Course-PM

MCC145 Technical project in electrical engineering lp1 HT19 (7.5 hp)

Course is offered by the department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience and Division for Language and Communication.

Contact details

Teachers:

Course and project examiner	Hans Hjelmgren, hans.hjelmgren@chalmers.se
Examiner communication	Becky Bergman, becky@chalmers.se
Communication Teacher Group A:	Kathryn Strong Hansen, strong@chalmers.se
Project facilitator Group A:	Sebastian Göbel, gobels@student.chalmers.se
Communication Teacher Group B:	Carina Sjöberg Hawke, carsjobe@chalmers.se
Project facilitator Group B:	Ragnar Ferrand-Drake Del Castillo, ragnarf@chalmers.se
Coordinating assistant	Vasileios Athanasiou, vasath@chalmers.se
Group dynamics	Anna Norrström, annnor@chalmers.se
Library	Jessica Byström, jessica.bystrom@chalmers.se Marco Schirone, marco.schirone@chalmers.se

 

Course purpose

The aim of the course is to introduce project work as a functional and effective method for dealing with engineering problems and to introduce electrical engineering as a field. The project tasks may vary from one year to another, but the subjects deal with different applications in electrical engineering.

Project work is trained in a systematic way where amongst other things, the difference between content and process, group dynamics, report writing and oral presentations are worked with and practised. The course therefore aims to help engineering students to develop methods to carry out a technical project with others.

Schedule

Check TimeEdit for the complete schedule.

Attendance is compulsory. If, for some reason, you cannot attend a session, you should email both language and project facilitators in advance.

The content of the five lectures in study week 1 and 2 is listed below.

1. Course introduction
2. Internet of Things (IoT)
3. Radar basics
4. Acconeer Radar technology, guest lecture by Josefin Strahl
5. Programming basics

Course literature

• Chalmers Writing Guide: web based writing guide
• Engonline: web based grammar program with exercises
• Handouts
• Technical papers on Radar technology and IoT (Internet of Things)

Course design

Content

The course starts with a technical introduction to the projects, which is followed by a guided literature study related to the project task.

This information will be used in the project where students working in teams will solve an electrical engineering problem. Each project will be supported by hands-on activities which will illustrate the challenges in a real implementation.

Besides technical content, solving open electrical engineering problems in group work will touch upon:

• Strategies for effective communication
• Project documentation using a project model
• The writing process
• Group dynamics including working in a group and the role of group work
• Report writing
• Presentation techniques
• English language and style

Each group will hand in a report for evaluation, and the results will also be presented orally to other students and teachers.

The course includes work with group dynamics where there is a focus on working in a group, the group's function and the role of group work in the project. The following elements are emphasised: content/process, values, group norms, the group's development process, goal focus, group roles, feedback and personal strengths.

In the second quarter (LP 2) there are two compulsory workshops on Social Sustainability.

Organisation

The course consists of two main parts: Technical project work (4.5 credits) and technical communication (3 credits). There are lectures, seminars, workshops and group meetings, all of which require compulsory attendance. Group dynamics takes place on three occasions and consists of lectures, workshops and individual reflection.

The students are divided into project groups. Each group will have a practical task which is to be solved and documented in a report to be presented in English at a seminar at the end of the course. On several occasions, each project group meets with the communication teacher and the project facilitator to discuss the structure, content and language of the report. The importance of team work and taking responsibility for the results of the group are also stressed at these joint tutorial sessions.

Learning objectives and syllabus

Learning objectives:

1. Describe basic electrotechnical concepts related to the project task.
2. Apply her/his technical expertise to a multi-person project with an open-ended electrical engineering problem where a solution is proposed, investigated and verified.
3. Show sufficient proficiency in use of software tools such as MATLAB.
4. Contribute, in several team roles, to a multi-person project. This includes planning and follow-up under resource constraints.
5. Apply methods for effectively working in a group.
6. Reflect on group work experiences during and after the process.
7. Write an academic report, with several authors, describing a problem-solving project, with correct handling of references.
8. Design and deliver presentations on the project.
9. Deliver and constructively process written and oral feedback.

Link to the syllabus on Studieportalen.

Study plan

Examination form

The learning outcomes are assessed through a number of compulsory assignments.

Learning objectives	Assessment
Describe basic electrotechnical concepts related to the project task.	Individual midterm test     U-5
Apply her/his technical expertise to a multi-person project with an open-ended electrical engineering problem where a solution is proposed, investigated and verified.	Project plan (group)           P/F Final project report (group)       U-5
Show sufficient proficiency in use of software tools such as MATLAB.	Project minutes                   P/F Individual log book entries P/F
Contribute, in several team roles, to a multi-person project. This includes planning and follow-up under resource constraints.	Project minutes (at least 1 per person) P/F Individual log book entries                       P/F
Apply methods for effectively working in a group.	Active participation in group dynamic sessions P/F
Reflect on group work experiences during and after the process.	Active participation in group dynamic sessions P/F Final Reflection assignment P/F
Write an academic report, with several authors, describing a problem-solving project, with correct handling of references.	Project report drafts (group) P/F Final project report (group)   U-5
Design and deliver presentations on the project.	Presentation (individual)         U-5
Deliver and constructively process written and oral feedback.	Opposing and defending of report (individual) P/F

The final grade is based on the individual midterm test (15%), the final group report (50%) and the individual presentation grade (35%).

All tasks on the course are part of the process of working with the project and are obligatory and must be completed e.g. project meetings, individual log books, group dynamic sessions, oral opposition, written reflection, and workshops on social sustainability.

In order to receive a final grade, all assignments must be passed.

Attendance

Attendance is compulsory. If, for some reason, you cannot attend a session, you should email both language and project facilitators in advance.

Compulsory written test (Dugga)

The test has two parts, the first part consisting of multiple choice questions, while the second part consists of questions that require more investigative answers.  If you fail on the test, there will be one possibility to do the first part again to get a 3. The result from the test is only valid for this year. 

Project meetings and log books

During the course there are six scheduled project meetings, each 2 hours long, where the project groups will meet their tutors.  Apart from these meeting, a successfully completed project requires that your project group schedule intermediate meetings.

The tutors will support each group as a technical coach; suggesting sources of information, providing feedback on drafts & reports, discussing advantages and disadvantages with various technical options and by asking key questions to help the group to address the most relevant questions. However, the tutors will not provide complete lists of source materials or a “correct answer” to any of the task. The projects are open-ended task with no definite answer and this course focuses on the scientific methods applied rather than the result.

For each project meeting you decide who should be the chairman and who should be the secretary. The chairman leads the meeting. The secretary write the meeting minutes, and make sure that they are uploaded on the group´s home page in Canvas within three days after the meeting. Then the tutor has a possibility to read the minutes before the next project meeting. Each group member has to act as chairman and secretary at a minimum of one meeting.

The following criteria will be used to decide whether meeting minutes and log books are approved (grade P):

1. The minutes should show clearly how the work has progressed and what will happen the following week.
2. The minutes should be collected in the project group documents in a folder called “meeting minutes”. Each set of minutes should be labelled as follows: minutes_160820_beckybergman (minutes_date_name of secretary)
3. Each student should have one logbook entry per week with information about hours spent on project and tasks completed e.g. team meeting 1hr; lecture 2 hrs; reading about solar power 4 hrs
4. The minutes should be uploaded not later than three days after the meeting.
5. The log book entries should be updated at the end of each week.

Project and report information

The project illustrates a realistic engineering problem, and you should communicate your results in a written project report and as a presentation where you display your solution and the reasons for deciding on a particular solution in a competent way, that is as an engineer. This requires that you should learn how to delimit an open problem and put together productive research questions to work from. In addition, this implies that you learn how to cooperate in and contribute to a realistic engineering project.

Other significant learning outcomes of MCC145 as a whole are that you should develop your competence to select, read and use source material and background reading in relevant and productive ways. It is also important that your document contains genuine results and text. In other words, your written report should demonstrate that you know how to cite and paraphrase other people's texts and that every member of your team can account for your result and how that result was produced.

The expectations on this project are that you will practise and learn how to:

• Design and carry out a technical study.
• Apply a project model to facilitate and structure the progress of the work.
• Design useful and productive research questions to base your study on
• Use information from different kinds of sources (databases, scientific journals, web sites etc..) in productive ways for this assignment.
• Design and present your project and results in the shape of a project report in English
• Design and present your results as an informative and partly argumentative presentation where you address your fellow students.

Through the project you will learn about a specific field in electrical engineering and apply some basic programming skills. You will also get an introduction to the CASE lab at Chalmers and 3D printing.

Tollgates

The projects include two major tollgates, Tutorial 1 and Tutorial 2. Before the first tutorial you will give a midway presentation. The following items are already on the agenda, but an open discussion is also expected:

• Project plan review
• Status report – what are the results so far, and what do you expect to achieve within the scope of the project?
• Economical report – are you in-line with your time budget?
• Open discussion / Questions and Answers

During the second tutorial you will receive critique / feedback on your second draft report by your tutors and a peer group. Also, you will give your peer group critique / feedback. This is a great opportunity to discuss structure and contents that will help you to finish your final report well in time for the last deadline.

Report specifications

Length: 4000-6000 words excluding appendices, references, table of contents, figures, tables, graphs etc

Contents (NB: these will not be the only sections in your report- think about headings that reflect the contents of your report)

Title page: descriptive title, group members, course name, university, supervisors’ names, date

Abstract: summary of the report (approx. 250 words)

Introduction: introduce the topic and any relevant background, state your purpose and scope, and describe the general plan/layout/map of report.

Methods and Results sections: These sections should be clearly and logically presented in a well-organised manner. You should provide appropriate visual support to enhance reader understanding. If the methods are not particularly interesting to the reader, they could be included as a short section in the introduction, rather than their own section.

Visuals : Any figures, charts, graphs, tables, etc should be placed when and where the reader needs them. All figures/charts/graphs/tables/etc are always introduced before they appear, and they are also always numbered, titled (+ reference to source). NB: Numbers/references for these should be placed under/beneath figures/charts/graphs, but above any tables.

Discussion: This could be included with the results. Common parts of the discussion section include remarks on any similarities and/or differences between expected results and actual results. There may be further commentary on the research methodology used in connection with results found, or with respect to possibilities for improving the approach taken. Also, the discussion section may explore whether results are in keeping with the research of others in this field, or if the results differ from those of others (and possible reasons why).

Conclusion : This should connect the report back to the purpose stated in the introduction. There should be no new information in the conclusion.

References: The report should include at least 4 peer reviewed sources. The report should contain both in text and end text references and use the IEEE system (i.e., reference number in text and list of references at the end). For additional information on using IEEE, see:

About the IEEE Style

IEEE Citation Guidelines

Appendices: Original data sheets, extended calculations, etc.: too large to fit into the report. Introduced in the report itself, e.g.: ‘See Appendix A: Extended Data Calculations’

Process:

The first draft should at least contain background, purpose, scope and a brief description of your solution(s) / options (approx. 1500 words), and the second draft is considered to be very close to the final report with only minor things to add/correct such as abstract, layout, language, figures, captions etc. Note that the 2^nd tollgate is the last time you receive full feedback on your progress before you hand in your final report.

Group work

Group and project work are extremely important elements of company life. This is why on this course your project will be carried out in a group. This leads to certain expectations on you as a group member. These expectations are that you:

• Contribute actively to the group project
• Attend all sessions and be prepared for them
• Listen and respond to suggestions made by the team
• Respect group members and their opinions
• Be prepared and able to report on the project on behalf of the team
• Meet outside class time in order to move the project forward

Hand-ins connected to group work:

• Group contract
• Minutes of meeting (team)
• Log book entry (individual)
• Final reflection on group and project work

Opposition

The following criteria will be used to decide whether written opposition are approved. NB: this is the written opposition for the 2^nd tollgate and will be posted on Canvas for the other group to read:

1. The opposition should answer the questions specified in the instructions (see the session handout)
2. The opposition should give clear guidelines for the group as to how to move the report forward. It should also point out what works in the report right now.
3. The opposition should contain a clear structure in the text (see the example opposition in Canvas).
4. The opposition should contain clear language, such that it is possible to read and understand the ideas stated.

The following criteria will be used to decide whether spoken opposition is approved. NB: this is the spoken opposition for the final presentation:

1. The spoken opposition should include the following elements: thank the presenter, make some positive comments and ask some questions which encourage discussion of the project
2. The positive comments should focus on specific areas that have been successful rather than generalised comments.
3. The questions should open for discussion rather than yes / no questions. These questions / discussion should give clear guidelines for the group as to how to move the report forward.