CIS/EE 768: Applied Component-Based Programming for Engineers and Scientists

CIS/EE 768:
Applied Component-Based Programming for Engineers and Scientists

Description

Application of component-based software engineering technology to design and implementation of electronics simulation systems.

Level and Credits

UG 3 (three one-hour lectures)

Prerequisites

CIS 502 or CIS 560 or equivalent; EE 205 or EE 300 or equivalent

Quarters Offered

General Information, Exclusions, etc.

Java is used.
Cross-listed in CIS and EE.

Objectives

This course is an applied course designed for engineering and science students (including CSE majors). The focus of lab projects is a software-only "circuit breadboard" built with software components (packaged as JavaBeans) that emulate electrical and electronic components, measurement instruments, front panels, etc., in the spirit of National Instruments' Labview environment. Students will:

Be familiar with how to build software emulators for electronic components such as voltage and current sources, meters, oscilloscopes, as well as basic electronic components such as resistors, capacitors, etc.
Be familiar with how to build an event-driven electronics simulation system by "wiring" together such software emulators for electronic devices.
Be familiar with the efficiency issues connected with building engineering simulations of this type, and with how to use object orientation in the software without sacrificing efficiency.
Be familiar with the software design techniques needed to build such systems, such as using a standard modeling language, loosely coupled layered software architectures, event-driven programming, multithreading, design-for-reuse, and associated design patterns.
Be familiar with applying industry-standard software engineering technologies and tools in other engineering and scientific applications that are similar to electronics simulation systems.

Texts

The Java Tutorial Continued, The Rest of the JDK, M. Campoine, K. Walrath, and A. Humel, Addison Wesley, 1998.
UML Distilled, 2nd Edition, M. Fowler and K. Scott, Addison-Wesley, 1999.
References (Supplemental Reading):

Principles and Applications of Electrical Engineering, Fourth Edition, G. Rizzoni, McGraw Hill, 2002.
The Java Programming Language, 3rd Edition, K. Arnold and J. Gosling, Addison Wesley, 2001.
Developing Java Beans, R. Englander, O'Reilly, 1997.
Java Threads, S. Oaks and H. Wing, O'Reilly, 1997.
Java Report and C++ Report, SIGS Publishing.
Java Developer's Journal, sys.com Publications.

Topics

Number of Weeks	Topics
2	Review of basic electronics and object orientation
1	UML class diagrams and interaction diagrams
1	Building efficient object-oriented software emulators for electronics components
1.5	Events and the Java Event Model as the basis for "wiring" together software emulators into an electronics simulation system
1	Introduction to JavaBeans
1	Multithreading and its importance for correctness of distributed simulation systems
1.5	Building an electronics simulation system by "wiring" together software emulators for electronics components built in the class
1	Review and exams

Representative Lab Assignments

Students construct an event-based multithreaded software simulation of an electronics circuit laboratory. This proceeds incrementally with the lecture material, and is handed in as the final lab project at the end of the quarter. Abstractions for electronics components such as resistors, voltage/current sources, voltmeters, plotters, timers, etc., are designed. They are then implemented as JavaBean software components. During the first half of the quarter, students concentrate on a single-threaded system. This is modified to a multithreaded system as students learn about concurrency issues during the second half of the course. Careful planning of thread scheduling and prioritizing is needed for a realistic simulation. The final lab project is handed in as a report consisting of description, UML diagrams, and working code in Java or C#.

Grading Plan

Homework Assignments	20%
Midterm Exams (2)	40%
Lab Assignments	40%

Relation to ABET Criterion 3 and CSE Program Objectives

Relationship to ABET Criterion 3:

a. an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering

students apply knowledge of physics and electrical engineering (electronic circuits) to develop mathematical models of real-world situations to be simulated by software

c. an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs

students design and use object-oriented software components to design application software that meets desired needs

e. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems

students formulate mathematical models and software simulations for engineering problems

k. an ability to use techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice

students use industry-standard software development tools throughout the course

Relationship to CSE Program Objectives:

1. to provide graduates with a thorough grounding in the key principles and practices of computing, and in the basic engineering, mathematical, and scientific principles that underpin them.

students apply knowledge of physics and electrical engineering (electronic circuits) to develop mathematical models of real-world situations to be simulated by software
students design and use object-oriented software components to design application software that meets desired needs

Preparer Information and Date: Syllabus prepared by Furrukh Khan, Paul Sivilotti, and Bruce W. Weide, 9/02; last modified 5/13/03.