Experiences in threading UML throughout a computer science program

The Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science of the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, decided to standardize its computer science program on the unified modeling language (UML) for all software design representations. Converting the appropriate courses to support formal teaching or reinforcement of UML concepts was planned as a phased approach over four academic years. Formal UML instruction was planned for Computer Science 1 courses and the senior two-course software engineering capstone sequence. Reinforcement of UML would be in the intervening courses. Once implementation began, it became apparent that a prolonged period between formal blocks of instruction was insufficient. Instead, some additional courses were redesigned to support formal UML instruction. The end result was a richer and deeper exposure to UML than anticipated over the same timeframe.     

Software as math

Discrete mathematics and abstract algebra courses are frequently required for computer science and engineering undergraduates. One could say these subjects define the mathematical basis for computing. Unfortunately, interest in the topics discussed in these courses frequently ends with the final exam. This paper presents a reason to continue looking and exploring     

Formal methods: mathematics, computer science or software engineering?

Formal methods courses have been taught at Universite du Quebec a Montreal (UQAM), Montreal, PQ, Canada, since 1996. In the graduate program, the course was initially an INF course (computer science) and later became an MGL one (software engineering), On the other hand, until recently, the undergraduate formal methods course was a MAT course (mathematics). From these various affiliations, one can be lead to the following question regarding formal methods: are they part of mathematics, computer science, or software engineering? This paper tries to shed some light on this question. First, the major characteristics of these various disciplines are presented. UQAM students' background is also examined to see to which discipline they belong. Then, what are formal methods and how they fit in the software development life cycle is briefly explained. An outline of the formal methods courses that have been taught over the last few years is then presented, followed by an informal assessment of these courses.     

Education for Electric Power Engineering

This invited paper was presented at the Second Panamerican Congress of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. A one-year graduate program in electric power engineering has been in operation at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute since the fall of 1962; it has been quite successful, with the number of participating students increasing tenfold in this five-year period, from three students in 1962 to thirty-five students in 1967. Among a total 10 percent of students from outside the United States in the program, some are from South American countries. This program is based on engineering education, with emphasis on the electrical phase, acquired in studies leading to a first degree on the bachelor level. Completion of the program results in the Master of Engineering degree. The students devote about half of their time to electric power engineering topics, and the other half to advanced studies covering engineering economics, mathematics, and applied physics. A suggested syllabus includes a variety of recommended courses which enable the student to develop a coordinated program that is general enough to provide a well-rounded foundation for continued studies in specialized areas.     

What Mathematics Courses Should an Electrical Engineer Take? A Report on the National Study of Mathematics Requirements for Scientists and Engineers

The National Study of Mathematics Requirements for Scientists and Engineers is concerned with establishing the best mathematics course selection for the many specializations in science and engineering, such as organic chemistry or electrical engineering. An Instruction and Course Content Sheet and a Course Recommendation Form were sent to over 9000 scientists and engineers. They recommended courses for the Ph.D. in their specialization and filled in additional information concerning their age, place of employment, and orientation of work. Forty mathematics courses were selected by the consultants; and the respondents rated each course on length, level, applied-theoretic orientation, their knowledge and use of the course. Those selected for the study were all nationally known specialists or were very productive in reporting research to the major professional journals. Some of the general conclusions of the study were as follows. 1) Mathematics courses should have a fifty percent emphasis on theory and fifty percent emphasis on application. 2) There were few recommendations for courses such as the functional analysis sequence, modern algebra sequence, and mathematical logic. 3) High recommendations were for applied courses such as vectors, the many types of differential equations, matrix theory, and machine computation. 4) Comparisons of categories within each specialization showed little differences in recommendations for most specializations. However, applied electrical engineers used much less mathematics than those who were theoretically oriented.     

A forward-looking electronics and computer engineering technologyprogram

A successful electronics and computer engineering technology program has been offered at Arizona State University (USA) since 1973. Engineering technology programs graduate students who can readily contribute to the workforce in industry and society, The immediate contribution is achieved by imparting state-of-the-art knowledge and skills; continued success and lifelong learning are assured by a knowledge of the fundamental concepts in engineering and the physical sciences acquired in their studies. A balanced combination of courses in engineering technology, mathematics, natural sciences and general studies produces these results, Core courses provide a working knowledge in a broad category of subjects. The breadth acquired through these basic courses is complemented by a depth of optional elective courses. Graduates are trained in engineering design, are taught appropriate communication skills, and are given extensive hands-on laboratory experience, The curriculum mandates all students develop a design project from definition through final product fabrication and submit a formal project report, Both the undergraduate and graduate programs provide opportunities to do research and analysis and to develop technical skills required for a successful career. To meet the challenges imposed by the changing demands of industry, continuous refinements to keep the program current and viable have been ongoing in the curriculum since its inception     

The Implementation and Evaluation of a University-Based Outreach Laboratory Program in Electrical Engineering

In the current climate of shortages of high-quality engineering graduates, exacerbated by reduced high school enrollments in physics and mathematics, engineering faculties are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of K-12 outreach programs. Such programs can result in students being better prepared for and better informed about engineering careers, with a consequent increase in the number of engineering undergraduates. Almost all outreach programs described in the literature are school-based; by contrast, this paper describes a university-based program. The program was born out of a desire for a university department and a neighboring high school to forge closer links and a need for the high school to provide its students with certain laboratory experiences that would best be realized with the use of specialist equipment. The outreach program provides both formal laboratory experiences and informal presentations by graduate students of their research interests. Follow-up surveys showed that the high school students found the experiences both instructive and motivating, and their knowledge of and interest in electrical engineering increased significantly as a result. All final-year physics students from the high school took part in the 2007 outreach program, and 42% of these students subsequently enrolled in the Bachelor of Engineering degree at the university in 2008.      

Fire-fighting mobile robotics and interdisciplinary design-comparative perspectives

The objective of this paper is to illustrate the benefits of an autonomous fire-fighting robot design competition as an effective tool for undergraduate education. It presents experiences at the United States Air Force Academy, USAF Academy, CO; Pennsylvania State University-Abington; and Trinity College, Hartford, CT, together with the results of the contest surveys conducted in collaboration with The Technion*Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa. The primary goal of the design project is to create an autonomous mobile robot that navigates through a maze searching for a fire (simulated by a burning candle), detects the candle's flame, extinguishes the flame, and returns to a designated starting location in the maze. The fire-fighting design contest promotes interdisciplinary design and teamwork. To accomplish the stated goal, students must integrate knowledge gained from such classes as engineering design, circuits, controls, signals and systems, computer programming, mathematics, and engineering mechanics. Within the three institutions, the contest has been successfully utilized as a foundation for a wide range of educational goals. These activities include freshman design, robotics courses, K-12 outreach, senior design projects, and undergraduate research.     

Engaging High School and Engineering Students: A Multifaceted Outreach Program Based on a Mechatronics Platform

If we aim to enhance the interest of students in engineering and therefore produce the best engineers, it is essential to strengthen the pipeline to high school education. This paper discusses several outreach activities undertaken by the Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa (UO), Ottawa, ON, Canada, to help the transition between high school and engineering education and to make students aware of the engineering profession. At the heart of these activities is mechatronics education, which demands an interdisciplinary approach, connects to fundamental math and science concepts, and promotes collaborative project-based learning (PBL). Connected to this focus, a multifaceted program of outreach activities has been initiated. The program includes creation of design-simulate-and-build projects by engineering and high school students, as well as an interactive presentation program whereby engineering students connect with high school students through the sharing of projects that they create in their engineering courses. The survey results indicate that for the high school students, these programs promote students' awareness of engineering and how the mathematics and science they take in school connects to engineering concepts. For the engineering students, they are provided with a meaningful context within which to share their projects and explain their own understanding of engineering principles.      

Incorporating computer-aided design into an electricalengineering/computer science curriculum

The restructuring of the circuits and computer hardware courses at the University of Michigan's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science to include a uniform set of electronic design automation (EDA) tools beginning early in the undergraduate curriculum is discussed. The ability to teach good engineering in the department has been significantly strengthened by these changes. The program and the details which have made it successful, including using a consistent set of well-supported commercial tools throughout the curriculum, providing adequate computing resources through a tuition surcharge for engineering students, and offering department-wide support through CAD short courses and consulting hours, are described     

The Teaching of High Voltage and High Current Engineering in Relation to Practical Engineering and Research

Technological developments in electrical engineering in recent years include substantial progress in the power fields of transmission, distribution, and utilization. Consequently, in common with other disciplines of electrical engineering, these advances make necessary some changes in existing tertiary courses if they are to keep abreast of developing technology. This is the case both in the undergraduate and graduate programs and is generating an increasing need for continuing education courses. This paper describes changes made in the power courses, at all levels, at the University of New South Wales in response to these pressures. Particular emphasis is given to laboratory developments in the high voltage and high current field, as this is seen as one area in particular need of development.     

CAL programs developed in advanced programming environments forteaching electrical engineering

Following the need to provide profound understanding of fundamental concepts in electrical engineering a number of computer assisted learning (CAL) programs have been developed in the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at Surrey, UK, to aid teaching of signal analysis, electromagnetic field theory, engineering mathematics, power electronics and telecommunications. They all run on personal computers (Apple Macintosh or IBM PC), except for the telecommunications tutorials which are designed for SUN workstations. The programming environment used is cT for personal computers and the advanced simulation software package SPW for workstations. The course material is designed to meet the requirements of a modular syllabus structure. The software is developed by final year undergraduates for pedagogical reasons with the emphasis on animation, real-time calculations, interactiveness and self-assessment     

A new degree program for students seeking a broader education inaddition to engineering training

A new degree program is proposed that provides students with broad interests a flexible way to combine their studies in engineering with studies in a wide variety of other subjects. The newly designed program in Electronics and Computing at the University of Colorado has a common core with the current Electrical and Computer Engineering programs, but the total number of required hours in the new major has been reduced to 40 hours. This makes it possible for the student to take a minor or a broad distribution of courses in other subjects. The new degree program is structured in much the same way as a liberal arts program     

An Introductory Microprocessor Course

This short note describes a unique approach to the introduction of microprocessors to undergraduates. The course is designed for students with no previous knowledge of electronics or computers, and is thus best suited to the first year class in all engineering and related disciplines. The course is very general in its discussion of microprocessors. A corresponding laboratory using a Z-80 evaluator is optional. The course was organized by the IEEE Student Branch and was given on a voluntary attendance basis. Attendance was high indicating keen student interest. Since the course did not require formal university approval and did not displace any existing course, it moved from idea to reality in the span of only a few months instead of years. This is felt to be a good means of dealing with the introduction of courses in fast breaking areas. It provides fast, short-term response, giving the university time to formally respond with long-range curriculum changes. It is hoped that in the long run, a similar course would be part of the first year curriculum of all engineering students.     

Curriculum for a Bachelor of Science degree with a major ininformation systems engineering

The authors propose a curriculum for a bachelor's degree in information systems engineering that is coherent and starts from basic sciences as appropriate for an undergraduate engineering program. Besides the basic sciences and mathematics, areas of engineering sciences and design selected from digital electronics, computer science, and electrical engineering are integrated to achieve the desired program coverage and coherence     

Education of the Engineer for Electrical Construction

A new and unique undergraduate program is being developed at Purdue University to educate engineers for work in the construction industry. Students selecting the electrical specialty option of the program will combine electric power engineering courses with management courses and with work experience on electrical construction projects to earn the degree of Bachelor of Science in Engineering (Construction). Active participation by the construction industry is an essential part of the program. Industry's desire for a more construction-oriented engineering graduate motivated the request for the program and motivates industry's support of summer internship opportunities. The curriculum is designed to provide the desired construction emphasis while offering a quality engineering education. In the electric power field, the result should be capable power engineers, better equipped for engineering practice.     

The new electrical and computer engineering curricula at Universityof California-Davis

In Fall 1993 the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of California, Davis introduced a new electrical engineering and a new computer engineering curriculum, each characterized by a well-coordinated junior core leading to a carefully chosen set of senior design elective courses. Through integration of a select but powerful set of computer tools into the junior core, students will be able to concentrate on understanding basic engineering principals while simultaneously obtaining important analytic and computer skills for senior elective courses. The number of required courses has been decreased but the number of units has remained roughly the same while maintaining the lower-division (freshman and sophomore) program essentially unchanged as required by the California higher education plan. The result is a curriculum that focuses on fundamentals through modern design techniques in such a way that both on-campus students and community college transfer students will be able to complete the engineering curriculum in four years     

Engineering the Future: Embedding Engineering Permanently Across the School–University Interface

This paper describes the design, implementation, and evaluation of an educational program. Engineering the Future (EtF) sought to promote a permanent, informed awareness within the school community of high-level engineering by embedding key aspects of engineering within the education curriculum. The Scottish education system is used for a case study in which a range of pilot high schools worked in close partnership with two university engineering departments. The study focuses on electronic/electrical engineering (EEE), a technically challenging area, which reflects many of the problems that are intrinsic to modern society. In so doing, the work also sought to support and refine the transition from the school environment to higher education engineering courses. EtF is founded on research into transformational change and describes the findings of a three-year program that sought to develop sustainable and transferable means of encouraging school students to study engineering at university. The authors describe the conditions needed to support sustainable developments. They also provide an analysis of inevitable constraints and suggest strategies to address these issues. The paper concludes that sustainable long-term promotion of engineering within schools to support the transition to university is possible if certain conditions are fulfilled. These conditions include the use of a model that facilitates partnerships among researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners in all sectors. Building such essential linkages is often challenging, but this effort is necessary if changes in engineering education are to be realized and sustained.      

Establishing a K-12 Circuit Design Program

Outreach, as defined by Wikipedia, is an effort by an organization or group to connect its ideas or practices to the efforts of other organizations, groups, specific audiences, or the general public. This paper describes a computer engineering outreach project of the Department of Computer Engineering at Ege University, Izmir, Turkey, to a local elementary school. A group of 14 K-12 students was chosen by a four-stage selection method to participate in this project. This group was then taught discrete mathematics and logic design courses from the core curriculum of the Computer Engineering program. The two 11-week courses have a total of 132 contact h. The course contents are conveyed through both theoretical lessons and laboratory sessions. All of the laboratory sessions were carried out by K-12 students. Volunteer teachers from the elementary school participated in the project. The evaluations carried out during and at the end of project indicated the degree of satisfaction on the part of students and teachers. The project is still ongoing with the same methodology in its third year.      

OPEE: An Outreach Project for Engineering Education

During the last few years, the number of university students choosing to follow engineering degrees has decreased dramatically in Spain. For that reason, several university departments, in collaboration with some high schools, have developed a range of activities in order to promote a higher enrollment rate, to improve the level of mathematics and physics that students have when entering university, to explode the myth of engineering degrees being difficult studies not within everyone's reach, and to rationalize the curricula of engineering degrees, coordinating all their courses and directing them toward the global objectives of the degree. In this paper, the results of an Outreach Project for Engineering Education (OPEE) comprising four successful activities developed over the last decade at the Higher Technical School of the University of Cordoba, Spain, are reported. Most important is that in the face of the significant decrease of the amount of engineering first-year students observed in Spain in general, and Cordoba in particular, enrollment in the Higher Technical School of the University of Cordoba has remained constant.