Principles and practices
/Project Management
- download, read, and sign the student agreement, and commit the file to your repo
- work through a git tutorial
- build a personal site in the class archive describing you and your final project
Computer Aided Design
- model (raster, vector, 2D, 3D, render, animate, simulate, ...) a possible final project,
- compress your images and videos,
- and post a description with your design files on your class page
Computer Controlled Cutting
group assignment:
- do your lab's safety training
- characterize your lasercutter's focus, power, speed, rate, kerf, joint clearance and types
individual assignment:
- cut something on the vinylcutter
- design, lasercut, and document a parametric construction kit, accounting for the lasercutter kerf
- extra credit: design it to be assembled in multiple ways
- extra credit: include elements that aren't flat
- extra credit: engrave as well as cut
Embedded programming
group assignment:
- demonstrate and compare the toolchains and development workflows
- for available embedded architectures
individual assignment:
- browse through the data sheet for a microcontroller
- write and test a program for an embedded system using a microcontroller to interact (with input &/or output devices) and communicate (with wired or wireless connections)
- extra credit: assemble the system
- extra credit: try different languages &/or development environments
3D scanning and printing
group assignment:
- test the design rules for your 3D printer(s)
individual assignment:
- design, document, and 3D print an object that could not be made subtractively (small, few cm3, limited by printer time)
- 3D scan an object (and optionally print it)
electronics design
group assignment:
- use the test equipment in your lab to observe the operation of an embedded microcontroller
individual assignment:
- simulate a circuit
- use an EDA tool to design an embedded microcontroller system using parts from the inventory, and check its design rules for fabrication
- extra credit: try another design workflow
- extra credit: design a case
Computer-Controlled Machining
group assignment:
- do your lab's safety training
- test runout, alignment, fixturing, speeds, feeds, materials, and toolpaths for your machine
individual assignment:
- make (design+mill+assemble) something big (~meter-scale)
- extra credit: don't use fasteners or glue
- extra credit: include curved surfaces
- extra credit: use three-axis toolpaths
Electronics Production
group assignment:
- characterize the design rules for your in-house PCB production process
- submit a PCB design to a board house
individual assignment:
- make and test an embedded microcontroller system that you designed
- extra credit: make it with another process
Input Devices
group assignment:
- characterize the response of an input device
individual assignment:
- measure something: add a sensor to a microcontroller board that you have designed and read it
Output Devices
group assignment:
- characterize the response of an output device
individual assignment:
- add an output device to a microcontroller board that you have designed and make it do something
Networking and Communications
group assignment:
- characterize the communication protocols available
individual assignment:
- connect your embedded system to the internet, and to a local network, and log sensor data and/or serve a web page
Mechanical Design
Machine Design
group assignment:
- characterize the speed, torque, and power of your machine's motors
individual assignment:
- design and build a machine that includes mechanism(s) and actuation, and optionally sensing and feedback
Molding and Casting
group assignment:
- characterize the properties of your molding and casting materials
individual assignment:
- design and make a mold, and use it to cast parts
Interface and Application Programming
group assignment:
- characterize the input and output capabilities of your system
individual assignment:
- design and implement a human-machine interface, such as a custom controller, an interactive display, or a web-based application
System Integration
group assignment:
- characterize the performance of your system as a whole, and its sub-systems
individual assignment:
- design and implement a system that integrates your project with other systems, such as a sensor network, a data visualization dashboard, or a physical installation
Wildcard Week
group assignment:
- characterize the performance of your system as a whole, and its sub-systems
individual assignment:
- design and implement a system that integrates your project with other systems, such as a sensor network, a data visualization dashboard, or a physical installation
Applications and Implications
Project Development
group assignment:
- characterize the performance of your system as a whole, and its sub-systems
individual assignment:
- design and implement a system that integrates your project with other systems, such as a sensor network, a data visualization dashboard, or a physical installation
Invention, Intellectual Property, and Income
group assignment:
- characterize the performance of your system as a whole, and its sub-systems
individual assignment:
- design and implement a system that integrates your project with other systems, such as a sensor network, a data visualization dashboard, or a physical installation