Results
The device blocked rain very effectively and mitigated the discomfort getting wet when loading a child into a car seat in the rain.
Lessons learned
We learned a lot about the product development process along with many valuable lessons about working as a team. It was critical to divide tasks and play to people’s strengths to get a functional umbrella holder. Wefelt very prepared to tackle this challenge head-on because of prior experiences in classes in CAD and strengths of materials.