Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mehdi Shadaram, University of Texas, San Antonio; Thomas B. Morrow, University of Texas, San Antonio; C. Mauli Agrawal, University of Texas, San Antonio

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

AC 2012-3695: A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN TO IMPROVE RETENTIONAND GRADUATION RATES IN ENGINEERING FIELDSDr. Mehdi Shadaram, University of Texas, San Antonio Mehdi Shadaram is the Briscoe Distinguished Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Associate Dean of Engineering, and the founding Director of the Center for Excellence in Engineering Education at the University of Texas, San Antonio. Prior to joining UTSA in 2003, he was the Schellenger Endowed Professor and Chairman of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engi- neering at the University of Texas, El Paso. His main area of research activity is in the broadband analog and digital fiber optic and wireless communication systems. He has

Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

M. Javed Khan, Tuskegee University; Bruce Edward Heath, Tuskegee University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

where the DBF approach has been used to enhance learning ofengineering concepts6, 7, 8, 9.Flight Test Engineering (FTE) as an important element of the design & development cycle of anaerial platform certainly is well known. In view of this aspect, teaching of FTE is incorporated inaerospace engineering curricula at some engineering schools across the US for example10, 11, 12.FTE facilities are also utilized as flying laboratories for explaining concepts in aircraftperformance, stability & control. Page 25.1460.2Engineering students need to be exposed to important aspects such as teamwork, time and spacemanagement, planning engineering

Conference Session

Spacecraft Design Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael A. Swartwout, Saint Louis University; Sanjay Jayaram, Saint Louis University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

Test is the last stage before launch; itconsists of the steps necessary to convert a paper design into a functional, flight-ready spacecraft.The Integration phase covers the purchase, fabrication and assembly of spacecraft componentsinto subsystems and then the completed spacecraft. Due to the number of steps involved,integration can take months to accomplish.The Testing phase (often called Verification) consists of all activities necessary to prove that thespacecraft will achieve its objectives. Testing covers a range of functions, includingenvironmental testing to prove that the vehicle can handle the harsh environments of launch andspace operations, functional tests to show that the components can operate together as planned,and the

Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Edwin Alexander Peraza Hernandez, Texas A&M University; Kaushik Das, Texas A&M University, College Station; Dimitris C. Lagoudas P.E., Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

experience, which took place during the summer of 2011.The first author, who was the undergraduate student, was supported by a summer research grant.One of the goals of this grant was to prepare students for graduate study and research. Thestudent participated in an inclusive learning community of graduate students, postdoctoralassociates, university faculty, and undergraduate researchers from the host university and fromother universities. Student activities included preparation of research plans, weekly presentationsto multidisciplinary research groups, preparation of progress reports and research papers, andresearch poster presentation. The student learned to operate state of the art laboratory equipment,such as scanning electron microscopes

Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adeel Khalid, Southern Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

. This endeavor provided a great opportunity to gain the depth ofknowledge for students by planning, initiating, and conducting research in engineeringprinciples. As the mentor of undergraduate research students, the author believes that studentsget a reasonable opportunity to complete their project within a given time while producingreasonable and useful results. Attention is paid during the project to each student’s level in termsof interest, knowledge, ability and capacity. Students learn theoretical and experimentalknowledge of pursuing applied engineering research using critical and creative thinking,problem-solving, and trouble-shooting skills.The Peach State LSAMP Summer Fellowship ProgramThe Peach State Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority

Conference Session

Spacecraft Design Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sanjay Jayaram, Saint Louis University; Michael A. Swartwout, Saint Louis University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

asuccessful mission. Post-mission analyses of telemetry data uncovered multiple errors in design,testing, and planning which contributed to a “Type A” mishap which called for a MishapInvestigation Board (MIB) review. Alternative solutions and recommendations for futuremission improvements have also been considered”.Case Study 2: Apollo 13 MissionThis case study summarizes and analyzes the infamous Apollo 13 mission failure and safe returnof the flight crew consisting of NASA astronauts James A. Lovell, Command Module pilot Jack L.Swigert, and Lunar Module pilot Fred W. Haise. The failure is analyzed from take-off to reentryand all that happened in between. The study also includes the findings from the Apollo 13Review Board chartered by NASA to find

Conference Session

Aircraft Design Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jacques C. Richard, Texas A&M University; Kristi J. Shryock, Texas A&M University; Dimitris C. Lagoudas P.E., Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

need; students will predict performance of the designusing mathematics and science principles; and project supports the engineering process2. The useof SMA wires in this project was introduced in a manner as to require minimal changes in theproject plan. In fact, the project description given to the students (as a “work request” or “requestfor proposal”, etc.) did not specify how the claw was to operate. The SMAs have beenincorporated into the second-semester freshman engineering course for two semesters. In thespring of 2011, students were given the option of using the SMA wires, and most did. In the fall Page 25.793.3of 2011, students were

Conference Session

Spacecraft Design Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dimitris Vassiliadis, West Virginia University; D.J. Pisano, West Virginia University; Yu Gu, West Virginia University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

semester, the student team participates in testing and integration atNASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. The launch is followed by work on data analysis and preparation of afinal report. A brief description of the course procedures is given along with an overview of theexperiments conducted. A brief discussion of educational goals and positive outcomes of this activity forindividual students and annual teams is presented. Finally the lessons learnt in organizing the project andcourse are summarized since they may be useful for schools and organizations planning to develop suchprograms. 1. Introduction The Department of Physics at West Virginia University has sought to integrate project-based learningwith a regular classroom-based curriculum. One

Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Wallace T. Fowler P.E., University of Texas, Austin

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

so that thestudents have easy access to the information.Blackboard Postings – UT Austin has adopted the Blackboard electronic course managementsystem. All course documents including the syllabus, course timeline, sample proposals, samplepresentations and reports, suggested outlines for presentations and reports, special references,etc., are placed on the website. This is an efficient way to communicate with teams.Spacecraft Subsystems Information – In the late 1980s, the instructor also taught a graduatelevel space mission planning course. As part of this course, he had the graduate students in theclass create a document that characterized the various common subsystems on a spacecraft. Thegoal was to identify the parameters that determine

Conference Session

Aircraft Design Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David B. Kanipe, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

Integration Requirements Mgt Design/Discipline Eng. Manufacturing/Assembly Assembly Functional Analysis Software Development Interface Management Ground System Analysis & Trades Cost Estimates Verification Mission Software Management Performance Estimates Validation Logistics Technology Dev. Req’ts Verification Requirements WBS Testing Risk Management Analysis and Simulation Verification Plan Configuration/Data Mgt Cost Effective Design Figure 1 – Technical Integration ModelContemporary engineering students at the fourth year level tend to be very

Conference Session

Aerospace Technical Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lulu Sun, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach; Matthew Kindy, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach; Caroline Liron, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach; Christopher D. Grant, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach; Shirley Anne Waterhouse, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

Real Exam (lab session 2). Students are asked to answer multiple-choice questions (10-30% of the grade) and to provide a programming solution to an assignedproblem (70-90% of the grade). Students plan their time accordingly within the one-hour classtime to complete both. Another approach is to use the first lab session as a small-class review,encouraging the students to be more vocal than they might in a large lecture. Students areencouraged to prepare for the review session and bring pertinent questions from their studies.Practice exams are reviewed, with rationale given for the answers. The second lab session isbroken down into a short (20-30 questions) multiple-choice / short-answer section online and alonger programming portion on paper