This article proposes an approach based on experiments to teach optimization technique (OT) courses in the Systems Engineering curricula at undergraduate level. Artificial intelligence techniques in terms of nature-inspired optimization algorithms and neural networks are inserted in the lecture and laboratory parts of the syllabus. The experiments…

This paper presents a robot prototype for an undergraduate laboratory program designed to fulfill the criteria laid out by ABET. The main objective of the program is for students to learn some basic concepts of embedded systems and robotics, and apply them in practice. For that purpose, various practical laboratory exercises were prepared to teach…

A laboratory course on the theory, fabrication, and characterization of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices for a multidisciplinary audience of graduate students at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, has been developed. Hands-on experience in the cleanroom has attracted graduate students from across the university's engineering…

Medical imaging systems (MIS) constitute an important emergent subdiscipline of engineering studies. In the context of electrical and electronics engineering (EEE) education, MIS courses cover physics, instrumentation, data acquisition, image formation, modeling, and quality assessment of various modalities. Many well-structured MIS courses are…

This paper describes a virtual system that emulates an ARM-based processor machine, created to replace a traditional hardware-based system for teaching assembly language. The virtual system proposed here integrates, in a single environment, all the development tools necessary to deliver introductory or advanced courses on modern assembly language…

The exponential growth of advancing technologies is pushing curriculum designers in computer engineering (CpE) education to compress more and more content into the typical 4-year program, without necessarily paying much attention to the cohesiveness of those contents. The result has been highly fragmented curricula consisting of various…

This paper details a successful and inexpensive implementation of a remote laboratory into a distance control systems course using readily available hardware and software. The physical experiment consists of a beach ball and a dc blower; the control objective is to make the height of the aerodynamically levitated beach ball track a reference…

For a basic foundation in computer engineering, universities traditionally teach synchronous sequential circuit design, using discrete gates or field programmable gate arrays, and a microcomputers course that includes basic I/O processing. These courses, though critical, expose students to only a small subset of tools. At co-op schools like…

A novel wireless communications systems laboratory course is introduced. The course teaches students how to design, test, and simulate wireless systems using modern instrumentation and computer-aided design (CAD) software. One of the objectives of the course is to help students understand the theoretical concepts behind wireless communication…

The prevailing tendency in modern university reforms is towards "how people learn," following a learner-centered approach in which the learner is the main actor of the teaching-learning process. As a consequence, one of the key indicators of the teaching-learning process is the measurement of learner satisfaction within the classroom.…

This paper describes a one-credit laboratory course for freshmen majoring in electrical and computer engineering (ECE). The course is motivational in nature and exposes the students to a wide range of areas of electrical and computer engineering. The authors believe it is important to give freshmen a broad perspective of what ECE is all about, and…