ECE 495M - Mobile Communications Project

Course Details

Lecture Hours: 1 Lab Hours: 3 Credits: 2

This is an experiential learning course.

Counts as:

Experimental Course Offered:

Fall 2002, Spring 2003, Fall 2003, Spring 2004, Fall 2004, Spring 2005

Catalog Description:

Mobile communications technologies and applications: interaction between different wireless protocols; mobile access, viewing, control, and printing of multimedia documents, databases, and video; security in mobile environments; mobile e-services. Students will work in teams to design and prototype new solutions that exploit mobile technologies to transform the way people communicate and process information. During the weekly lecture, students will learn the fundamentals of wireless technologies, the relevant application areas, and the design process. The weekly schedule lab period will facilitate project coordination and planning.

Required Text(s):

None.

Recommended Text(s):

None.

Learning Outcomes:

A student who successfully fulfills the course requirements will have demonstrated:
  1. An ability to apply knowledge of mobile communications technology to the design of mobile communications solutions. [a,b,e,i,j,k]
  2. An understanding of design as a start-to-finish process. [b,c,e,f,h,k]
  3. An awareness of the customer in engineering design. [c,f,g,h,j]
  4. An ability to function as part of a team and an appreciation for the contributions of other individuals on the team. [d,f,g,h,j]
  5. An ability to communication effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences. [d,g]

Lecture Outline:

Weeks Lectures
1-15 All students in EE 495M have a common lecture hour. The lecture topics cover two areas: technical aspects of mobility and the design process. Technical aspects of mobility: types of mobile networks - wide area, local area, and personal area; mobile communication technologies - satellite, cellular, 802.11, Bluetooth, and IR; mobile transport protocols - TCP/IP and mobile IP; mobile client systems - PDAs handhelds, laptops, and cell phones, mobile base station systems; operation systems and software development environments for mobile clients; applications - databases, web browsers, printing, video and security Design process: verbal and written communication, project management and planning

Lab Outline:

Week Major course milestones
2 Project Planning
3 Personal Semester Goals
4 Project Proposal (new projects); Project Demonstration (continuing projects); Review of Design Notebooks
7 Progress report; oral or poster presentation
8 Peer evaluation and self assessment
8-12 Project Design Review; Review of Design Notebooks
15 Team Report; Review of Design Notebooks; Peer evaluation and self assessment
Final Team Presentation

Assessment Method:

Each student will be required to keep his or her own design notebook. Students will be evaluated individually and as part of their team on the basis of their design notebooks, midterm and final design presentations, and midterm and final individual oral examinations conducted by the faculty member(s) teaching the course.