Course Syllabus

Basic Course Information:

Title: First-Year Design Laboratory

Rubric and Number: ECE 145 (proposed)

Term and Year: Fall 2024 (offered every fall and spring)

Duration: Full Semester

Number of Credit Hours: 1 hour credit

Number of Contact Hours: Tuesday or Thursday 6-7:50pm; one 110-minute laboratory section each week + additional contact time expected for extra lab time for project-related interactions.

Weekly Hours of Expected Student Work, apart from instruction time (e.g., 4 hours outside of class per week): 2 hours outside of class per week.

Course Format: In-person

Course Location: 1005/1001 ECEB

Instructor Information:

Name of Instructor: Christopher D. Schmitz

Contact information: cdschmit@illinois.edu

Office hour(s) time: TBD

Office hour(s) location: 1001 ECEB

Alternate instructors who could give the course:

 

Official Course Description: 75 words or shorter, required component

This course will provide resources for first-year students to apply electrical and computer engineering concepts to an open-ended project design in their first year on campus. Students will generally work in teams of two to three students to plan and execute the project, resulting in a working prototype. For James Scholars or by instructor permission; must be co-enrolled in ECE 110 or ECE 120. Repeatable once.

 

Course Overview: A general overview of the course and its relation to related courses in the department and college.

Corequisite are ECE 110 or ECE 120 as the course is intended to allow students to apply topics from these courses as they cover them. The course has similarities to ENG 177 Engineering First-Year Experience Seminars. Like the proposed course, ENG 177 is designed for first-year students to work in teams. The different sections correspond to different disciplines and every team does the same predefined experiments. The proposed ECE course uses open-ended projects increasing autonomy and self-efficacy, while leveraging learning objectives specific to ECE 110 and ECE 120 while providing a structured design experience in some ways similar to ECE 445 Senior Design Project Lab.

In the proposed course, students will construct a first-year appropriate design project using hardware circuitry similar to that used in first-year courses ECE 110 and/or ECE 120.  They will use project ideation techniques to generate high-level open-ended project ideas. Through discussion, they will form teams then convert a broad project idea into well-defined modular components. Each modular component will be described by a circuit diagram, constructed, and individually validated for proper operation using appropriate tools of the trade, including benchtop power supplies and oscilloscopes before being assembled to complete the design.

As a team, students will generate a proposal to include research and design elements including flowcharts, circuit schematics, a timeline with distinct milestones, and a parts list with cost analysis. Each week, the team will journal their progress while including specific circuit analysis and evaluation according to their timeline and highlight the completion of their milestones. They will devise solutions to new problems encountered and revise their original proposed solution as they gain experience. The journals are to include data, graphs, photos, and even video to accompany their discussions. The primary goal of the journal is to document well the successes, failures, and challenges of the project and to place more focus on the journey of discovery and less focus on the final “product.”

As the project approaches its completion, the teams will compile the information cataloged in their weekly journal and continue their analysis to complete a report and generate a team presentation video. The teams will then provide, in person, a brief demonstration of their completed work and each teammate will answer questions and provide measurements as requested.

Learning Outcomes: Learning outcomes for ECE courses should align with ABET criteria --- this is a required component.

By the end of week 4, students working in teams will have ideated a project (ABET 1, 5), diagramed a flowchart to describe the tasks required to achieve that project (ABET 1, 3), constructed an approximate circuit schematic for implementing the functions of the flowchart (ABET 1, 3, 6), generated a parts list and cost analysis (ABET 1, 2), and provided a timeline complete with three or more milestones to mark achievements of the project (ABET 1, 6).

By the end of week 5, students working individually (but consulting in pairs) will have completed a partially guided mini-project where they build circuit modules (ABET 6, 7), locate and report important information from multiple component datasheets (ABET 6, 7), analyze circuit behavior using an oscilloscope (ABET 6, 7), validate the anticipated behavior of circuit modules (ABET 6), and revise the design where deviations from the intended solution exist (ABET 1, 7).

By the end of week 10, students working in teams will have built circuit modules (ABET 5, 6, 7), leveraged information from additional component datasheets (ABET 6, 7), analyzed circuit behavior using an oscilloscope (ABET 6, 7), validated (or invalidated) the behavior of circuit modules (ABET 6), and revised their own design as needed to move toward their intended solution (ABET 1, 7). They will also have completed five journal entries where, as a team, they report on their successes and failures (ABET 5, 6), present analysis and conclusions (ABET 6), propose and implement pivots on their designs (ABET 7), and propose a plan for the following week (ABET 5).

By the end of week 11, students working in teams will have compiled three journal entries into a mid-term report demonstrating the structured progression of their timeline and any achieved milestones such that the focus is on the process of research (ABET 1, 3, 5, 6).

By the end of the course, the students working in teams will have completed a final report and a video demonstration appropriate for a technical audience that again focuses on the process of research through the validation of modules and careful builds, test and measurement, evaluation, and pivoting the design as needed (ABET 3, 5, 6, 7). In an in-class presentation, the students, working in teams, will demonstrate the working (or mostly working) prototype of their design in a short, high-level presentation appropriate for the general public (ABET 3). The students of that team will then be asked to demonstrate specific measurements or answer specific questions regarding the prototyped device (ABET 3, 6).

Tutorials provided throughout the semester will emphasize the need for lifelong learning (ABET 7) and provide students with additional skills (ABET 1, 7) that might be applied to their projects as desired or needed.

 

Absence Policy:

The absence policy must be included in the syllabus. Students may not always be eligible to obtain an absence letter for missed classes. Sample policy statements can be found at http://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/resources/docs/sample-policies.pdf for policies on missed classes and http://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/resources/docs/missed-exams.pdf for policies on missed exams.

Working as a team under the mentorship of the course staff is paramount to learning in this first-year course. Absences are allowed if the head TA is notified ahead of the lab start time for a relevant reason (examples: illness, travel for conference, school-sponsored sports). Evening exams do not constitute a valid absence. Students are explicitly informed in lecture that a scheduled course takes precedence over an evening exam and they need to arrange for conflicts. In the case of an excused absence, the student is to arrange with their team to make up for lost productivity. An unexcused absence is penalized by a 5% reduction of their final grade. Teams must account for the productivity of each teammate in each journal and each report. Regardless of the reason for any absences, failure to arrange for lost productivity can result in up to two letter grade reductions over the course of the semester in addition to any “automatic” 5% reductions.

 

Prerequisites:

List the prerequisites for the course, if any.

No prerequisites.

Corequisite: ECE 110 or ECE 120 as the course is intended to allow students to apply topics from these courses as they cover them.

 

Course Schedule (Tentative):

Include a detailed course schedule that includes the due dates of major assignments and exams.

 

Date	Reading, Tutorial, Exercise, Assignment, etc.	Topic(s)
Week 1	Exercise: Ideation. Tutorial: Flowcharts	Intro to Design
Week 2	Tutorial: Circuit Basics and Simulation Exercise: Project ideation and team formation. Exercise: Mini-Project milestone 1. Assignment: Draft proposal due.	Electronics
Week 3	Tutorial: Digital Logic and FSM Exercise: Mini-Project milestone 2. Assignment: Updated draft proposal due.	Logic, Equipment
Week 4	Tutorial: Useful Circuits in Design Projects Exercise: Mini-Project milestone 3. Assignment: Project Proposal due.	Useful Circuits
Week 5	Tutorial: Computer-Aided Design part I Exercise: Mini-Project milestone 4. Assignment: Mini-Project Demo due.	CAD
Week 6	Tutorial: Journaling for Open-Ended Design Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal due.	Journaling
Week 7	Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal entry.	Project design
Week 8	Tutorial: 3D printing Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal due.	3D Printing
Week 9	Tutorial: Computer-Aided Design Part II Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal entry.	Project design
Week 10	Tutorial: Soldering Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal due.	Soldering
Week 11	Tutorial: Printed Circuit Board (PCB) design Exercise: Student Projects Exercise: Midterm Progress Report and Demo due.	PCB
Week 12	Tutorial: Microcontrollers Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Journal due.	Microcontrollers
Week 13	Tutorial: Presentation Skills Exercise: Student Projects Assignment: Begin consolidating journal entries into a report.	Presentation skills
Week 14	Assignment: In-Class Demo due (flexible scheduling). Assignment: Team Video due at end of term. Assignment: Team Report due at end of term.	Presentations

Required and/or Recommended Course Readings, Materials, Software: If any.

Required: None.

Recommended: Practical Electronics for Inventors, 4th Ed. by Scherz and Monk

Late Assignment Policy:

Policy on late assignments (e.g., a certain number of points or percentage from total grade deducted each day after due date, no points are deducted if instructor is contacted a certain amount of time in advance of due date, etc.).

 

Late assignments will lose a maximum of 10% from the total grade attributed to that assignment per each day past the due date. If a student recognizes a special situation in which they need additional time, they can request a “no-cost” extension from their project mentor.

 

Assignments:

Brief description of all major assignments.

Project Proposal: The project proposal develops over several weeks with ample feedback provided early in the process. The first-draft proposal is to include a project title, a list of teammates, a single paragraph abstract, a high-level flowchart that focuses on inputs and outputs of a hardware design with much of the processing that happens “in-between” only roughly described. One or two references are requested to assist the mentors in understanding the team’s goals. Finally, any concerns should be expressed especially with respect to where the students anticipate needing staff assistance. The projects, as presented in this first draft, are either approved as-is, rejected, or approved under specified revisions. Early correction is essential to set the proper project "scope" for first-year design.

After receiving mentor feedback, students update these aspects of their proposal while also adding a section for background (broader research into the topic which also expands the number of references), a circuit schematic (that follows the progression of their flowchart), an approximate timeline with distinct milestones (where smaller modules of their design are both constructed and validated), and an initial parts lists (items needed to get them through, at least, the early weeks of their design). Again, feedback is provided (ungraded) by the mentor. The students have a final opportunity to update their proposals and submit it in the following week. A rubric is provided to the students.

Mini-Project: Although project ideation, team formation, and mentoring are occurring in-class, most of the proposal design and writing is done by the team outside of class. To best utilize the lab facilities and mentor availability, first-year students are allotted time to build and validate circuit modules in a “mock” final project. Over the course of several weeks, the students gain experience with circuits, logic, and benchtop equipment as they are trained to also document their work much as they need to do on their own project. There are two deliverables, a student demonstration utilizing the benchtop tools-of-the-trade as well as a written document that summarizes the mini-project measurements and modifications (as some amount of redesign is needed).

Biweekly journal and mentor assessment: As the teams work each week on their projects, the project progression is documented with weekly journal entries. The journal is to include notes, figures, and data regarding the hardware build, challenges encountered and solutions discovered, and a plan for the next week’s work. Finally, the students also tally the contributions of the individual teammates to help ensure accountability for all. Biweekly grading reduces the stress encountered when exams and other semester stresses can cause delays or a need to reallocate time to meet milestones. A rubric is provided to the students.

Final Report: The course is developed with the intent for students to learn to efficiently do research through thorough planning, time management, and consultation with mentors. The journals are designed such that the final project report is being developed over time and not as an exuberant end-of-term task. The class is reminded throughout the semester that the diagrams and data collected in the journals can (and should) be extracted in the final report. A rubric is provided to the students.

Final Demonstration: The final demonstration is divided into two distinct parts. First, the team is asked to provide a team-produced video of a fully-functioning (understanding that not all project proposals reach their full completion) that includes both a high-level demonstration presented in simple terms for a broad audience as well as more detail provided on the functionality of the smaller working modules. The second part of the demonstration is an opportunity for the team to meet in-person with two or more mentors. Questions are asked of the individual teammates regarding aspects of the project with which they should be familiar. Each individual in this case can demonstrate their success in self-directed learning and application of skills in the area of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Rubrics for each part are provided to the students.

 

Grading Breakdown:

Include a detailed breakdown of course grading. The example below could be adapted or used as a guide. Provide two breakdowns if the course provides variable credit hours to different groups of students (e.g., undergrad and grad).

Project proposal: 10%

Mini project demo: 5%

Biweekly journal and mentor assessment: 4x12.5% = 50%

Midterm progress report and checkpoint demonstration: 10%

Final report: 15%

Final demonstration: 10%

 

Grading Scale:

Letter grade with honors. Cutoffs given by:

F          0 – 60^-

D-        60 - 63^-

D         63 - 67^-

D+       67 - 70^-

C-        70 - 73^-

C         73 - 77^-

C+       77 - 80^-

B-        80 - 83^-

B         83 - 87^-

B+       87 - 90^-

A-        90 - 93^-

A         93 - 97^-

A+       > 97