Introduction to ENSC 305W/440Wwhitmore/courses/ensc305/pdf... · My phone number is 604-319-2709...

Introduction to ENSC 305W/440W 1 of 34

Introduction to ENSC 305W/440W

© Steve Whitmore

January 2016

“We suffer to learn.”

–Aeschylus (c. 525-456 BC)


Learning Objectives

At the end of this module, you will understand how ENSC 305W/440W is organized and graded.

In addition, you will have started to consider some basic issues related to sanity:

• You are crazy to take these courses

• You are insane to want to be an Engineer

• The course instructors and TAs are also certifiable

• My commitment papers to Riverview Psychiatric Hospital are hanging on my office wall


Rumours What have you heard about ENSC 440W?

“In my opinion, ENSC 440W has provided me with the opportunity to work more than eight hours after school each day and show up in SFU seven days a week.”

–Patrick Pun, 2000

“The technical and interpersonal communication challenge of working on a project from its inception to full completion makes ENSC 440W one of the most valuable courses that I have taken so far.”

–Veljko Jovanovic, 2000


Selected Previous Projects The ENSC 305W/440W website has 17 years of projects archived on it.

Search for keywords related to your project.

Be cautious as the documents vary greatly in quality and the

examples rarely match the rubrics.

• Ultrasonic measuring system

• Refreshable Braille display

• Dissolved oxygen sensor (for Environment Canada)

• Solar Panel De-Icer (for BC Hydro)

• Small heart imaging system

• Venipuncture site locator

• Electronic counter-sniper system

• Bacteria classification assistant

• Electronic cat toys/automatic cat feeders (yawn)

• Shopping cart following and/or checkout systems (ad nauseam)


Just How Crazy is 305W/440W?

Gordon Morrison, David Lee, &

Kevin Maier demonstrating their

Solar Powered Hot Dog Cooker.


Even More Crazy!Chris Martens, Raul

Fernandes, Reena

Bhullar, and Tania

Kwan demonstrating

their Motorcycle

Headlight System.


Crazier Yet?

http://youtu.be/dqSeh4C7vZw

Arta Ahrabi, Chakaveh Ahmadizadeh,

Ibrahim Appiah, Wael Jendli, &

Ahmed Medhioub demonstrating their

Smart Bicycle Helmet System.

http://youtu.be/dqSeh4C7vZw

The Best Crazy Project So Far?


Faisal Emami, Terry Hannon, Jane Horton, Alex Naylor, Jeffrey Shum, & Mike Thiem:

The ENSC 305W Grow-Op!

Choose a Project that Will Wow Us

The Wow factor is very important when demoing a new

idea/product to those who might consider funding it.

Andrew wants to see something he describes as Sexy.

Being more classically inclined, I want to see what

Aristotle described as Spectacle.



Accreditation Issues

ENSC 305W/440W provides the ENSC Senior Design

Project as required by CEAB (Canadian Engineering

Accreditation Board).

ENSC 305W/440W is also certified as the ENSC upper

division Writing Intensive Course as required by SFU.

Both have implications for how these courses are

designed and our expectations for how the assignments

must be completed. Mediocrity is not rewarded.


Purpose of ENSC 305W/440W

To demonstrate what you have learned over the past 4 years by asking you to undertake a significant design project that expects you to integrate many of the skill sets you have learned:

• Oral and written communication

• Persuading and informing

• Graphic design and human factors

• Critical and creative thinking

• Teamwork and interpersonal skills

• Entrepreneurial and project management skills

• Social, environmental, and ethical concerns

• Engineering design and technical skills


Method for ENSC 305W/440W Guided by a few lectures on selected topics, you are

expected to simulate a start-up company focusing on the

proposal, research, analysis, design, and development of a

project of interest to you.

Ideally, the project will also meet a social need and will

have the potential for a marketable product.

Initially, you will need to come up with the following:

• A project of interest and merit

• A team of individuals interested in the project

• A company name and logo

• A source of funds

Treat 305W/440W like a ½-time job rather than a course.


Some Advice for 305W/440W

Look for a problem, then find a solution – GOOD!

Find a technology and then fit it to a problem – BAD!

The key point here is for you to learn a sound approach to

the engineering design process.


Names and Logos


How to Contact Me My office is ASB 9870 (I am usually in on Tuesdays and

Fridays – feel free to drop by).

My e-mail address is [email protected] (contact me via e-

mail with questions relating to the course or to set up an

appointment to see me).

My phone number is 604-319-2709 (C). Only for

emergency use.

All course materials are provided on the website:

http://www2.ensc.sfu.ca/~whitmore/courses/ensc305/

Usually posted 1-2 days after the lecture.


ENSC 440W/305W and TAs Andrew Rawicz ([email protected]) teaches ENSC 440W, but

the two courses are closely integrated and the assignments overlap significantly.

50% of your grades for the two courses combined are based upon documentation (305W-1: 90%; 440W-4: 40%).

Treat the two courses as a single 5 credit course.

TAs provide technical expertise and document/presentation grading: • Jamal Bahari ([email protected]) – Proposals

• Mahssa Abdollahi ([email protected]) – Functional Specs

• Mona Rahbar ([email protected]) – Design Specs

• Hsiu Yang Tseng ([email protected]) – Design Reviews

• Soroush Haeri ([email protected]) – Progress Reports


Attendance We meet from 08:30-10:20 on Fridays in WMC 3520.

Attendance will be taken. Late arrival will be penalized.

Those currently taking PHYS 421 must attend hour 2 of the lectures.

Attendance to ENSC 305W is mandatory with the following exceptions:

• Only those who are taking an honors option (i.e., must write a thesis)

are required to come to the thesis lecture. Attendance is taken, and

doughnuts/coffee/tea is supplied. Undergrad Assistant attends.

• Everyone is allowed one unexcused absence (not including thesis

lecture). After that, you lose 50% of your professionalism grade for

every absence (3 missed classes = 0). A doctor’s note, etc., is

required. I verify these.

• WHY? Both ENSC 305W and 440W have a limited number of

classes. Your attendance serves as a proxy for professionalism.

Under no circumstances sign in for an absent team member as

academic integrity penalties are applied to both people.


Topics Covered in ENSC 305W

Time management and team meetings

Creative thinking and the design process

Writing project documents: engineering journals, proposals,

functional and design specifications, test plans, post-

mortems, progress reports, meeting minutes, user manuals

Collaborative writing and listening skills

Dispute resolution and group dynamics

Review of sentence style (via user manuals)

Team oral presentations (Design Reviews and Demos)


305W ScheduleDate Material/Tasks

Week 1Introduction, Creative Thinking (notes on website)

Guest Speaker: Lukas-Karim Merhi, 305/440 Flashback

Week 2Time Management, Meetings, Proposals, Progress Reports,

Engineering Journals, Rubrics, Teamwork Inventory

Week 3Group Dynamics, Collaborative Writing, Dispute Resolution,

Specifications

Week 4 Listening Skills, User Manuals, Style Review

Week 5 Thesis Proposals and Theses (Honors only). Room & Time TBA.

Reading Break Independent Work

Weeks 6-8 Design Reviews (TBA)

Weeks 9-11 Independent Work

Week 12 Post Mortems, Team Presentations, Course/Instructor Evaluations

Apr 04-Apr 22 Demonstrations (TBA)

Scheduling Design reviews will be scheduled in early February for Late

February meetings.

Demos will be scheduled in March for the April demos. You

will be required to select at least 3 alternative times/dates.

Any demos after April 22 will have a DE recorded for ENSC

305W/440W. If you hope to graduate in the Summer

semester, you must demo before that date.

At the discretion of the instructors, late completion penalties

may apply to demos taking place after April 22, unless

extenuating circumstances are involved.



Assignments for 305W/440W

Except for the Engineering Journal, all documents must be submitted as e-mail attachments (in .pdf format) to Steve by the deadlines.

Confidentiality: If you would like your project to remain confidential, you must inform me in January as I will post the documents on the website after the proposals are graded.

Design Review (25 mins) 05% Mid-Late Feb

Written Progress Report (2-4 pages) 05% Mon Mar 28

Professionalism: Attendance/Teamwork Forms 10% Throughout

Engineering Journal (length varies) 10% Throughout

Presentation/demo (1 hour) 10% April

Post-Mortem (8-10 pages + meeting minutes) 10% April

Project Proposal (10-15 pages) 10% Mon, Jan 25

Functional Specifications (15-20 pages) 20% Mon, Feb 15

Design Specifications (15-20 pages) 20% Mon, Mar 07

Test Plans (2-4 pages) P/F Mon Mar 28

A Note about Quantity of Writing Some have complained that 305W/440W has too much

documentation. Not really.

Following the documentation length guidelines means

you produce about 80 pages per team for formal project

documentation = 20 pages per person for a 4 person

team (equivalent to a term paper for a 5 credit course).

You are also required to keep a journal and meeting

minutes (informal docs) and do 2 oral presentations.

Given the limited number of lectures, and the W and

capstone designation, this is not excessive.

Stick to the length/time guidelines and share the

writing tasks!!

Andrew hates long documents. Be concise.Introduction to ENSC 305W/440W 22 of 34


Grading for ENSC 305W Assignments are graded from A+ (96-100%) to F (0-50%).

Assignments must be submitted on the date they are due;

late assignments will be penalized 5% per day late.

Exception: Each team is permitted one free late

(maximum 3 days), which may only be used for one of the

following: proposals, functional specs, or design specs.

305W uses rubrics and assigns final grades that have an

obvious connection to the assignment weighting.

440W is graded more holistically. The opinions of Andrew,

Steve, and the TAs are used, along with the weighting for

the W component.


Grading for 305W (cont’d) Academic Honesty Policy: passages, figures, and tables

from external sources must be properly cited in text and

referenced in the document (IEEE or APA format). Place

large excerpts (i.e., standards) in appendices & reference.

1st infraction = 0 on the document and a rewrite;

2nd infraction = recommendation to Director for FD in both

305W/440W.

Most of these docs are team-written and are thus a team

responsibility. If one person plagiarizes, all are held to

account. Review the complete document before submission.

Don’t fake the journal – very easy to catch – you’ll receive a

zero for it.


Grading for 305W (cont’d) Instructors generally read/scan everything, but . . .

• TAs are assigned to specific docs (Proposal, FS, DS, Progress Reports).

• I grade the Post-Mortems.

• I grade the Engineering Journals.

• We all grade the Demos.

You can consult with any TA about technical matters. A list of TA technical expertise is provided on the website. Please make use of them.

Talk with faculty. They all have a great deal of expertise. Use that expertise

We have about 25 teams (~120 students).


Grading for 305W (cont’d) An A in 440W and a B- in 305W, or vice-versa, is possible.

Passing grades in 305W and failing grades in 440W are possible (C- minimums for both 305W & 440W are required to graduate).

A’s for some team members and B’s for others also possible.

Rubrics are available on the website for the proposal, functional spec, design spec, design review, progress report, post-mortem, demo, and engineering journal.

These rubrics are part of CEAB’s requirement that ENSC demonstrate specific learning outcomes.

Read the rubrics carefully as the instructors and TA’s will be using them when grading.


Workload for 305W/440W 13 weeks X 5 credit hours X 4 hours work per credit hour =

260 hrs/person for ENSC 305W/440W:

• Group of 3 = 780 hrs ( 20 person weeks)



• Croup of 6 = 1560 hrs ( 40 person weeks)

1 person working full-time (40 hrs/wk) works 47 adjusted

work weeks in a year. (The adjustment accounts for 3 weeks

of vacation and 2 weeks of statutory holidays).

Treat 305W/440W like a ½-time job rather than a course.


Facilities No dedicated space for ENSC 305W/440W.

Do not expect to leave projects under construction in Lab 1

(material gets stolen or damaged).

Teams can send an e-mail to [email protected] requesting a

locker for this semester. I suggest you do this ASAP!

Machine shop is available for use, but you must first meet

with Gary to ensure you know how to use the equipment.

Think Safety! Do not bring flammable materials, chemicals,

or liquids into the labs (including motorcycles).

Do not deface/damage the lab benches or sidewalks (no

glue/razors/spray paint). Do not disassemble lab equipment.

Use some common sense. Think before acting!

Journals (Basic Info) Black, Blue, or Pink pre-numbered, lined, lab book.

Available at SFU bookstore, Staples, or on-line. If you

buy a journal without page numbers, write the numbers

in yourself.

Non-removable pages (no perforations, coil binding, or

loose pages).

Sticker on cover with your name. Write your name, e-

mail, phone number, Team name and Team number.

Can write a note offering a reward for its return if it is

lost.

Entries must be written in pen, not pencil.

10% of your grade.Introduction to ENSC 305W/440W 29 of 34


HELP – We Are in Trouble Make an appointment to see me if you encounter problems related to

group dynamics. The sooner you contact me, the more likely the

problem can be resolved. Do not wait until week 12 to tell me that

your team is falling apart. We need to know about problems by week

7, at the latest, if we are to have any hope of resolving the problems.

You will be required to complete 2 teamwork evaluation inventories

(.pdfs) during the semester. If there are teamwork difficulties, make

that clear in these forms. I will set up meetings to work on resolving

the problems.

Group problems will happen. Sources of conflict:

• Work sharing (most common = differential grades/failure)

• Leadership (mainly swearing = gales of laughter)

• Design approach (messiest problem = failure/lower grades)

• Personality differences (grinding of teeth = loss of friends)

But 90% of the time things work out fine!


HELP – We Are in Trouble For technical issues (design, parts selection, etc.), talk with

the TAs and technical faculty. For documentation questions

not covered in lectures or on the website, contact me.

If you encounter a personal crisis (suicidal thoughts, serious

illness, grief, etc.), phone me.

“One thing that we could have done better is project

scheduling. Because we started our brainstorming in

the summer, we fell into a bit of a trap thinking that we

were ahead of the schedule.”

–Erik Haberger, 2001

No one has yet died while taking 305W/440W, but many

have wished that the instructors would do so.

Self-Regulation Self-Regulated Learning describes the process of taking

control of and evaluating your own learning and behavior.

Self-regulation is guided by 3 principles:

1. Metacognition (thinking about your own thinking): understanding

requirements, assessing yourself, planning tasks, applying

strategies and monitoring performance, and reflecting and changing.

2. Strategic action (evaluating personal progress against a standard).

3. Motivation to learn (what do you want from your learning?).

4. Note that professional organizations are self-regulated. It is both a

social and psychological construct. Thus, self-regulation applies to

you and your teams.

Self-regulation is a threshold concept for 305W/440W. If you

don’t understand that, you will inevitably get a lousy grade.

We will guide, but you will decide.Introduction to ENSC 305W/440W 32 of 34

Grade School Metacognition Graphic



“We learn to suffer.”

–Sophocles (c. 496-406 BC)

Conclusion

Following Lukas’ presentation, you will be provided

an opportunity to form/join teams if you have not already

done so.

All teams should complete an index card listing all

team members, their options, and their e-mails.

Please designate one of the people as the team

contact with an asterisk (*).

Introduction to ENSC 305W/440Wwhitmore/courses/ensc305/pdf... · My phone number is 604-319-2709...

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