Conference Session

Innovative & Computer-Assisted Lab Study

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Hur Koser; Dennis Freeman; Alexander Aranyosi; Aleem Siddiqui

Session 1426 A Microfluidics Laboratory Teaching Module A. J. Aranyosi *,+, Aleem Siddiqui*, Hür Köser#, Dennis M. Freeman *,+ *Massachusetts Institute of Technology / #Yale University / +Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and TechnologyAbstractWe have developed a teaching module to engage undergraduate engineering students in anintroductory research project. Pairs of students proposed and carried out self-designed projectsto study diffusion in microfluidic

Conference Session

Emerging Trends in Engineering Education

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Yusuf Mehta

Session: 1793 Innovative Techniques To Teach Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory Yusuf A. Mehta, Ph.D., P.E. Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 201 Mullica Hill Road, 329 Rowan Hall, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ 08028. E-,mail: Mehta@rowan.edu Phone: (856) 256-5327. Fax: (856) 256-5242.ABSTRACTAt Rowan University, civil engineering (CE) materials laboratory is taught in the junior year as arequired course for all CE students. This is a two-credit course with a seventy-five minute classand two-hour forty-minute laboratory every week. The typical enrollment is around 20 to

Conference Session

Computers in Education Poster Session

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Hesham Shaalan; dulal kar; Rafic Bachnak

Session 1520 Digital Systems Laboratory for Teaching and Research Rafic Bachnak, Dulal Kar, and Hesham Shaalan Department of Computing and Mathematical Sciences Texas A&M University-Corpus ChristiAbstractThe Department of Computing and Mathematical Sciences at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi has developed a Digital Systems Laboratory that affords ComputerScience and Engineering Technology students state-of-the-art training tools. Thelaboratory also enhances the ability of the College of Science and Technology todemonstrate science and engineering concepts to

Conference Session

Improving Teaching & Learning

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Dennis Truax

; Exposition Copyright © 2004, American Society for Engineering Educationmade during a hands-on experience can help resolve inhibitions in concept perception andproduce clarity of key issues. Unfortunately, time constraints and productivity demands onfaculty trying to develop and conduct laboratories can reduce this potentially beneficialexperience to little more then a set tried and true cookbook experiments used semester aftersemester. This situation is generally exacerbated by using graduate teaching assistants (GTAs)as a labor saving approach. Often these individuals have little motivation to put forth more thana minimum effort to see that students attend labs and submit reports for quick grading.This situation is compounded

Conference Session

Manufacturing Laboratory Experience

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Vedaraman Sriraman; Dugan Um

the applications nature of Manufacturing Engineering and Engineering Technologyprograms we had designed an introductory controls engineering course that featured pedagogicalapproaches that differed from traditional approaches to teaching this subject. Specifically, wehad decided to use robots as means to present "hands-on" laboratory experiences for ourstudents. Preliminary student responses to our approach have been very enthusiastic. They seemto assimilate control systems theory very well and are able to internalize the practical need forcontrols theory. Also, this approach has led to their (students') discovering the fundamentalrelationships between control systems theory and computer aided manufacturing

Conference Session

Teaching about New Materials

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Wendy Crone

Session 1464 Interactive Demonstrations and Laboratories Using Shape Memory Alloys Wendy C. Crone1, Eric J. Voss2, Katherine C. Chen3 1 Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI 53706 / 2 Chemistry, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL 62026 / 3 Materials Engineering, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407AbstractShape memory alloys (SMAs) constitute a unique class of materials that

Conference Session

Electrical ET Laboratory Practicum

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Thomas Gendrachi

Session 3550 Teaching Effective Troubleshooting In The Microprocessors Lab Thomas E. Gendrachi, P.E. Ward College of Technology, University of HartfordIntroductionOne of the most important functions of an engineering technologist, regardless of specificdiscipline, is her ability to solve real, practical problems. Most of the problems students solve arepaper and pencil textbook problems written by the author of the textbook. Sometimes you willfind troubleshooting problems included in the problem sets at the ends of chapters but, onceagain, these troubleshooting problems are paper and pencil

Conference Session

TIME 4: Pedagogy

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Peter Avitabile; Charles Goodman; Jeffrey Hodgkins

Session 2566 DYNAMIC SYSTEMS TEACHING ENHANCEMENT USING A LABORATORY BASED HANDS-ON PROJECT Dr. Peter Avitabile, Assistant Professor Charles Goodman, Jeff Hodgkins and Kari White, Graduate Students Tracy Van Zandt, Gary StHilaire, Tiffini Johnson, Nels Wirkkala, Undergrad Students Mechanical Engineering Department University of Massachusetts Lowell One University Avenue Lowell, Massachusetts USA Peter_Avitabile

Conference Session

Electrical & Computer Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

John Ciezki; Brian Jenkins; Samara Firebaugh

Session 1532 A Comprehensive Laboratory Design Project for Teaching Advanced Circuit Analysis Samara Firebaugh, Brian Jenkins, and John Ciezki United States Naval AcademyAbstractThis paper describes a design project for sophomores learning advanced circuit concepts relatedto frequency response. The objective of the design project is to design a row or column detectorfor a touch-tone keypad. The project is conducted in small groups of two to three students. Eachgroup designs and builds a detector for a single row that will produce a logical “high” when abutton from

Conference Session

Instrumentation and Laboratory Systems

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Michael Fontenot; Kendrick Aung

Session 2220 Implementing a Parallel Computing Laboratory for Undergraduate Teaching and Research Michael Fontenot, Kendrick Aung Department of Mechanical Engineering Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas 77710Abstract Rapid advances in the computer technology and widespread availability of computershave made it possible for many engineering schools to incorporate high performance computinglaboratories for undergraduate teaching and research. Many employers now requireundergraduate engineering training to include hands-on

Conference Session

ECE Laboratory Development & Innovations

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

George Fodor; Ramakrishna Gottipati; Janos Grantner

Intelligent Fuzzy Controllers Laboratory Janos L Grantner1 , Ramakrishna Gottipati1 , George A Fodor2 1 Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Western Michigan University Kalamazoo MI 49008-5329, USA grantner@wmich.edu, r0gottip@wmich.edu 2 ABB Automation Technology Products AB, S-721 67 Vasteras, Sweden george.a.fodor@se.abb.comAbstract The Intelligent Fuzzy Controllers Laboratory has been developed in the Department ofElectrical and Computer

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Richard Herz

Session 1526 ReactorLab.net Laboratory Simulations Richard K. Herz Chemical Engineering Program & Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department University of California, San Diego, USA 92093-0411AbstractReactorLab.net provides simulations of a variety of chemical reactors for use in chemistry andchemical engineering education. The overall software framework is field-independent; onlyindividual lab modules are field-specific. The software framework is that of a "rich client" or"Internet application," with full

Conference Session

ECE Laboratory Development & Innovations

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Chiu Choi

Session 3432 Undergraduate Controls Laboratory Experience Chiu H. Choi, Ph.D., P.E. University of North Florida Division of Engineering Electrical Engineering ProgramAbstractThe purpose of this paper is to share the educational experience offered to the students through acontrols laboratory course in the electrical engineering program at the University of North Florida.The laboratory experience included the design and prototyping of proportional, proportional-integral, proportional

Conference Session

Innovative Teaching/Learning Strategies

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Harry Franz

Fire Alarm Laboratory Class using LabVIEW Software taken by Students from Two-Year Colleges Prof. Harry Franz, P.E.1 University of Houston- Downtown Member ASEE, IEEE, ISA. NSPE, TAPAbstractThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the creation of a Safety and Fire Alarm LaboratoryCourse that uses LabVIEW and is taken by students that originate from two-year colleges.The University of Houston – Downtown in Houston, Texas has recently instituted a Safetyand Fire BSET program. One of the courses in the program is the “Fire Alarm” course. Thechallenge has been to create a laboratory that is within both budget and

Conference Session

Emerging Trends in Engineering Education

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Brian Thomas; Carolyn Skurla; Walter Bradley

Teaching Freshman Engineering Using Design Projects and Laboratory Exercises to Increase Retention Carolyn Skurla, Brian Thomas, Walter L. Bradley, Baylor UniversityIntroductionThe primary goal of the freshman engineering course at Baylor University is to help students toappreciate the exciting career possibilities that a degree in engineering will provide them.Obviously this can be accomplished with descriptions of what engineers do, including interestingvideos and speakers from industry; however, we believe that the best way for students tounderstand what engineers actually do is to give them the opportunity to practice engineering.The analogy to

Conference Session

Creative Ways to Present Basic Materials

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

David Niebuhr; Heather Smith

Session # 3664 An Integrated Laboratory Vs. A Traditional Laboratory, Is there a difference? David Niebuhr, Heather Smith California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407AbstractDo integrated, graphics-rich laboratories foster enhanced learning when compared to traditionallaboratory experiments? More and more, higher education emphasizes the need to utilizeintegrated approaches to learning. We performed a comparative study involving over 500engineering students. Using corrosion of metals as our subject we performed two sets ofexperiments. In the control lab, students answered questions and performed traditional,structured

Conference Session

Portable/Embedded Computing II

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Linda Lim; James Kokernak; Dean Lewis; Abhijeet Golwelkar; Paul Schoch

isto present a snapshot of a successful large engineering laboratory course as it continues toevolve. Those of us who work to deliver this course believe that it is the combination of theproject, teaching techniques, and resources that results in LITEC being both highly rated by thestudents and a pleasure to teach.The tar get system:The target system refers to the project the students will work on during the semester. Presently itis the Smart Car, previously it was the Intelligent Faucet, and the future target system will be anAutonomous Blimp. A good target system is one that: 1) Engages the students. It is hands-on, visual, and makes the students respond and interact. 2) Is flexible. There are two reasons to require flexibility; one

Conference Session

Curriculum Development in Electromechanical Engineering Technology

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Jan Lugowski

students the opportunity to access recent technology in fluidpower, and gain hands-on experience in this area by using it. Our current hydraulic motioncontrol equipment did not provide for computer control and simulation. In the past, theequipment was an excellent tool for teaching basic principles in motion control. However, recentadvances in computer technology and computer control left our laboratory behind. In order to Page 9.438.1limit the cost of the modernization, the existing equipment was to be used whenever possible in Proceedings of the 2004 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition

Conference Session

Portable/Embedded Computing II

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Michael Parten

Session 1824 Embedded Microprocessors in a Project Laboratory Micheal Parten Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Texas Tech UniversityI IntroductionElectrical and Computer Engineering students have a need to be able to design and build systemswith embedded microprocessors. They also need to be able to become familiar with differentprocessors. There are many different ways to teach microprocessors and their applications. AtTexas Tech University this goal is accomplished through a number of laboratories and courses.Students first

Conference Session

Life Sciences and ChE

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Vyas Harinath; Pfumai Kuzviwanza; Jianzhong Lou; Leonard Uitenham; Keith Schimmel

Time (hours) Figure 6. Respirometer cumulative oxygen uptake results for Eastar Bio® polymer in slurry bottles at 25ºC and 50ºC.IV. ConclusionsInstructive polymer biodegradation data can be collected in the 1-2 week timeframe that isconducive to use within a course. A manual for the biodegradable polymer laboratory unit hasbeen produced that contains introductory material, learning objectives, detailed experimentalprocedures, cooperative learning exercises, formative assessment exercises, reflective writingexercises, and supporting reference materials. The unit has shown promise as an effective toolfor teaching basic polymer concepts in the context of life science and environmental

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Jeff Frolik

Session 1526 A Comprehensive, Laboratory-Enhanced Communications Curriculum Jeff Frolik University of VermontIntroduction Over the past decade, the field of wireless communications has come into its own and isposed to become a ubiquitous technology with the recent arrival of 3G cellular, wireless localarea networks and wireless sensor networks. As such, today’s graduating electrical engineersneed marketable skills which are typically not developed in undergraduate curricula. This paperpresents ongoing activities at the University of Vermont (UVM) which

Conference Session

Novel Upper-Level Materials Curricula

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Richard Henry; James Bandstra

the University of Pittsburgh atJohnstown (UPJ) and Concurrent Technologies Corporation (CTC) collaborate to provide avaluable educational experience for engineering technology students. A description of themotivation for pursuing this collaboration and each organization’s respective role in fulfilling thecollaboration is presented. In addition, examples of typical laboratory experiments are presentedin the context of those motivations and roles. The authors hope that the collaboration describedmay provide guidance for the ASEE community to leverage this approach with their respectivelocal resources.Goals of the CollaborationA basic tenet of the educational philosophy of the Mechanical Engineering Technologydepartment at UPJ is to teach the

Conference Session

Unique Laboratory Experiments & Programs

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Hyun Kim

strengthening the capstonedesign courses improved the ratings in recent years, students have not been fully confident intheir design ability, especially designing and conducting their own experiments. These surveyresults are also consistent with the findings and observation of the author who has beencontinuously teaching Senior-level laboratory courses for the last twenty years. The authorcontends that there are two major reasons that prevent students from adequately developing theability and skills. The first one is limited training due to insufficient exposure in handling open-end experiments, and the other is lack of opportunity in reviewing and improving imperfectexperiments due to their own mistakes and/or inferior equipment by devising new

Conference Session

Assessment Issues II

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Kenneth Cox; Janice Bordeaux; David Caprette; Beth Beason; Ann Saterbak

disciplines, and often even to subsequent course work within the same discipline. Thiscompartmentalized approach compromises the progressive advancement of laboratory skills andacquisition of problem-solving capabilities. In order to address this issue, instructors forlaboratory courses in Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Physics, Biochemistry and CellBiology, Chemistry, and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Rice University have metregularly to discuss how to develop scientifically literate graduates who build upon priorlaboratory experience as students advance through their programs. Discussions have led toseveral cross-disciplinary initiatives.Twenty common teaching/learning objectives that transcend the discipline-specific goals

Conference Session

Topics in Mechanical ET

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

William Ferry; Andrew Otieno

Session Number: 2547 Development of a Low Cost Laboratory System for Teaching Automation System Integration in the Manufacturing Engineering Technology Curriculum William Ferry and Andrew Otieno, Department of Technology, Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL 60115 otieno@ceet.niu.eduAbstract - In many automated manufacturing assembly systems today, several components thatare manufactured by different companies have to be integrated together

Conference Session

Manufacturing Laboratory Experience

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Can Saygin

focuses on the automated manufacturing systems and production aspects of CIEunder the umbrella term of Integrated Manufacturing with emphasis on integration andreconfigurability of laboratory equipment to provide the most effective environment for hands-on applications.The paper introduces the basic features and capabilities of a laboratory, Integrated SystemsFacility (ISF) (http://www.umr.edu/~isf/), which was established with the goal of improvingmanufacturing system related courses at the Engineering Management Department at theUniversity of Missouri – Rolla (UMR). It highlights several teaching and research aspects of thisinitiative. Courses that have been determined by considering various learning styles in order toencourage life-long

Conference Session

Life Sciences and ChE

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Peter Reilly; Surya Mallapragada; Mary Huba; Jacqueline Shanks; Kevin Saunders; Charles Glatz; Balaji Narasimhan

Problem-Based Learning Laboratories Involving Chemicals From Biorenewables Charles Glatz1, Balaji Narasimhan1, Jacqueline Shanks1, Mary Huba2, Kevin Saunders2, Peter Reilly1, and Surya Mallapragada1 1 Iowa State University Department of Chemical Engineering / 2Iowa State University Department of Educational Leadership and Policy StudiesAbstractAt Iowa State University, we have developed a unique and valuable experience for our studentsby giving them an opportunity to work in multidisciplinary teams on cutting-edge problemsinvolving biorenewables, while using novel problem-based learning approaches. The focus offour new 1-credit laboratory

Conference Session

Computer-Based Measurements

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Stephen Williams; Hadi Saadat

controllers.IntroductionWith the great advances in microelectronics and high-performance data acquisition and controlboards, the control of modern industrial and commercial systems with a digital computer is becom-ing more common. To bridge the gap between academics and industry it is essential to supplementthe teaching of control system courses by developing and incorporating into the curriculum a real-time control system laboratory that will allow students to design, implement, and test their owncontrol systems. For a control education laboratory to work effectively and efficiently it should bebased on well established systems that provide a variety of experiments that span the spectrum oftopics from classical control to optimal, digital, robust, and nonlinear

Conference Session

Electrical & Computer Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Howard Smolleck

consists of a carefully-coordinated program ofactivities in which students work with faculty and receive financial support during regularsemesters, with the opportunity of employment with sponsoring companies during summer or co-op phases. A key component of the mentoring program this year has been directed studentparticipation in the technical development of a new Electric Power Systems Laboratory. Thebasic components of this laboratory were assembled and have been used in both required andelective classes in electric power systems, and updated continually, beginning in the Spring 2002semester. The students are also developing experiments, which include hardware and associatedcomputer control, for teaching and exploring more advanced

Conference Session

TIME 2: Laboratories

Collection

2004 Annual Conference

Authors

Gordon Parker; Paula Zenner

described along with our plan for testing and assessing the ability of the remotelabs to convey practical aspects of control system phenomena.IntroductionThe Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics at Michigan TechnologicalUniversity developed a required undergraduate Dynamic Systems and Controls laboratory that isa practical and relevant component of an engineer’s education. The purpose is to provide acombined laboratory experience that reinforces the traditional elements of the course. Faculty aredirectly involved teaching the lecture component of the course and are responsible for thecreation of laboratory experiments. Graduate students work closely with these faculty membersand teach the weekly labs.The primary goal of the