Teams of engineering students take part in a problem-based learning course, where they develop physical product variants of a robotic system and take part in a competition. Design theory and methodology are part of the teaching concept, including complexity management by platform strategy and modularization. Skills in mechanical engineering, design, numerical optimization, additive manufacturing and use of CAD, PDM and FEM software are improved. The developed robotic systems are divided into different modules, these modules are attached on the Design Education Platform. This paper shows the in-house development of this platform with regard to the requirements from the design education course and technical specifications. In this context, findings from an earlier developed product family architecture of a robotic system as reference are integrated. The product architecture is shown in a module interface graph, displaying the component variety as well as their linkages. A description of the used mechanical and electrical components and their computational as well as communication possibilities is shown. The problem-based learning course and its interdisciplinary teaching concept are presented. First findings are formulated and the resulting products of student teams of summer semester 2019 are shown. These first product variants are the starting point of a product family, with new modules and resulting product variants each semester. The influence of the Design Education Platform on the course is evaluated, with the focus on decreasing the internal work for the lecturers, while student numbers are growing. The outlook shows further possibilities of tasks to fulfill and the use of the system as a cyber-physical system for future product generations.
