EA4

Definition
Understanding of and ability to apply a systems approach to engineering problems and to work with uncertainty.

Sub skills
Write the second section of your page here.

Assessment
Current methods used to assess ability in the skill.

Benchmarks
 CORE 

Introduction to Electronic Hardware

Understand the operation of fundamental digital logic circuits in a variety of applications. Be able to design simple analogue circuits based on the operational amplifier. Be able to design simple combinational logic circuits using formal methods.

￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼￼Introduction to Electronic Systems

Understand the elementary architectural components of computer systems and their relationship to appropriate programming techniques. Be familiar with the fundamental concepts in communications.

Analogue Electronics

Be able to use a range of mathematical techniques for the analysis of dynamic systems, networks and multiple input and output systems.

Digital Electronics

Understand and comment on the role of digital electronics in state-of-the-art devices. Be able to: Know when to use such standard logic or programmable logic; ROM or RAM; partial or full decoding; Employ timing diagrams in the evaluation and testing of digital systems.

High Speed Electronics

Be able to analyse and design basic transmission line based signal transmission systems for high speed data transmission, accounting for the imperfections found in such systems and the techniques required to overcome these problems.

Further Digital Electronics

Understand and have practice in the design of complex digital circuits using a hierarchical approach. Be familiar with the modern design flow for digital circuits and the relative software tools.

Design & Construction

Be able to analyse the requirements for a product and derive a specification for its design. Be able to work from concept through specification, design and construction in stream-related teams and be able to demonstrate knowledge in reports and a presentation.

NON-CORE

Music Technology: Creation and Perception

Demonstrate their understanding of acoustics in free field and enclosed spaces. Influence the acoustics of an enclosed space through designed physical modifications.

Light, Vision and Perception

Gain an overview of current knowledge of human vision from photoreception to perception, and an understanding of how such knowledge applies to human factors in media technology and engineering.

Principles of Flight

Design exercise.

Links, Networks and Protocols

Understand how protocol layers work together, and the functions of the application, transport, network, data-link and physical layers. Understand the tradeoffs in designing optimum protocols for at least one layer. Understand how an event-driven simulation works, and have developed the skills to write code to simulate a protocol operating at one or more layers. Have developed the skills to analyse and interpret the results of Monte-Carlo simulations.

Computer Operating Systems and Interfacing

Understand the implementation and limitations of core components within a modern computer operating system.

Introduction to Business Management in Electronic Engineering

Prepare a business plan and Technical Appraisal report for a new product.

Introduction to the Internet and Numerical Methods

Describe, understand and implement a range of numerical methods, indicating their strengths, weaknesses and areas of application. Data Structures & Algorithms and

Numerical Methods

Describe, understand and implement a range of numerical methods, indicating their strengths, weaknesses and areas of application.

Computer Architectures

Use hierarchical design techniques to implement complex designs. Use design capture in VHDL and integrate these design techniques. Use pre- and post-route simulation to verify designs.

Control Engineering

Understand the problems of control system implementation in a real-world context. Explain the use of special techniques needed to overcome implementation problems in process and industrial control.

Distributed Circuits

Be able to design single-stub and quarter-wave matching networks.

Modern & Digital Control

Display knowledge and understanding of a range of basic formulae and relationships appropriate to the fields of both modern (state- space) and digital control. Convert between transfer function, time-domain and state-space representations, be able to carry out calculations and manipulations in state-space format, be able to relate the theoretical equations to physical block (simulation) diagrams ￼￼ and be able to design multivariable feedback control systems to given requirements in state-space form. Analyse the properties of hybrid control systems, involving a mixture of samplers, data holds and system units, be able to derive and calculate the appropriate discrete transfer function for a given system configuration and be able to calculate Z-transforms and inverse Z-transforms.

Digital Engineering

Analyse algorithms and identify strategies for their implementation on microprocessor-based systems. Implement and use complex IP modules within a FPGA design. Develop complex VHDL testbenches for circuit verification and devise appropriate verification strategies. Use and understand the complete design flow required to implement a microprocessor module on an FPGA-based platform.

Mobile Communications Systems

Describe, define and account for the quality of service requirements of different communications applications. Characterise the traffic produced by different applications and specify suitable models. Show how traffic models originated in the modelling of telephone call arrivals at exchanges. Derive and understand the application and limitations of the Erlang-B, Erlang-C and Engset distributions for circuit-switched network design.

Optical Communications

List the major technical characteristics of optoelectronic components (sources and receivers, amplifiers, modulators); explain their effect on possibilities and limitations of a system; calculate the main technical parameters of laser and amplifier from the construction and material properties, select a right type of component for a particular system application. Distinguish between different optical communication system designs, select the right type of architecture for a given system purpose.

Internet Protocols

Describe, and calculate the efficiencies of common flow control and error control techniques, including sliding window, selective-repeat and go-back-N. Understand the advantages and disadvantages of parity, checksums and CRCs as error detection techniques. Understand how Ethernet works in detail (including the 802.2 LLC), and how it developed from earlier multiple access schemes. Describe the function of bridges and routers and how they work, including the spanning tree algorithm and common routeing protocols. Explain the functions of IPv4, IPv6, TCP and UDP, DNS, DHCP, ARP and NAT and how they work together on the Internet.

Antennas and Propagation

Estimate the channel losses for guided, ground, sky and free-space waves, including the effects of diffraction and reflections, and know what applications use these propagation modes. Understand the problems of interference and fading, and be familiar with (and able to use to calculate fading probabilities) a two-ray model and Rayleigh model.

Distributed Computer Systems

Demonstrate an understanding of a distributed computing environment. Describe the fundamental modes of interaction in a distributed environment and their associated failure models.

DSP Architectures

Use and understand the complete design flow required to implement complex designs that include a microprocessor module on an FPGA-based platform. Appreciate strengths and limitations of the debugging of digital circuits and integrate test logic in a design using a JTAG interface.

Flight Control

Apply control systems analysis and design methods in the formulation and implementation of simple flight control laws.

Photonics & Nanophotonics

Explain the new possibilities in optoelectronics and photonics offered by the use of nanostructures. Assess the main trends in photonics and nanophotonics.

Modems

Design or choose a matched filter and receiver.

Relevant Higher Order Skills
Electrical Engineering