Conference Session

Embedded Computing

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Holden, San Francisco State University; Juan Carlos Miranda, San Francisco State University; Jose Coto, San Francisco State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

loop performance Page 12.1064.7 Figure 8: Closed-loop performance over a wide range of inputAssessmentThe value of the project to the students was assessed using a survey upon completion of theclass. The results are shown in the following figures. Generally the students felt the project wasvery appropriate for the class (question 1), and most felt that both implementation of control lawsand the ability to design controllers were valuable for their future careers (questions 4 and 5).The majority of the students felt that the time spent in class on design as compared to the timespent on implementation was about right (question 2), although most felt that more time couldhave been spent

Conference Session

Educational Software

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Norman Chonacky, Yale University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

AC 2007-2127: COMPUTATION IN UNDERGRADUATE PHYSICS: WHAT NEEDSTO CHANGE AND WHAT CHANGE CAN MEAN TO COMPUTATION INENGINEERING COURSES.Norman Chonacky, Yale University Norman Chonacky is currently the editor in chief of Computing in Science and Engineering, a joint publication of the American Institute of Physics and the IEEE-Computer Society. He is a retired physicist who has spent his career split evenly between being a physics faculty member and conducting applied science and engineering research. As an academic he worked to apply computers in physics educational settings and to evaluate the impact that various methodologies had on student learning. As a research scientist he worked in optics

Conference Session

Instrumentation and Laboratory Systems

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yoon Kim, Virginia State University; Shahzad Akbar

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

code is compiled, students can download the machine-language code to thesystem using a PC serial port and do not need any external EPROM burner. The data acquisitionsystem has non-volatile flash memory to hold the code, which allows students to run their codein a stand-alone mode.IntroductionComputer engineering is a discipline that combines both computer science and electricalengineering and prepares students for careers that deal with software and hardware componentsof modern computer systems 1. To educate computer engineering students effectively andpractically one needs to provide hands-on activity in class. It would be beneficial if they wereexposed to real-world engineering problems, which involve both software and hardwarecomponents of

Conference Session

Embedded Computing

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Shekhar Sharad, National Instruments

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

being used in every industry, in aerospace, mechanical, chemical and evenbiomedical engineering. That said, there is a need to create excitement and awareness about thisexciting and pervasive field to the students freshly enrolled in engineering because no matterwhich major they choose, they will eventually have to deal with embedded devices. It is alsowidely acknowledged that embedded programming is not trivial and hence may not be the mostappropriate form to be introduced early in the engineering career; hence, there is a continualsearch for better tools and techniques to teach with embedded devices early in engineering. Oneof the more promising methodologies available today is Graphical Programming.2. Why Embedded Devices Early?Given the

Conference Session

Embedded Computing

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

J.W. Bruce, Mississippi State University; Lee Hathcock, Mississippi State Univ.

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

single, best part ofthe course, while one student felt that the dissection was the worst part of the course. Theremainder of the students felt the lab experience or lectures were the best part of the course.Several students responded to other questions about how they felt the dissection and the coursewill benefit them in the capstone design course and in their future careers. Whether or not thecapstone course designs improve is still to be seen. ConclusionsThis paper described the experiences of the author with dissection of consumer electronics in anoffering of a semester-long embedded systems classes for seniors and introductory graduatestudents. Students disassembled and analyzed a low-cost device. The results of this dissection

Conference Session

Mobile Robotics in Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Ahlgren, Trinity College; Igor M Verner, Technion--Israel Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

studies and careers and to direct their learning towardsdevelopment of skills and self-beliefs that they would need to implement their plans. The firstsection of the pre-semester survey asked students to list their post-graduation plans, identifyknowledge and skills required by these future positions, express their levels of confidence thatthey can obtain the intended positions, and describe extent to which their current knowledge andskills prepared them to succeed in the intended positions. This survey also asked them toidentify the expected contribution of the RST project experience to the acquisition of knowledgeand skills needed for future positions, and it asked them to identify what team organizationwould best help them to learn

Conference Session

Educational Software

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeff Joines, North Carolina State University; Stephen Roberts, North Carolina State University; Dianne Raubenheimer, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

since that was the only course often available,some engineering students in the earlier times could devote themselves to “computing” and itbecame a career for them.Impact of Computer ScienceIn the late 1960s an intense interest in computing began to evolve and more faculty wereshowing considerable skill and interest in computing, to the point where curriculums were beingdeveloped that were identified as “computer science” and/or “computer engineering.” Coursesbegan to proliferate and, as the say “the rest is history.” Today most colleges and universityoffer some kind of degree in computer science. It is a full-fledged discipline, some withinengineering and some outside engineering. There are journals, meetings, research conferences,professional

Conference Session

Instrumentation and Laboratory Systems

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jon Sticklen, Michigan State University; Daina Briedis, Michigan State University; Mark Urban-Lurain, Michigan State University; Timothy Hinds, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

entireengineering careers in college and on into their professional careers. Repeated use ofcomputational tools leads to familiarity, and to what now is called “pervasive computing” in thesense that the slide rule was simply a well-known tool to the student. Most engineeringundergraduate students do not develop like familiarity with computational environments likeMATLAB for the simple reason they do not achieve self-reliance with MATLAB, largelybecause they do not use it throughout their undergraduate experience.The crux issue is that higher order learning, i.e. concept oriented learning, is necessary beforetransference across problem settings is effective.2 To enable higher order learning in the contextof a computer toolset, the tools must be mastered

Conference Session

Web-Based Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ahmed Abu-Hajar, San Francisco State University; Michael Holden, San Francisco State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

advising, one that focuses onmotivation. Unlike conventional courses, in which students are motivated by competition and Page 12.941.10social interaction, computer based courses use different motivational strategies, such as selfactualization and career advancement. We have found convenience to be a negativereinforcement—students skip lectures and are easily distracted.Bibliography1. Open Courseware, MIT website: http://ocw.mit.edu/index.html2. Bates, A. W., & Poole, G. (2003). Effective teaching with technology in higher education:Foundations for success. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.3. Mayer, R. E., Moreno, R., Boire, M., &

Conference Session

Web-Based Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Squire, Virginia Military Institute; Vonda Walsh, Virginia Military Institute; H. Francis Bush, Virginia Military Institute; Gerald Sullivan, Virginia Military Institute; Anthony English, University of Tennessee-Knoxville

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

-based.AcknowledgementsGrant support from the National Science Foundation in the form a CAREER Award, BES-0238905 (AE) is gratefully acknowledged.Thirty of the data points were generously provided by Dr. Ed Doering from the Rose HulmanInstitute.Bibliography1. Levin, David S. and Ben-Jacob, Marion G, “Using Collaboration in Support of Distance Learning.” Webnet98 World Conference of the WWW, Internet, and Intranet Proceedings, Orlando, November 7, 1998.2. http://www.universityofphoenix.com/, University of Phoenix Online, 25 November 2006.3. Tuckman, Bruce W. Educational Psychology from Theory to application. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc., 1992.4. George A. Campbell, “Telephonic Intelligibility”, Philosophical Magazine, 19 (6), 158

Conference Session

Embedded Computing

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Keith Curtis, Microchip Technology Inc.

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

AC 2007-1261: EMBEDDED SOFTWARE DESIGN METHODOLOGY TO HELPSTUDENTS SUCCEED IN THE REAL WORLDKeith Curtis, Microchip Technology Inc. Page 12.595.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Embedded Software Design Methodology to Help Students Succeed in the Real WorldIntroduction: A Tool for Entering the Workforce with ExperienceIn the good old days, new engineers could look forward to a long and rewarding career,working for a well-established engineering firm. They would typically spend their firstyear of employment “learning the ropes” from older, more-experienced engineers.During this apprenticeship, they would pick up the tips, tricks and