ECE 1100: Introduction to Electrical and Computer Engineering

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ECE 1100 Introduction toElectrical and Computer
Engineering
Lecture Notes Set 1
Dr. Dave Shattuck Associate Professor, ECE Dept.
Shattuck_at_uh.edu 713 743-4422 W326-D3
Slides adapted in part from lectures by Len
Trombetta
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Handouts
Everyone should have

• ECE 1100 Syllabus
• Grade Posting Form (optional)

Where do you get these lecture note files? You
can get them from the World Wide Web (WWW) at
http//www.egr.uh.edu/courses/ECE1100/SectionShatt
uck/ShattuckLectureNotes/
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Whats the Letter About?
You got a letter if the university computer
thinks you are missing the course requisites.
ECE 1100 CFORI requisite is Math 1431 (Calc
I) CFORI Credit For Or Registration In
If you got a letter you must respond to it by

• Showing that you DO have credit for Calc I,
• Adding Calc I, OR
• Getting a waiver approved

If you do not respond by the deadline, you will
be dropped! Whatever you do, return the letter.
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Whats This Course About?

• - Introduction to ECE and to Engineering
• Preparation for Success in Engineering
• Engineering Ethics
• Introduction to Basic Circuit Theory
• Complex Numbers and Arithmetic

• In-class discussion
• Reading in Landis, Studying Engineering
• Visits from selected guests
• Small Project
• Short paper

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Syllabus Objectives

Community building - Students make up a
supportive learning community by getting to know
other students in the class, learning
collaborative study techniques, and becoming
familiar with the numerous student organizations.
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Syllabus Objectives
Professional development - Students are motivated
by a clear understanding of ECE as a profession
and of the areas of study within the Department
of ECE. Students conduct themselves ethically
and in a professional manner at all times.
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Syllabus Objectives
Academic success strategies - Students know about
and put into practice positive attitudes and
productive behaviors that will result in academic
success.
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Syllabus Objectives
Orientation - Students understand how the
Department, College, and University work and how
best to take advantage of the resources available
to them. Students learn about the field of ECE
by studying introductory material in that area,
and by building a simple project as a part of a
team.
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Grading
Grades (S/U) will be determined by the following.

• In-class assignments
• In-class exams (3)
• Homework assignments
• Projects and Papers

Requirements for grade of S

• Minimum overall average of 60
• Minimum of 50 average on exams

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Some Basic Resources

• The ECE Department
• Office N308 D Phone [phone]
• Chair Dr. Fritz Claydon, FClaydon_at_uh.edu
  N325-D Phone [phone]
• Director of Undergraduate Studies Dr. Betty
  Barr Barr_at_uh.edu N311-D Phone [phone]

• The Engineering Deans office
• Office E421-D3 Phone [phone]
• Dean Dr. Ray Flumerfelt
• Assoc. Dean for Undergraduate Programs Dr.
  Larry Witte Witte_at_uh.edu E421-D3 Phone (713)
  743-4204

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Preparation for Success
Landis Chapter 1
Strangely, when new students come to the
university, they are left primarily on their own
to figure out how to be successful.
Success Strategies

• Determination
• Effort
• Approach

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Landis Chapter 1 Keys to Success
Key Idea
Each of you can be successful in earning your
BSEE.
It will take...

• Determination
• Effort
• Approach

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Determination Dont Give Up
Use failure as a lesson, not as an excuse to give
up. Set high goals. Keep them clearly in mind.
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Goals

• Goals give you something to measure yourself
  against.
• Goals give your life direction.
• Landis, Chapter 1.
• Clarify your goals (this can be hard).
• Short-term goals (to do list Next calculus
  exam).
• Long-term goals (education, career, family,
  ...).
• Important Whats the big picture? What am I
  doing here?

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Effort Work Hard
- Aptitude vs. Effort
- For MOST students Your grades will reflect
your effort.
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Approach Work Smart

• Prioritize
• Form a study group
• Learn to control your time
• Learn to use available resources
• - computer tools
• - profs office hours
• - student groups

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In Class Assignment 1
In-class assignment for today (on 3x5 card)

• Write your name (please print).
• Write the full names of five class members, not
  including yourself.
• Next to their name, write the name they want to
  be called.
• Turn this card in before you leave today.

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Approach Work Smart

• Prioritize
• Form a study group
• Learn to control your time
• I advocate that you use the rule of 4
• Landis advocates the 60-hour rule
• Learn to use available resources
• - computer tools
• - profs office hours
• - student groups

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What is the Rule of 4?

• Faculty members assume that you will spend 3
  hours outside of class, for every hour in class
  every week.
• Roughly speaking, a 3 semester credit hour
  course meets in class 3 hours a week.
• Thus, the rule of 4 says that you should spend
  four times the number of credit hours you are
  taking on your coursework, every week.

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What is the 60-Hour Rule?

• Landis suggests that faculty members assume that
  you will spend 2 hours outside of class, for
  every hour in class every week.
• Roughly speaking, a 3 semester credit hour
  course meets in class 3 hours a week.
• The 60-hour rule suggests that your SCH x 3 plus
  your work hours per week should add up to less
  than 60.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I am taking 16 SCH, and I
  work 20 hours per week on my job.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This studentis not using
  the rule as a planning tool.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I have been keeping track of
  my time, and 1.5 hours of studying per hour of
  class results in my understanding the material.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This seems like a good
  answer to me.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because my time is unlimited, so I
  dont need time management tools.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment I dont think that anyones
  time is unlimited. Taking this approach can
  cause problems.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I study until I understand
  the material, so I dont need time management
  tools.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This sounds like an
  admirable approach. Its not. Taking this
  approach can cause problems.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer Yes, because Dr. Dave says that I
  should.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment The Rule of 4 might be a
  bad use of time for you. You should figure out
  how much time you need.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer Yes, because I have not been keeping
  track of my time, and I need to start somewhere.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This seems like a good
  answer to me.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because it is impossible to follow
  in todays society.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment I dont think that society
  has anything to do with it. The demands of
  engineering are outside that. If you need to
  study that much, society doesnt matter.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I like the Landis 60-hour
  rule better.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This seems like a good
  answer to me. This isalso a good planning
  approach.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I cant tell how much time a
  course will need in advance.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment I dont think that this
  student is using it as a planning tool. One
  cant know anything in advance. But you can
  still plan, using approximations.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because it does not take into
  account the difficulty of courses.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This seems like a good
  answer to me. This student is taking an even
  more accurate approach.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because my family will not let me
  keep a schedule, so I cant use time management
  tools.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment This is an issue of values.
  Indeed, if you have something else that is more
  important, you might not do well.

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Student Replies

• The students were asked the following question
  Will you follow the Rule of 4 in the future?
• Answer No, because I am a working student, and
  it would take too long to graduate under this
  rule.
• Is this a good answer?
• Dr. Daves Comment Maybe. But if you need to
  study a certain amount, and you dont, it will
  take forever to graduate. That would be a
  really, really, long time.

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Do Something!

• Prioritize
• Form a study group
• Learn to control your time
• I advocate that you use the Rule of 4
• Landis advocates the 60-hour Rule
• Do something! For many students, this is
  crucially important.
• Learn to use available resources
• - computer tools
• - profs office hours
• - student groups

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What is Engineering?What do Engineers Do?
?
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Introduction to Engineering

• What is engineering?

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Introduction to Engineering

• What is engineering? -- Answer Engineering is
  Problem Solving.
• So, what is electrical engineering?

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Introduction to Engineering

• What is engineering? -- Answer Engineering is
  Problem Solving.
• What is electrical engineering? -- Answer
  Problem solving using electricity, electrical
  tools and concepts.
• What is science?

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Introduction to Engineering

• What is engineering? -- Answer Engineering is
  Problem Solving.
• What is electrical engineering? -- Answer
  Problem solving using electricity, electrical
  tools and concepts.
• What is science? Answer Science is knowledge
  gaining.

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Introduction to Engineering

• What is engineering? -- Answer Engineering is
  Problem Solving.
• What is electrical engineering? -- Answer
  Problem solving using electricity, electrical
  tools and concepts.
• What is science? Answer Science is knowledge
  gaining.
• So, how can you tell an electrical engineer from
  a physicist?

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Introduction to Engineering

• How can you tell an electrical engineer from a
  physicist? Answer by the goals they work
  towards.
• An engineer's goal is to solve problems.
• A scientist's goal is to learn.
• However, an engineer needs to learn to be able to
  solve problems, and a scientist needs to solve
  problems to learn, so the situation gets muddled.
  The key is to look at their goals.

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Introduction to Engineering

• Quiz Time
• Were the following famous people engineers or
  scientists?
• To decide, we need to look at their GOALS!

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Galileo?

• He wanted to understand the stars and planets

• He was a scientist

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Leonardo da Vinci?

• He wanted to fly, to paint, to do things

• He was an engineer

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Thomas Edison?

• He wanted to build things, lights, phonographs,
  etc.

• He was an engineer

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Sir Isaac Newton?

• He wanted to understand how things moved

• He was a scientist

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Albert Einstein?

• He wanted to find the Unified Theory of
  Everything

• He was a scientist

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Robert Oppenheimer?

• He wanted to build the Atomic Bomb - Manhattan
  Project

• He was an engineer

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Professor Paul Chu?

• He wants to understand superconductivity

• He is a scientist

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineer or Scientist
• Sir Thomas Crapper?

• He wanted to build a sanitary toilet, which
  was so important he was knighted

• He was an engineer

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Introduction to Engineering

• Engineering or Science?
• Decide by determining what motivates you.

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Introduction to Engineering

• How can you tell an engineer from a technician?

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Introduction to Engineering

• How can you tell an engineer from a technician?
  Answer by the kinds of problems they solve.

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Engineering vs Technology

• How can you tell an engineer from a technician?
  Answer by the kinds of problems they solve.
  Have the problems been solved before?

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Introduction to Engineering

• How can you tell an engineer from a technician?
  Answer by the kinds of problems they solve.
• An engineer's goal is to solve technical
  problems.
• A technicians goal is to solve technical
  problems.
• However, an engineer is typically asked to solve
  problems that have not been solved before. A
  technician is typically asked to solve problems
  that have already been solved.

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Engineering vs Technology

• Engineering Solving Technical Problems That
  Have Not Been Solved Before

• Technology Solving Technical Problems That
  Have Been Solved Before

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What is Engineering Anyway???
In order to solve many technical problems, it is
necessary to design something.

• So, many would say that engineering is designing
  and building things! Ok, so what is design?

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What is Design Anyway???

• What is design? Lets take an example. Lets
  look at the design of the first airplane.

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Design is a Circle

• Invention is where poetry and engineering come
  together. It is a creative endeavor where the
  heart beats faster with each intuitive leap, yet
  success is measured by the stern, unforgiving
  ruler of the Scientific Method. Its not a
  predictable process you never march a straight
  path to your goal. Instead, you crisscross the
  same ground over and over again as you search for
  the answer that youre sure is there somewhere.
  Every successful invention is the result of false
  starts, dead ends, disappointments, self-doubt,
  perseverance, and the elation that comes when
  your faith in yourself is at last rewarded.
  Nowhere is this more evident than in the tale of
  the invention of the airplane. (From
  http//www.first-to-fly.com/History/inventin.htm)

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Design is a Circle Try and Try Again

• When you design something, you try something that
  you think will work.
• Usually, it doesnt.
• Then, you try again, using what you learned in
  your first try.

This is design!
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The Design Process

• The design process is an iterative process. You
  try again and again.

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Design Means Work

• Invention is 10 inspiration, and 90
  perspiration.

The conclusion? Engineers smell bad?
No, the conclusion is that there are many steps
and skills involved.
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The Design Process

• The design process includes analysis. These
  steps are analysis, and can be done physically,
  on paper, or on a computer.

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• Not everything that the Wrights did was a
  success. Of the seven aircraft that they built
  from 1899 to 1905, only two worked well enough to
  be flown any length of time -- the 1902 glider
  and the 1905 Flyer 3. Some, like the 1901 glider
  (above) were dismal failures. (From
  http//www.first-to-fly.com/History/inventin.htm)

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Wright Brothers Gain Knowledge to Solve Problems

• Wilbur and Orville decide to carry on. They test
  wing shapes to get more lift. This was an early
  test, using a bicycle.

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Wright Brothers Gain Knowledge to Solve Problems

• They test over 200 wing shapes in a wind tunnel
  to find which ones produce the most lift. The
  wind tunnel is shown here.

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Wright Brothers Gain Knowledge to Solve Problems

• Wilbur and Orville test over 200 wing shapes in a
  wind tunnel to find which ones produce the most
  lift. They even have to design the wind tunnel.
  The brothers build a new glider based on the
  results.

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Wright Brothers Gain Knowledge to Solve Problems

• Wilbur and Orville test over 200 wing shapes in a
  wind tunnel to find which ones produce the most
  lift. They even have to design gadgets to be able
  to test their wing shapes in the wind tunnel.

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The Result A Flying Machine

• The result of their guess and test method was the
  first airplane. We try to teach this guess and
  test method in engineering.
• Guessing is often glorified, and does require
  experience and a little bit of inspiration.
• Testing, though, often takes longer. This is
  easier to teach, though by no means easy.

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Wilbur and Orville were a Design Team
The results are, as they would say, history.
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Engineers Build Many Kinds of Systems
Engineers build Virtual Reality and Artificial
Intelligence Systems. Stupidity we can get
naturally.
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Engineers Build Computer-Based Systems
Computers are in many things. Engineers put them
there.
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Average Yearly Salary Offers Bachelors Degree
Candidates

• Computer Engineering 53,600
• Computer Science 52,500
• Management Information Systems 46,600
• Engineering Technology 45,500

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Sine Waves Happen

• You have probably seen the bumper stickers that
  say that, Sine Waves Happen.
• Similarly, the demand for most fields is
  sinusoidal, going up and and down.

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Demand Varies with Time
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Engineering, Technology, or Science?

• Students should decide by determining what
  motivates them.

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How Should a Student Pick a Major?

• Students will do best in the field that motivates
  them, excites them.

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How Should a Student Pick a Major?

• To get a great job, you need to do great in
  your preparation.
• To do great in your preparation, you need to work
  hard and long.

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How Should a Student Pick a Major?

• To work hard and long, you need to enjoy what you
  do.

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Examples from Computer Engr. - Undergraduate
Projects

• Advanced Digital Design
• Build a computer!
• Software Engineering
• Design a large software system!
• Capstone ECE Design Course
• Senior Thesis
• Independent Study
• IEEE Projects
• Build a robot!

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Problem Solving
The Smokey Mountain Express leaves New York
on Tuesday at 8 am heading due west at 75 mph.
The Pacific Paradise leaves San Francisco at the
same time headed due east at 60 mph.
If New York and San Francisco are 3,000 miles
apart and the trains are headed straight for
each other, when will they meet?
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Train Problem Solution
Let tm be the time until the two trains meet.
3000mi 60mi/hr x tm 75mi/hr x tm
3000 135tm
tm 22hr
About 22 hours after Tuesday at 8AM brings us
to approximately 6AM on Wednesday.
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Math Skills
Math skills means more than just getting the
answer right. It means being able to think about
the problem.
Student problems with engineering classes

• Poor problem solving skills in general
• Weak math/physics skills
• Difficulty applying knowledge

• Bottom Line
• Your math/physics classes are important.
• Do the homework.

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Math Skills
Math skills means more than just getting the
answer right. It means being able to think about
the problem.
Lets look at the data here. -- Taken from Road
and Track, Sept. 2000
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Math Skills
Math skills means more than just getting the
answer right. It means being able to think about
the problem.
I can think about what is going on in these
results in a much more powerful way if I know
what it means to differentiate.
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Coming Up...

• QA on the undergraduate curriculum/flow chart
  (Prof. John Glover)
• A visit from Learning Support Services
• Visit from IEEE Student Branch
• Discussion of engineering ethics