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Student presentations
In this class we are going to focus more on the process and issues associated with embedded system design. Though the first third of the class will be a bit more "nuts-and-bolts" as we prepare you for the lab, and the homework assignments will focus on technical issues, the focus of the class is preparing you for real-world design. Many of you will have actual customers with diverse requirements while all of you will be expected to produce a platform that can be easily used and adopted by others.
The class does have labs, homework assignments and exams, but the focus of the class is on product design and clear communication. Three weeks into the course you will form a project group of 4-5 and start on the design process. You will be tasked with writing a formal proposal as well as memos that report on your status. The majority of your time will be spent on the technical aspects of your course project as design solutions and then prototype and test them. Your code and design techniques are expected to be of a quality you could hand them off to a customer.
Finally, a very important part of embedded design is the ability to read, understand and explain complex documents and concepts. As such as part of the class you will be a part of a group that will present a topic to the class. The exact topic will be selected by your group with guidance from the instructor. You will give a 30-35 minute oral presentation and provide a written report on the topic.
Labs
There will be 5 labs. The prelabs are to be done individually while the inlab and postlabs will be done in a group of two. The prelabs are worth 25% of the lab grade. The initial labs will focus on a simple embedded system platform Arduino. That platform will be used to explore how to create clean software interfaces to hardware.Homework
There will be three or four homework assignments that will allow us to further explore different ideas from class that don't make it into the labs or project. Some will be fairly technical and involve programming, while others will focus on design ideas and issues.Exams
There will be a midterm and a final exam. The midterm will focus on the lab material but some of the more conceptual topics from lecture will also be there. The final exam will be cumulative but focus on the later material.Topic Reports: Written and Oral
Groups of two or three will give 30-35 minute talks on a given topic. Topics should have enough depth for a talk of that length and need to be related to embedded systems in an obvious way. Some possible topics include: the CAN bus, electronic waste (including RoHS and WEEE issues), touch screen technology, PCI and PCI Express and chip packaging issues. Each group will give at least two practice talks to the instructor and the quality of those talks will be a (small) factor in your report grade. In addition you will provide a 7-10 page written report (with up to two additional pages of references and appendices if needed) .Project
The project is quite open-ended but for the most part projects should be able to be done to completion. That is, the final product should meet the needs of the target application including form factor and other mechanical aspects. Projects should take advantage the knowledge gained in this class as well as that learned in 373 and other courses in EECS. Ideally projects should have a customer who intends to use the device supplied.In addition, it is imperative that the work done be in a state that others can, without undue effort, understand what you've done and make changes as needed. Your final report will not only include an overview, it will also include well-documented code, PCB design files, and whatever else is needed. A design narrative, explaining the design and not just the functionality will be required. It should be in a state that another student from the class could pick up your project and, within a few days, start making non-trivial modifications.
Your project is "due" during the design expo on Thursday December 6th. That said, you will be able to make small changes and improvements to the project until the final due date on December 11th. We'd strongly recommend you plan on using the 8th to the 11th to finish up your project report and documentation rather than trying to fix or add features to your project. Also notice the word "finish" in the previous sentence.
15% Labs 4% Homework 6% Oral Report 5% Written Report 10% Midterm 15% Final exam 45% Final Project
GOOD LUCK!
| Home / announcements | Course overview | Staff and hours | Homework |
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