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525.743 - Embedded Systems Development Laboratory Course Homepage

Instructor Information

Jeff Houser

Email: jeff.houser@us.army.mil
Work Phone: (301) 394-0797

Lei Zong

Home Phone: (202) 251-6886

Course Information

Course Description

This project-based laboratory course involves the development of embedded system prototypes. Typical projects contain combinations of the following components: transducers, analog front ends, microcontrollers and processors, CPLDs, FPGAs, digital signal processors, electrical interfaces, wired or wireless connectivity, printed circuit boards required for integration and test, and software/firmware modules needed to operate designed system. The laboratory activity is a backdrop used to teach key aspects of the development process such as: documentation, realistic use of requirements, design partition, integration strategy, interface design, peer review, risk mitigation, testability, extensibility, distributed development teams, and design strategies to accommodate available resources. Software development topics such as source control, testability, and deployment will also be covered. Instructors will select the design topic for each semester and students will focus their effort on hardware, software, or both, based upon their preference and instructor approval.

Prerequisites

An undergraduate degree in electrical or computer engineering or computer science, Computer Architecture (525.412), and Working knowledge of C or C++ or Instructor's approval.

Course Goal

This project-based laboratory course involves the development of embedded system prototypes.  Typical projects contain combinations of the following components: transducers, analog front ends, microcontrollers and processors, CPLDs, FPGAs, digital circuit boards required for integration and test.  The laboratory activity is a backdrop used to teach key aspects of the development process such as: documentation, realistic use of of requirements, design partition, integration strategy, interface design, peer review, risk mitigation, testability, extensibility, distributed development teams, and design strategies to accommodate available resources.  Software development topics such as source control, testability, and deployment will also be covered.

Course Objectives

  • By the end of the course, students should be able to:

    • Understand the major components of the development of an embedded system product.
  • Develop a design specification covering items such as functional description, implementation methods, resource requirements, development plan (time and budget), and interface requirements.
  • Work in a team environment to implement, troubleshoot, and integrate subcomponents.
  • Use source control software and bug management software to manage documents and data.

When This Course is Typically Offered

Each Fall

Syllabus

Topics Covered

  • Course and project overview
  • Design partitions and subsystem definitions
  • Individual design requirement and procurement
  • Design review
  • Interface and test plan review, resource acquisition plan
  • Integration strategy
  • Design in team environment

Student Assessment Criteria

Preliminary Design Review 15%
Critical Design Review 20%
Development 50%
Documentation 15%

Students will be graded on key milestones in the course.  Homework will be assigned to prepare students for these milestones, but will not be graded.

Preliminary design review: students will be required to produce an individual development plan for their contribution to the overall design.  They will be graded upon the thoroughness of their design.

Critical design review: After each student presents their design, the instructors will ensure that each student's work integrates well within the overall project.  The CDR will indicate how well students reacted to deficiencies found in the PDR.  Students will present a more detailed design which should address all major issues pertaining to their topics.

Development: The basic goal is to mature each design to the point of integration with other systems.  Students will be evaluated on their progress.

Documentation: students will be evaluated on the documentation provided for their individual designs.

Computer and Technical Requirements

WebCT:

Because WebCT is web-driven, all you need to access it is a web browser that handles frames, tables, and Javascript. The browsers that WebCT currently supports include:

  • AOL 7.0 (PC)
  • AOL 8.0 (PC)
  • AOL OSX (OSX)
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0, 5.5 and 6.0 (PC)
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.1 (OS9, OSX.10.1)
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.2 (OSX.10.1, 10.2, 10.3)
  • Netscape 6.2.x (PC and Mac)
  • Netscape 7.0 & 7.1 (PC & OSX)
  • Mozilla 1.5 & 1.6
  • Safari 1.2

To check if your browser will work with WebCT: http://webct.jhu.edu/webct/public/check_browser.pl
Technical information on WebCT can be found at http://www.cer.jhu.edu/index.cfm?pageID=289

Participation Expectations

Students will work in teams on the semester projects.  Weekly homework assignments are guidelines to help student to achieve milestones, but will not be graded.  Documentation is required and will be part of the student grades.  A final presentation is required at the end of the semester.  No exams are given for this class.  In-class and out-of-class are always encouraged.

Textbooks

Textbook information for this course is available online through the MBS Direct Virtual Bookstore.

Course Notes

There are no notes for this course.

(Last Modified: 01-26-2009 at 11:30:42 PM)