Engineering smart systems

"Smart" systems are critical to the future of engineering. This unit will introduce the fundamentals required for these systems from the perspective of software, electrical, electronic and mechatronics engineering. Theory underpinning systems approach, analogue and digital circuit design and Python programming will be presented.

The fundamental stages in the software and hardware development life cycle will be introduced, including requirements analysis, functional analysis, design integration and verification.

Concepts such as Boolean Logic, Ohm’s and Kirchhoff’s Laws, Nodal Analysis and Thevenin Equivalence will also be introduced. These will be used to analyse and design solutions that contain electrical components including capacitors, semiconductor devices such as diodes, transistors and basic microcontrollers.

The contribution of each topic to a contemporary engineering application will be demonstrated. These concepts will be practised through hands-on projects carried out in teams. Communication and teamwork skills will be developed through team-based tasks.