The next 10 weeks of instruction will cover several areas that are not specific to any particular micro controller platform.\u00a0 These will be critical skills to master in order to be successful in deploying equipment for long term use.\u00a0 The instruction will also cover integration with existing hardware, which is a value added skill set.\u00a0 More importantly, the impact on design from budget constraints will be put in practice.\u00a0 Lastly, the quarter will not focus on the traditional mid term and term papers of previous quarters.\u00a0 Instead, the subject matter will be collected and placed daily on the blog.\u00a0 The blog will allow the material to take on a life of its own as insights and discoveries are made.<\/p>\n
The quarter will follow this topic theme for the material.\u00a0 The topics are: Costs, Cases, Connections, Compartments, and Captures.\u00a0 Here is a brief of each topic.<\/p>\n
Costs – This is the budgeting behind the design, build, and deployment.\u00a0 Procurement of parts, components, supplies, and tools add up quick.\u00a0 The time and shipping costs have to be balanced against the luxury of local availability.\u00a0 There is also the issue of buying blind, which can break a project at the start.<\/p>\n
Cases – The equipment has to be put in some kind of enclosure.\u00a0 This can be anything from a plastic bag wrapped in electric tape to a custom 3D printed case.\u00a0 Several options are available to the designer and the list of materials to choose from are vast.\u00a0 Most of the focus will be on fabricating plastic enclosures for specific applications.\u00a0 Tap Plastics will be the primary source for this quarter.<\/p>\n
Connections – Interconnecting controllers, sensors, power, and peripherals will be covered.\u00a0 Wire to wire, wire to board, slip connect, snap connect, and wireless options will be explored.\u00a0 Cable management and connector identification methods will also covered.\u00a0 The back bone of any electronics system is the connection bus.\u00a0 This is why having a solid connector methodology is key to the success of any project.<\/p>\n
Compartments – This area is more an art than a science.\u00a0 Integrating new electronics inside objects that typically do not, will be the focus of this topic.\u00a0 The topic will cover objects that range from hand held to structures and vehicles.\u00a0 Most of the effort will be making the components conform to the object, so as to not change the objects form.<\/p>\n
Captures – Existing hardware is a valuable resource in large part due to its potential.\u00a0 Most electronics systems use standard connection protocols that can be tapped into.\u00a0 This can enable a project greater features without the efforts of sub system design.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dates to remember for the Winter 2014 Quarter<\/p>\n
| 1\/6\/2014<\/td>\n | Monday<\/td>\n | Winter 2014 classes begin.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||
| 1\/20\/2014<\/td>\n | Monday<\/td>\n | Academic Holiday – Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday observed. Campus closed.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n| 2\/17\/2014<\/td>\n | Monday<\/td>\n | Academic Holiday – George Washington’s birthday observed. Campus closed.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | 3\/14\/2014<\/td>\n | Friday<\/td>\n | Last day of instruction<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" | The next 10 weeks of instruction will cover several areas that are not specific to any particular micro controller platform.\u00a0 These will be critical skills to master in order to be successful in deploying equipment for long term use.\u00a0 The instruction will also cover integration with existing hardware, which is a value added skill set.\u00a0 More importantly, the impact on design from budget constraints will be put in practice.\u00a0 Lastly, the quarter will not focus on the traditional mid term…<\/p>\n |