CSCE 489: Computer Engineering Professional Development

Syllabus, Spring 2009

(Adopted from the CSCE 489 Syllabus of Spring 2008 taught by Dr. Sharad Seth)



Instrutor:  Hong Jiang
    jiang@cse.unl.edu
    472-6747
    Office: 103 Schorr Center,  Hours: 9:00-10:00 AM, T. Th. (Contact me to setup appointments at other times, if this does not work for you)

Lab TA: Yuyan Xue
    yxue-at-cse.unl.edu
    Office: 114A Schorr Center, Hours: 1:00PM-3:00PM Wednesday

 

Course Webpage:

http://cse.unl.edu/~jiang/cse489/ 
   
Pre- and Post-requisites: : JGEN 200; ELEC 362, 476 and CSCE 430; Must be taken exactly one semester before CSCE-489.
    Prerequisites by Topic:

·         Familiarity with: professional writing & speaking styles (in a general context), conventional word-processors, computer organization, logic design, and computer programming.

·         Exposure to: the concepts and principles of professional ethics and team dynamics.


Requirements:

 

Prereq: AgLec 200 Undergraduate Technical Writing
CoReq: CSCE 430 Computer Architecture
ELEC 362 Digital Electronics
ELEC 476 Introduction to Digital System Design
PreReq: Must be taken exactly one semester after CSCE 488

Prerequisites by Topics:

 

·         Mastery of: Computer Architecture, Computer Programming, Digital System Design, & Logic Design,

·         Familiarity with: professional writing & speaking styles; conventional word-processors; the particular design tools, resources & technologies available for the project; & the general topic of the project to be undertaken,

·         Exposure to: the principles of professional standards, practices, ethics, & team dynamics

Course Objectives:

 

·         Practice with a significant design project in a realistic design environment, to gain mastery of: open-ended problem solving & design skills, written & oral presentation skills, & team dynamics,

·         Practice in the application of standards, regulations & professional ethics, as allowed by the context of the project.

Topics Covered:

 

Precise topics vary from project to project, but include practice in the following:

·         Design & implementation of a combined software/hardware project too complex for one person,

·         At least two written & oral reports to be written & presented as a team,

·         Teamwork, collaboration, & professional conduct incooperative & competitive environments

Textbook/References:

 

While there is no official textbook required, you may find the following books very useful.

·         Robotic Explorations – A Hands-On Introduction to Engineering, by Fred G. Martin, Prentice-Hall, Inc., 2001.

·         Computational Principles of Mobile Robotics, by Gregory Dudek and Michael Jenkin, Cambridge University Press, 2000.

·         The Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers, 3rd ed., by Jane Aaron. Available at amazon.com.

·         The Unofficial Guide to LEGO Mindstorms Robots, by Jonathan Knudsen. Available at amazon.com.

·         The Handy Board web page (http://handy-board.com). Includes manuals, FAQ, hardware/software references, community links, etc.

·         “Ideal and real systems: A study of notions of control in undergraduates who design robots,” by Fred Martin. In Construction in Practice: Designing, Thinking, and Learning in a Digital World (Yasmin Kafai and Mitchel Resnick, eds.), 1996.

·         “A Robot in Every Home,” by Bill Gates, Scientific American, January 2007 (The leader of the PC revolution predicts that the next hot field will be robotics.) Currently available online at www.sciam.com.

Useful Resources:

 

Many reference materials on oral and written communication exist. (links available at the course webpage):

·         Resources for technical writing, Dr. Steve Goddard

·         How to write a research paper, Dr. Jean-Yves Le Boudec

·         Common bugs in writing, Dr. Henning Schulzrinne

·         Style in business writing, Dave Dusseau

·         A Handbook for Scholars, Mary-Claire van Leunen

·         Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers, Jane E. Aaron

·         Purdue Writing Lab

·         Computers and Society, COS 490, University of Maine

Instructor’s Role:

 

·         The instructor will play the part of your “Project Manager”. As such, he is not directly involved in the design or implementation of the project. Rather, his role is managerial and advisory.

·         You may assume that your project manager came up through the engineering ranks and thus is (or was) a competent computer engineer. However, in the last few years, his time has been consumed more by management duties than by technical duties, so he may be a bit “rusty”.

·         Furthermore, your project manager has several other projects also under his supervision, so he cannot give complete attention to yours.

Grading Policies:

General:

·         There will be no formal homework assignments.

·         There will be three project reports and presentations. 

·         Each report/presentation must be a “stand-alone” report/presentation. That is, when you write your report/presentation, you should assume that we know nothing about your project.

·         Several times during the semester you will be asked to submit your self and peer evaluations as team members and your design note book (see more details below).  These components will be graded individually. Also, there will be an individual component to team oral presentations. 

First Progress Report (20%):

Second Progress Report (25%):

·         25% on the technical merit of the design (common grade for the team)

·         25% on the quality and clarity of the report (common grade for the team)

·         25% on the success of demonstration (common grade for the team)

·         25% on the quality and clarity of the presentation (individual grades within a team may vary)

Final Project Report (30%):

 

·         In the finals week of the semester, tentatively, at the scheduled time.

·         In addition to the requirements for the second progress report, the final report should also analyze the cost of your project (e.g. development cost, equipment cost, and so on)

Self and Peer Evaluations (10%):

 

From time to time you will be asked to evaluate yourself and other members of your group as part of a team by filling out a form. This feedback will help me judge individual contributions within a team. At the same time, the feedback may help me resolve potential problems in the functioning of a team before they become serious.

Weekly Meetings: (10%):

 

At every meeting, the team should submit a 1-2 page short report, describing their project progress so far, the goals for the last week, whether you have achieved these goals, and the goals for the next week. Lack of active participation in the weekly meeting, including attendance, may result in a lower grade for individual team members.

Design Notebook (5%):

 

Each team member should maintain a separate design notebook, like a log book or journal, to record your individual contribution to the project. Your design notebook is like a journal in which you will record your progress through the course. It will be the resource you will refer to for writing your periodic progress reports. The following are specific guidelines that you should keep in mind when making entries into your design notebook:

1.      One substantive, dated entry must be made per week describing the progress made during that week. Additional entries may be made to summarize each group meeting and to document work during more intensive periods of activity.

2.      The notebook must be neat but should not consume an enormous amount of your time, since it is not for publication. On average, one page per week should be enough. Write and sketch legibly using a pencil (for ease of corrections); don't waste time trying for a publication-quality output. Cut-and-paste whenever it saves you time. You may submit your notebook in an electronic format (e.g. pdf), but be wary of spending too much time doing so. This is especially true for sketches of schematics.

3.      Design ideas should be recorded in the notebook as they occur, not done hastily the day before the due date.

4.      Detailed written descriptions must be made of all designs, with labeled sketches and photos as necessary.

5.      Results of testing and subsequent revisions of designs must be included.

6.      A written overview of all algorithms (e.g. written summaries, pseudo-code, or flowcharts) and complete, fully-commented listings for all code must be included.

7.      Any sensor calibration data that are taken must be recorded.

8.      Bring your design notebook to all weekly meetings and submit it at the time of each progress report.

Tentative Schedule: Refer to the class web page.

 

Academic Integrity:

 

Unless specifically prohibited by the instructor, it is acceptable to discuss the meaning of assignments. Discussing general approaches and strategies for solutions may be permissible, but unless specifically allowed, such communications should not include written material or code and should not transmit substantive or specific elements of a solution. In particular, shared flowcharts, pseudocode, code, or documentation are not allowed unless specifically permitted by the instructor. Any cooperation beyond discussing general approaches and general strategies, including shared pseudocode or flowcharts, shared code, or shared documentation, is not allowed unless specifically permitted by the instructor. For more details, please see the CSE Departmental Academic Integrity Policy. Note that copied and lightly edited homework solutions from the Internet or any other source is strictly prohibited.

Last updated: January 12, 2009