Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

John I. Hochstein; E. H. Perry

performance on traditional engineering exams,consisting exclusively of problems graded with partial credit, has acquired sufficient knowledgeand skill to merit a passing grade and subsequently a degree from your program? Are yousearching for innovative methods and tools for providing the program documentation demandedby EC2000 accreditation requirements1? We believe that most of our colleagues haveconsidered some, if not all, of these questions at some time in their teaching careers. Ourmotivation in writing this paper is to share with those colleagues a pedagogical tool that can helpserve as a partial answer to all of these questions – Direct Competency Testing, (DCT).The experience reported herein evolved from a chance discussion between the two

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Bahman S. Motlagh; Alireza Rahrooh

Session 2547 The Fundamental Digital Circuits Laboratory at The University of Central Florida Bahman S. Motlagh, Alireza Rahrooh University of Central FloridaAbstractA course in Digital Circuits is an essential part of a well-rounded Electrical EngineeringTechnology (EET) curriculum. With hands-on experiments significantly improving theunderstanding and visualization of complex subject matters, a series of laboratory experimentshave been developed in order to enhance the teaching and learning processes of Digital Circuitsat the University of Central Florida. The

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Y-K Lai; W. S. Chung; Billy L. Crynes

Session 2213 Chemical Engineering Fundamentals -- Better Learning Through Computer-Based Delivery B.L. Crynes, Y-K Lai and W.S. Chung School of Chemical Engineering University of Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma 73019 crynes@ou.eduI. IntroductionUse of information technology unquestionably, when done properly, leads to better learning. Theevidence is building to a compelling level (1). Unfortunately, there are still too many“experimental” projects that poorly match

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Tom Ward; Elizabeth Alford

writing assignment related to the NSPE Code. Aftercompleting the search, students write reflective papers analyzing the cases by provisions of theCode. Students then receive an introduction to Toulmin logic, a system of practical reasoning toaid their analysis. Following group discussion of the cases, students then write a team report inwhich they examine their understanding of the Fundamental Canons of Ethics.This joint paper outlines the entire module: the website searches, materials used in the course,points to covered in the discussion of the Code and the reflective paper assignment. Rationalesfor the activities are described.I. IntroductionAs even a brief literature and Internet search will reveal, integration of ethics instruction

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Hakan B. Gürocak

industryto implement controllers. In a typical undergraduate engineering curriculum a control systemscourse introducing the fundamental notions of analog control theory is offered. To learn digitalcontrol theory, students would have to take an extra course on digital control systems, usually atthe graduate level. This paper explains the development of a hybrid classical/digital controlsystems course*. Also, laboratory experiments designed to support the new format are presented.IntroductionManufacturing engineering is a very broad discipline. Consequently, manufacturing engineerstypically engage in a diverse range of activities such as plant engineering, manufacturingprocesses, machine design, and product design. In just about any of these roles a

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Christopher Ibeh

communication skills. The term paper concept is based on theprinciples of ideation and implementation, the key elements of creativity and critical thinking.The development of ideas based on the students’ subject area(s) of interest serves as a drivingforce for implementation of the ideas. Implementation takes the students through the process ofliterature search for acquisition and development of knowledge base, design of experiment tovalidate and verify idea(s), performance of experiment for data acquisition, analyses andinterpretation of acquired data, and the ultimate report writing and presentation. Report writingteaches the students how to write and is an additional medium for learning the subject material.Presentation introduces and initiates the

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

John K. Estell

Web browsers. While Java programscan be written as stand-alone applications, they are best known in their applet format, whichallow interactive programs to be incorporated into Web page design. At Bluffton College, Java is the language used in the object-oriented programming(OOP) courses that our students take in their second year of study. Many of the non-OOPconstructs of the language are derived from C, which is learned by our students in their first yearof study. Accordingly, the introductory OOP course focuses on the OOP aspects of Java. Inorder to explore these concepts through the writing of programs, applets are introduced early inthe course curriculum. This requires that students obtain a fundamental understanding

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Ernest M. Kim

at the University of SanDiego was made beginning in the Spring 1992 semester. The vehicle chosen is a course taughtby the Electrical Engineering program for non-engineering and non-science/math majorsentitled, "Engineering 2 - Introduction to Electro-Technology" which is taught every Springsemester. This new technology course is unique in that it fulfills the General Education PhysicalScience requirement for non-engineering and non-science/math majors. The goal of Engineering2 are:1. Provide an additional opportunity for General Education study in science and technology in the liberal arts curriculum which develops the foundation sciences necessary to understand the nation of fundamental technical applications.2. Integrate the scientific

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Francis Wang; El-Hadi M. Aggoune

such as design projects and national test results to prove that their graduateshave met the required outcomes under Criterion 3 of EC 2000. In many cases, however, a lack ofthe fundamental concept of educational outcomes assessment is clearly visible – the linkagebetween portfolio content, content assessment, corrective action planning and implementation,and evidence of program improvement.In this paper, we share our experience in portfolio development and present a tool that assisted usin the assessment of student educational outcomes set forth by ABET. In the following sectionswe first answer the question where does the portfolio fit in a typical assessment plan. Second thegoal, content, evaluation, and analysis of the portfolio are

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Paul Waters; Jim Greer; James P. Solti

attempts to motivate faculty to examine their efforts for achieving the prescribedgoals outlined for their course. The paper itself is written as a diagnostic model in which readerscan discover for themselves, through active exercises within a small discussion group, thenecessity for developing, writing, and implementing a sound teaching philosophy rooted inactive learning. Faculty members are encouraged to develop a schematic model (flowchart)illustrating how their philosophy manifests itself in the classroom. The model is beingdeveloped primarily for new faculty members in the Engineering Mechanics Department at theUnited States Air Force Academy in hopes that it will accelerate their professional developmentand classroom improvement efforts.I

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

George Stephanopoulos; Alan S. Foss

with which the physicsand phenomena of the process are identified and engineering science concepts placed into a modelstructure simply by declaration. Such declarations are made through use of our new software thatassembles the phenomena declared, builds the equations, and solves the equations numerically. Thesoftware is novel and unique; ModelLA is its name. With a functioning model, students can examineits characteristics and use such quantitative information to solve the engineering problem posed. Following such an encounter with the cause and effect among variables, students are muchbetter prepared than they were at the outset to write equations for the model. Through Q and A in aworkshop session, the instructor leads the students

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Kathy Bearden; Donald D. Harter; Jerry W. Samples

hiring manager of engineers. • Location.2. What will keep you here? • Variety of teaching assignments. • Caliber of students. • Time to pursue activities of interest (not necessarily fundamental research, but new skills and applications.) • Good work environment. • Acknowledgment of good work. • Raises. • Open dialog.3. What kind of assistance is appropriate to help you stay here? Mentor? • Mentor is excellent suggestion. • Keep me on the tenure track. • Guidance in finding the right stops along the tenure time-line, i.e., good committees, Page

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Sarah E. Irvine; Teresa L. Hein

understand the entire collision process. This processinvolves a fundamental understanding of the force and time involved for each collision. Theproduct of the force and collision time yields a quantity called impulse. Impulse, by definition,is equal to change in momentum. In addition to understanding the concept of momentumconservation, students are also challenged to demonstrate their understanding of impulse in acollision. The concept of impulse is one that tends to be problematic for many students.IV. Learning Style DescribedSeveral definitions of learning style exist. Sternburg 16 defines style as a preferred way of usingone’s abilities. Dunn 17 has described learning style as “... the way each learner begins toconcentrate, process, and retain

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Kenneth Reid; Elaine Cooney

UniversityIndianapolis worked together with Diversified Systems, Inc., an Indianapolis electronicsmanufacturing firm, to develop and present a course entitled “Fundamentals of ElectronicsManufacturing”.I. Course Content Page 4.187.1The course is structured to be offered as a nine week course at the manufacturer’s site or as anon-campus course. The class consists of lecture with hands-on laboratories. The syllabus is asfollows: week topic lab 1 Introduction, components, basic electricity using multimeters 2 Basic electricity, DC circuits measure V, I, R, Ohm’s

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

J. W. Pierre; Robert F. Kubichek; Jerry Hamann

these exercises usethe signal processing and audio capabilities of MATLAB. A web page for these homeworkexercises is being developed at wwweng.uwyo.edu/electrical/dsp_audio.I. IntroductionDespite the instructor's best efforts, many students complete required signals and systems classesfeeling that the field has little or no practical application. This is not unlike typical studentreaction to electromagnetics courses where triple integrals and vector mathematics often obscureits fundamental importance. In contrast to student perceptions, signal processing technology isextensively used in a wide variety of applications including communications, control, and isespecially predominant in modern consumer electronics. Getting the student to make

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Pedro Arce

sections below, several characteristics of the project-based final exam model willbe described and, also, general aspects related to the course will be covered to show anoverview of the student effort. Preliminary feedback from the students, the lab instructor,and ABET evaluators seem to indicate that these effort could play an important role inthe overall integration of teaching fluid mechanics (to engineering undergraduatestudents) in a very efficient, relevant, and successful strategy.II. COURSE MECHANICSECH 3264 meets twice a week during two sessions of one hour and fifteen minutesduration for general discussion of material related, mainly to fundamental aspects of fluidmechanics. The course also features an additional class that usually is

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Sheila Palmer

studentsderive the equations in groups. I gave them a leading handout and they were to fill in the blanks.The text of the handout follows. T ds EQUATIONS: ALL equations that you write should be on a differential basis (e.g., the heat transfer is expressed as q and e is written as de.) 1 - Write the Conservation of Energy equation for a closed system. 2 - Divide the above equation by the system mass. 3 - If changes in kinetic and potential energy are negligible, what is the simplified expression for de? 4 - If the process is internally reversible, write the expression for the heat transfer as given by the definition of entropy. 5 - If the only work involved is boundary work, what is the expression

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Ronald James; Janet L. Gooder; Charles Wisniewski; Brenda Haven; A. George Havener

interaction with all team members.(6) Demonstrated professional completion of Workshop 1.Task: Given a fundamental energy system, your team is to perform an energy analysis thatfulfills the above stated objectives. Entries for Table 2 should be written in the cells provided.Table 3 is designed to guide you through the process of reducing the power-balance equation foryour system. Your team must write the reduced form of the 1st Law of Thermodynamics in thebox following Table 3. Your team’s oral presentation will be presented to the class as 2 minutesummary by one of your teammates. Everyone will get to brief during the semester. Yourindividual and team performance will be evaluated according to satisfactory completion of theobjectives. A copy of the

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Roy R., Jr. Craig; Edward McConnell

course occurred that was centered around the shift to digital dataacquisition through the use of virtual instruments (VI’s) based on the LabVIEW™ software.1This paper discusses the development of the VI’s used in the course, the laboratory exercisesthat comprise the course, and the improvements in student morale and report-writing skills thathave resulted from the restructuring of the course.1. Introduction Measurements and Instrumentation (M&I) is a 3-hour, required, junior-level course inthe Aerospace Engineering curriculum at The University of Texas at Austin. A confluence ofcircumstances occurred in the early 1990’s that led to a major restructuring of the course: theearly medical retirement of the principal course instructor; the

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Russell Dean; Charles F. Yokomoto

you understand each of its component parts and the way that they relate to each other.C Unless your organization hires an assessment specialist or consultant, someone in your organization needs to understand the full scope of the variety of activities that make up outcomes assessment, and writing your own process is one way to acquire this understanding.2.1. Suggestions for Writing Your Assessment ProcessWe have several recommendations to make if you plan to develop your own process.C Study the processes that others have published, being careful of the way that you interpret them and the assumptions you make of their intentions.C Develop an outcomes assessment plan that falls between the extremes

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

J. Elaine Seat; Fred Weber; Daniel C. Yoder; Christopher D. Pionke; J. Roger Parsons

Session 1368 Integration of Statics and Particle Dynamics in a Hands-On Project-Oriented Environment Christopher D. Pionke, J. Roger Parsons, J. Elaine Seat, Fred E. Weber, Daniel C. Yoder The Engineering Fundamentals Division engage Program The University of TennesseeAbstractTwo new courses have been developed at the University of Tennessee (UT) as part of theEngineering Fundamentals Division engage program. Each course is 6 semester hours and theyare entitled EF 101 - Engineering Approaches to Physical Phenomena and EF 102

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Phillip C. Wankat

just the studentswith access to files.Create a file of possible test problems as you teach. These can be variants of homeworkproblems, problems sparked by student misunderstandings, ideas from other professors,and so forth. Then when you start to write the test you will have several potentialproblems which can be fleshed out. Solve the test completely before using it. If youdon’t, you will pay sometime during the semester. And a test with an unsolvableproblem is a disaster.Record how long it takes you to solve the test. Freshmen and sophomores will needabout five times as long, juniors about four times as long, and seniors about three timesas long. If possible, have the teaching assistant or another professor solve the printedform of the test

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Anthony Brizendine

experiencesin various technical courses to enhance the overall technical and computerprowess of the graduate as outlined by TAC of ABET9. However, from informaldiscussions with other faculty and his own experiences, the author recognizessome of the inherent difficulties of introducing software into traditional lecturecourses. Students, and maybe even some faculty from time to time, need to be Page 4.71.2reminded that software is not an end-all but simply a tool, much as a slide rule orcalculator, that assists us in the performance of our work. As such, software mustnot be taught at the expense of fundamental concepts or in lieu of basic analysisand design procedures

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

L. Davis Clements; John S. Cundiff; Dennis Schulte; George Meyer

.) Material from chemical engineering and mechanical engineering thermodynamics dealing with higher temperatures and pressures can be abbreviated.2. Material on cycles is needed, but the application depth found in a mechanical engineering thermodynamics course is not needed. The level of treatment in chemical engineering thermodynamics is about right.3. Psychrometrics is central to most biological systems engineering problems. A fundamental goal of the course is to develop competency in the application of psychrometrics. This competency is not adequately developed in chemical engineering or a first course in mechanical engineering thermodynamics.4. Gibbs energy must be introduced with several

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Charles Roth

developed a self-paced course in logic design of digital systems 8 starting in 1971,and the course is still going strong today. Initial development of study guides and unit testsrequired a very substantial amount of time and effort. When there are no lectures to patch thingsup, defects in the textbook become very apparent. I started writing supplements to the text, andthese evolved into a new textbook, which is now in its fourth edition. The PSI method providesexcellent feedback to the instructor compared with the lecture method. When mastery of thecourse material is required, student questions provide detailed feedback about ambiguous partsof the study materials. Using this feedback, study units were improved, and students achievedmore rapid

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

W.V. Wilding; J.N. Harb; Ronald E. Terry; W.C. Hecker

education by focusing onthe product (student attributes) rather than the process (teaching). Although the formality ofoutcomes-based education may be unfamiliar to some, the fundamental ideas are not new, andare routinely incorporated into our day-to-day efforts to improve student learning. ABET 2000provides the formal context needed for broad application of these ideas and, of course, thedriving force needed to facilitate change.At issue, then, is how we will respond to this opportunity. On one hand ABET 2000 may beviewed as an unpleasant and perhaps unnecessary task that must be accomplished to achieveaccreditation. Alternatively, it may be viewed as a catalyst for making significant improvementsto engineering education. It is our opinion that

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

S. M. Miner; R. E. Link

Session 2520 Complementary Usage of Mathematica and I-DEAS in Mechanism Design R.E. Link, S.M. Miner United States Naval AcademyAbstractAll mechanical engineering majors at the Naval Academy are required to take a course inComputer Aided Design during their senior year. The underlying philosophy of the course is touse the computer to solve problems that would be impractical to solve by hand. The vehicle usedto illustrate this is the design of four bar mechanisms. During the first part of the course thestudents write programs using Mathematica to

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Scott Wayne; Alfred Stiller; Kristine Craven

communications skills, and (4) to develop awarenessof the different engineering disciplines and the engineering profession in general. The objectivesof E2 are to enhance students’ problem solving skills and to develop ability with the Cprogramming language and with the MATLAB software package. Both courses traditionallyinvolve projects as a vehicle for group work and problem solving. Each of the twelve sectionshas approximately 40 students and is taught by faculty from the various departments within theCollege of Engineering and Mineral Resources. The new courses comprise several projects, which involve mathematical modelsdeveloped from fundamental scientific principles by the students rather than simple formula-centered problem solving strategies

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

John R. Wagner; David Finley

Session 3513 Development of a Dynamic Curriculum Assessment Examination John Wagner, David Finley Dr. John J. McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering Tri-State UniversityAbstractProgram assessment has become increasingly important for obtainingaccreditation. Furthermore, ABET Engineering Criteria 2000 mandates the useof multiple assessment measures. One important objective measure of programperformance is a comprehensive examination given to students in their senioryear. Many engineering programs now use the Fundamentals of Engineering(FE) examination as this comprehensive

Collection

1999 Annual Conference

Authors

Ralph A. Dusseau; Kauser Jahan

engineering clinic class. This class is a major hallmark ofthe Rowan engineering program. The theme of the Freshman Clinic class in the spring semester is reverseengineering of commercial products. Students in teams of four or five spend an entire semester learning aboutengineering fundamentals such as fluid flow, heat and mass transfer, thermodynamics and engineering materials.They are also exposed to intellectual property rights, safety and ethics, ergonomics and environmentalconsiderations in engineering design.IntroductionThe college of engineering at the Rowan University was created through a $100 million gift from Henry andBetty Rowan in 1992 to the then former Glassboro State College (1). This newly constructed state-of-the-art$28M Henry M