Engineering Capstone Senior Design - UAV Control Workshop
Michael Thorburn
California State University-Los Angeles
Summary
This is a workshop for a Senior Design program, servicing some needs across multiple projects.
There are 200+ students in class. Perhaps 20-30 working on UAV or related technologies.
Course Size:
greater than 150
Course Format:
Small-group seminar
Institution Type:
Public four-year institution, primarily undergraduate
Course Context:
Senior Design is a year-long required class for all Engineering majors. Students work in teams of ~5 on projects, often sponsored by industrial clients. Each project has a faculty advisor or an volunteer advisor from industry.
Course Content:
All aspects of design are covered in Senior Design. In most cases a physical prototype of the design is the deliverable at the end of the project. For the UAV projects, the most common deliverable is the controller - whether the UAV is piloted or flies autonomously.
Course Goals:
The students will be able to develop a control algorithm that can be successfully ported onto a UAV and demonstrated to smoothly and safely perform flight objectives.
Course Features:
This course is a learn-by-doing class. Students are giving objectives and performance requirements and then, with the help of an advisor, determine the design and carry out the implementation.
Course Philosophy:
The course is intended to help students transition from university to an industrial engineering design environment.
Assessment:
We have a large EXPO at the end of the year, inviting faculty and students from across the college, as well as alumni, project clients and industrial partners.
References and Notes:
n/a