Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Jeffrey B. Hargrove

most of the studentscurrently taking the mechatronics courses, and hence developing software code, have nevertaken a course in C programming. However, this has not proven to be a hindrance to them.Further, students in other courses at Kettering University utilize the Mechatronics Laboratorieswebsite. For example, students in Instrumentation (ME-204) are required to complete a designproject at the end of the course that deals with instrumentation applications in a real-lifeproblem. These students are encouraged to routinely use the “Links to Other Sites of Interest”on the mechatronics website to assist in researching their projects. Doing so not only creates anawareness of the mechatronics courses for these students, but since the

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Abhijit Nagchaudhuri

physical reality. The success ofthe project and student feedback suggest that integration of these software tools will be beneficialfor improving student performance in the Dynamics course that all mechanical engineeringundergraduates have to undertake.I. IntroductionComputer simulation of dynamic systems is a valuable tool for engineering analysis and design. Itallows for active experimentation, design modification, and subsequent analysis withoutinvestment in raw materials and supplies.The ’chalk and talk’ style of teaching and instruction attempts to transmit knowledge from theteacher to a passive recipient. There is a growing awareness among engineering educators thatwhile this style of instruction is suitable for teaching engineering analysis

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

John H. Ristroph

) (2) Using expected values for routine decisions works because errors tend to average out. Forexample, suppose that a company has about 100 small projects of roughly the same size. If eachproject's actual present worth independently varies by 20% about its estimated value, statisticaltheory indicates that the actual value of the total present worth of all projects varies by only 2%about the estimated total present worth. In general, if there are N projects each having a percent-age variation of PV, then the total percentage variation TPV is: TPV = PV / N 1/2 (3) Companies also have a few large projects where there is little opportunity for errors

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Jagdish T. Gajjar

realengineering experience. Learning to make engineering measurements provides afundamental basis for this process. This paper reports on an instrumentation moduledeveloped to teach freshmen students in the design of an instrumentation system, which Page 5.23.1is used to introduce students to engineering methods. The methods learned are used indesign projects later in the year 5-7 .Union College is a private, undergraduate liberal arts and engineering college withapproximately 2000 students. The engineering division offers programs in electrical,mechanical, civil and computer systems engineering as well as computer science. In1995, the college was awarded a grant

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Jeffrey A. Jalkio

standard controlproblem of designing of a closed loop speed control system for a dc motor.This laboratory project differs from the standard presentation in several ways. First, theproblem statement is intentionally very vague. The students are simply told to design asystem that accepts a target speed from a user and brings the motor to that speed.Similarly, the components supplied to the students (motors, shafts, amplifiers, bearings)do not come with specifications. To solve this problem, the students must clarify thevague user specified requirements, model the physical system mathematically, designexperiments to determine the values of system parameters such as motor torque constantand bearing friction, design a control algorithm to meet the

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Donna C.S. Summers

necessity, an on-goingprocess. Total curriculum revitalization is a project of a larger scale. To meet the needs of amarket-driven university, a comprehensive, coordinated approach to curriculum revision wasneeded. A process-oriented review of the IET curriculum (Figure 1) would enhance theprogram, preserving the crucial capabilities required for success upon graduation and recruitmentwhile maintaining a strong TAC of ABET accredited program and increasing overall operationaleffectiveness.Step 3: Study the Current SituationDuring this step, we explored who we are, what we are currently doing and what we arecurrently capable of doing. Having identified our customers in Step 1, randomly selectedindividuals from each category were contacted using

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Lizette R. Chevalier; James N. Craddock

. Thisformat provides the opportunity for incorporating many novel aspects into the labware. The long-term goal of the project is to use the style and approach developed on this project as a template forthe other experiments in the Strength of Materials laboratory, as well as other civil engineeringlaboratory courses. Common elements to all of these laboratories include modules on laboratorysafety, report writing, statistics and unit conversions.The labware has potential use in a diverse range of university environments. The pedagogypromoted by our approach is to engage students in active learning, and to accommodate variouslearning styles. By focusing on the development of an interactive multimedia program for thelaboratory component of the course

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Louis J. Plebani; Joseph C. Hartman

Session 2257 Using the Internet to Support Problem Based Learning Louis J. Plebani, Joseph C. Hartman Lehigh UniversityAbstractThis paper reports on the use of the Internet to support problem-based learning, a trend in pedagogythat is used to engage students in learning by presenting them with problems they perceive as morerealistic than textbook problems and by requiring them to fill in gaps when presented with asituation they do not readily understand. This past fall, we implemented a relatively simplehomework/project using the Internet in our senior level “Production

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Francis J. Hopcroft

Page 5.657.5ATTACHMENT PROGRAM LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1B ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT EMPLOYABILITYSEMESTER SKILLED SOUND COMPETENT TEAMING KNOWLEDGE PROJECT IMMINENT PERFORM COMFORT ENGINEER FOUNDATION WRITING SKILLS TRANSFER MANAGEM’T EMPLOYAB. ENTRY LEV’L w/PEER REVFR - FALL A A A A A A A A AFR - SPRING A A A A A A A A ASO - FALL U A/U U

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Marilyn J. Smith; Bethany Bodo

challenging undertaking. The project team is writing the first of these, andthen invite authorities worldwide to provide further content. As ADL expands, CEs will providethe nucleus of a peer-reviewed, integrative, publication system, reversing the trend towardsfragmentation. The CEs will also tell instructors how their subject areas are evolving, and aboutother areas. This is the core of cross-disciplinary integration through the DL. This naturalsynthesis mechanism represents a potential risk, and the rationale, for ADL.An important curricular issue is how to go beyond today’s “web-based course” excitement anduse the true advantages of iterative learning to solve problems across disciplines: This isillustrated in Figure 4. The AE team is integrating

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Robin H. Lovgren; Michael J. Racer; Anna P. Phillips

teaching o Team projects, with a balanced evaluation of three elements - group dynamics, technical merit, and communicationTable 2. University of Memphis Mission StatementThe University of Memphis is a member of the State University and Community CollegeSystem of Tennessee and is governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents. As an urbanuniversity, The University of Memphis provides a stimulating academic environment forits students, including an innovative undergraduate education and excellence in selectedresearch areas and graduate programs. The academic environment extends beyond thecampus boundaries to encompass the entire community. o Education is enhanced through exposure to diversity in the composition of the student body, faculty

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Jeffery M. Saul; Rhett J. Allain; Duane L. Deardorff; David S. Abbott; Robert J. Beichner

Session 1526 Promoting collaborative groups in large enrollment courses Robert J. Beichner, Jeffery M. Saul, Rhett J. Allain, Duane L. Deardorff, David S. Abbott North Carolina State UniversityAbstractSCALE-UP is an extension of the highly successful IMPEC project (Integrated Math,Physics, Engineering, and Chemistry), one of NC State’s curricular reform effortsundertaken as part of the SUCCEED coalition. Basically, we are utilizing the highlyinteractive, collaboratively-based instruction that worked so well in smaller class settingsand finding ways to economically accommodate classes

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Jerome Tapper

schools with co-opprograms), industry supported capstone projects, employment following graduation, andfinancial support for industry related projects and research to name a few.This paper establishes some strategies for gaining access to industry and developing relationshipswith industry representatives. It is these relationships that will prove to be most valuable.II. Some Ground RulesBefore establishing a relationship with a potential industrial partner, it is most important that afew necessary rules be understood. Once you have worked with your industrial partners andestablished an unwritten mutual benefit agreement, which will be discussed later in this paper

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Majid Salim; John E Wagner; David R Finley

concerns about copying of solutions, the current collaboration policy is restrictive (excepton team-based projects where noted), emphasizing the importance of individual effort.Assignments that prove difficult for the majority of the class are reviewed during lecture.A single mid-term exam is given. This exam is designed to insure that students have a solidgrasp on their chemical engineering plan of study, including specific requirements that must bemet prior to graduation. In particular, a firm grasp of social science and humanities (SHS)requirements, historically one of the most challenging advising concepts, is tested. For this test,students are presented a number of course combinations and are asked if these combinationssatisfy the rigorous

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Ron Eaglin; Z. Qu; Q. Zhang; P. Wahid; Issa Batarseh

perform on-linesimulation of all type of DC and AC electrical engineering problems and have the option of plottingthe responses graphically. This paper gives only the first development phase of the project. Moreworks is needed to complete the software development of the simulation component of the CircuitMark-Up Language (CirML) module.INTRODUCTIONBecause of the recent advances in technology in terms of technical delivery capabilities and cost, therole of technology in education has never been greater [1]. The Internet has been utilized as the idealmedium to create platforms for students to use for its wide availability. Repeated studies have shownthat often students in engineering core courses find it difficult to grasp the basic concepts

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Scott Danielson; Sudhir I. Mehta

learning is an important effect. Concept questionscan be used for active cooperative learning activities during class and as exam questions. Mazursuggests that exams contain a combination of traditional computational problems and conceptualquestions. This combination makes students study fundamental principles in addition to more Page 5.554.1traditional homework problems focused on use of equations.II. Concept Questions In StaticsDeveloping concept-questions for statics is part of a larger project focused on development,evaluation, and national dissemination of instructional materials for statics. These instructionalmaterials are based on advances

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Ed Clausen; Carolyne E. Garcia

coursework summary. This summaryincludes a narrative on each course taken in the curriculum, and briefly describes why the coursewas taken, the value of each course to the student, and a description of any special projects orassignments required in the class. Up to one page may be written for each class.The professional employment experience narrative follows, in which the student describes anddiscusses professional employment and programs, why they chose the particular activity, andwhat they learned. A similar narrative is prepared for other employment experiences that arenon-professional, but still have significant value in personal development.Extracurricular activities, both inside and outside the university, are discussed, including

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Hamid Khan

showingthat he/she is capable of modeling in 2D and 3D. Again, five skills exams administered per semesterbring the total class meetings to only twenty-three. The effectiveness of this project based CADteaching and learning is limited to demonstration type of teaching in a lecture format for one hour andletting loose the students to complete assignments and projects by their own volition and cooperation.No monitoring is possible in the lab. There is no “practical” cad-lab with supervised lab experiencesfor the students. Therefore, the students are supposed to complete drawing and project assignments inunsupervised labs in their own time. This gives rise to too much cooperation among the students, to

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Richard Layton

programs must demonstrate that their graduates have an under-standing of professional and ethical responsibility.”1In response to this need, educators can adopt a number of strategies. Among them are the fol-lowing, paraphrased from Alenskis2:• A stand-alone course in ethics.• An ethics component in a stand-alone course in professionalism.• An ethics component in a senior project, thesis, or capstone course.• Integration of ethics across the curriculum.• Commingling ethics instruction in technical courses.Each approach has advantages and disadvantages (reference 2 cites studies that investigate eachof these approaches). As Alenskis states, “The issue is often how to present ethics as an impor-tant aspect of the technical profession

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Kamyar Haghighi; Heidi A. Diefes

Valuation Synthesis Analysis Students will have the ability to:1. Brainstorm2. Initiate and maintain task-oriented dialogue X3. Set team goal(s) X4. Work for constructive conflict resolution5. Utilize effective project and time

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Kirk H. Schulz; Noel Schulz

graduate studies such as financialsupport for graduate school, selection of a research project, or taking appropriate support classesfor their chosen thesis topic. To better understand the preconceptions students have prior toentering graduate school, we surveyed seniors and graduate students in engineering at MichiganTech.II. SurveyThe authors felt we had some anecdotal information about why students do not go to graduateschool. To try to substantiate these ideas we composed a survey to measure the reasons whycurrently enrolled graduate students decided to pursue graduate degrees. The survey is given asTable 1. The survey was distributed via listservers to all the graduate students in engineering.The survey was filled out by 27 engineering

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

John W. Nicklow

syllabus provided clear instruction on format of the assignment. Theinstructions included that the paper should be approximately five pages and should include aminimum of three cited references.The objectives for assignment would be met by critically evaluating a subject closely related tohydraulic engineering design. Students were prompted to begin selection of a suitable topicimmediately and were requested to submit a paragraph describing their topic and a list of intendedreferences by the third week of a fifteen-week semester. Examples of suitable topics wereprovided, including a discussion of a particular hydraulic engineering project that uses analysisconcepts covered in class, a published application of a particular design methodology to a

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Margarita Takach; Yiyuan J. Zhao; Reza Langari; Ray Taghavi; Mehrdad Ghasemi Nejhad; Luigi Martinelli; Linda Ann Riley; K. Krishnamurthy; Janet M. Twomey; Degang Chen; David Radcliffe

rewardedfor being team players and encouraged to develop their capability for being a leader. They need totrust each other, respect each other, and treat each other with dignity and professionalism.Unavoidably, mistakes will happen in team projects and students, therefore students need to learnto give and receive criticism professionally and constructively. To this respect, surfacing problemsearly and seeking help, rather than hiding them and hoping they will not be found, is also crucialto the successful completion of team projects on schedule. Also important in a team environmentis that students need to learn to become active listeners. Finally, as faculty, we should helpstudents form a healthy habit of always actively seeking responsibility and

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

S. S. Venkata; Doug Jacobson

. A decision was made early in the process to involve anoutside architect who could help create a space that would capture the vision of the group. Duringthe first meeting, the architect was given a tour of the space and a brief description of the usageenvisioned was discussed for the space. Most of the discussion centered on the way studentsworked together and the concepts surrounding cooperative learning. Another design constraintwas that the space should be a place were the students wanted to be and that it should not look likea "standard" classroom or study room. The architect was also told that price was not a majorconcern at this stage of the project and was asked to provide us with several concepts so that wecould begin to make a

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Edward F. Young; Jeffrey Morehouse; Jed Lyons

the students to apply thespectrum of their mechanical engineering knowledge. It's also exciting to the students. As thestudents progress through the series of experiments, they are increasingly involved inexperimental design (selecting sensors, sensor locations and experimental operating conditions).The course culminates in a truly open-ended design of an experiment of their choosing. Thiscourse development project is supported by the National Science Foundation’s Instrumentationand Laboratory Improvement Program, the NSF’s Course, Curriculum and LaboratoryImprovement Program, and the University of South Carolina. This paper describes the work inprogress.I. Motivation and Context for this ProjectAn integral part of the undergraduate

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Peter Wild; Brian Surgenor; Aaron Dellah

taken at Cal Poly where the facility for laboratory experimentsis referred to as the “Mechatronics Design Studio” 3. The experiments are more group project Page 5.32.1oriented. The most common project involves the design, construction and programming of atable top mobile (wheeled) robot. Another project is similar to San Jose’s parts sorter in thatstudents are required to program a robot to move small parts around. However, at Cal Poly theparts are delivered by one of the mobile robots from the other projects.As a third example, Mariapan at GMI developed a sequence that he believes allows the studentsto acquire a complete mechatronics product

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Paul I-Hai Lin; Hal Broberg

input from many of the engineers and scientists working onsatellite instrumentation. He also obtained a commitment from ITT to provide matchingfunds for the on-site applied research at the ITT facility by IPFW faculty. Later, after theNSF grant was approved, another ITT manager, handled the funding, scheduling, officespace, computers, software, etc required for 4 faculty members to work on-site at ITT.This cooperation and assistance was vital to the grant request and to fulfilling therequirements of the grant. Finding industrial managers willing to spend the time requiredto initiate this type of project may be the most difficult part of obtaining a similar grant

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Peter J. Shull

laboratory course included thefollowing: • The instructor identifies groups comprised of 3 or 4 students and provides students with a description of the laboratory project. Students generally perform 8 projects per course. Page 5.304.1 • The groups are provided with instructions on generating a group report. The formal laboratory report must contain the following sections: Abstract, Introduction, Procedure, Results and Discussion, and Conclusion. The function and form of each section is discussed. • Focus is placed on both the substance of the report and the quality of writing

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

Alamgir Choudhury

industryprofessionals will be customized case by case. The laboratory consists of LavVoltprocess stations, actuators drives, commercially available sensors/transducers, NationalInstrument data acquisition hardware and PC with LabVIEW software. This NSFsponsored project is scheduled for completion by June 2000.1. IntroductionTraditionally, mechanical and electrical engineering technology programs have beenusing separate courses in instrumentation, measurement and control area to achieverespective program goals. During past two decades, instrumentation technology haschanged rapidly and distinction between mechanical and electrical instrumentation isgradually fading. Based on input from industry, we find that market wants moreinterdisciplinary skill among

Collection

2000 Annual Conference

Authors

John T. Bell; H. Scott Fogler

, Anita Sujarit, Scott Whitney, James Angelo, Jessica DesNoyer, Kim Snodgrass,Candace Corea, Christine Cha, and Matt Moersfelder ( in chronological order. ) Thanks are alsodue to Dr. Joseph Louvar and Lawrence James of BASF Chemical Corporation and to TomPakula of Marathon Oil Company for the valuable resources they have provided for thedevelopment of the virtual reality modules, and to the Department of Chemical Engineering ofthe University of Michigan for providing the initial funding of this project. This project was supported, in part by the National Science Foundation