Syllabus for ELD-311

MICROPROCESSORS

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course introduces microprocessors and microcontrollers and goes on to provide in-depth, hands-on
coverage of their use in automation systems. It employs the Arduino open source hardware and software
for imparting instruction. A comprehensive training kit is used to interface simple digital and analog
components as well as complex modules utilizing industry standard buses. The course culminates with a
project demonstrating a multitasking control application on an AVR microcontroller.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

After completing this course, you should be able to:

CO1 Describe the architecture and organization of microprocessors and microcontrollers.
CO2 Explain main features of the AVR microcontrollers.
CO3 Examine the Arduino open source hardware and software systems.
CO4 Program the UNO board using the Arduino IDE.
CO5 Use a breadboard to connect components and modules to the UNO board.
CO6 Develop sketches to perform simple input and output operations.
CO7 Use the UNO board to control motors and servos.
CO8 Develop sketches to attach more complex modules.
CO9 Demonstrate communication with the UNO board.
CO10 Demonstrate interfacing with industry standard SPI and I2C buses.
CO11 Describe the AVR hardware and timer interrupts.
CO12 Utilize the Arduino IDE to control an LCD display.
CO13 Describe diverse applications of AVR microcontrollers.
CO14 Use the UNO board to program standalone AVR microcontrollers to make simple autonomous
embedded systems.
CO15 Demonstrate multitasking applications on the UNO board.

COURSE MATERIALS

You will need the following materials to do the work of the course. The required textbook is available from
the University's textbook supplier, MBS Direct.

Required Textbook

 Blum, J. (2013). Exploring Arduino: Tools and techniques for engineering wizardry. Indianapolis,
IN: John Wiley & Sons.

ISBN-13: 978-1118549360
Textbook Companion Website

Required Lab Kit

Arduino UNO R3 Starter Kit is required for lab assignments and the final project. It is available online
from multiple vendors. The customized kit for this course has to be ordered from RIAspire
at: http://riaspire.com/shop/kits/ultimate-uno-r3-diy-starter-kit/ultimate-uno-r3-diy-starter-kit/.
When placing your order, you must enter the coupon code, STUVIRGINIA, to get a customized kit for the
course. For questions about the kit, you can email them directly at amir@riaspire.com.

COURSE STRUCTURE

Microprocessors is a three-credit ,online course, consisting of six modules. Modules include topics,
learning objectives, study materials, and activities. Module titles are listed below.

 Module 1: AVR Microcontrollers and Arduino

Course objectives covered in this module: CO1, CO2, CO3, CO4

 Module 2: Simple Digital and Analog I/O

Course objectives covered in this module: CO5, CO6

 Module 3: Connecting Devices

Course objectives covered in this module: CO7, CO8

 Module 4: Communications Interfaces

Course objectives covered in this module: CO9, CO10

 Module 5: Hardware and Timer Interrupts

Course objectives covered in this module: CO11, CO12

 Module 6: Simple Automation Systems

Course objectives covered in this module: CO13, CO14, CO15

ASSESSMENT METHODS

For your formal work in the course, you are required to participate in online discussions, complete written
assignments, submit lab reports, and take a midterm exam and complete a final project. See below for
more details.
Consult the Course Calendar for assignment due dates.

Discussion Forums

This course requires you to participate in six graded discussion forums. There is also one ungraded but
required introduction forum in Module 1.
Discussion forums are on a variety of topics associated with the course modules. The purpose of the
discussion forums is to help make the connection between the course concepts and the goals of the
course. In discussion posts, you express your opinions and thoughts, provide support and evidence for
the position(s) you take on a subject, and have the opportunity to ask questions and expand on insights
provided by your colleagues. Active participation is vital to your overall success in this course.
Click to review Online Discussion Grading Rubric.
 Written Assignments

You are required to complete six written assignments. The written assignments draw on the Study
Materials in the modules.
When preparing your answers, answer all questions and cite and document all sources of information
with an appropriate APA format. Be sure to proofread your work carefully for correct spelling, grammar,
and clarity of expression.

Lab Assignments

You are required to complete six lab assignments. The lab assignments require you purchase an Arduino
UNO R3 Starter Kit. For each lab assignment, you will be asked to complete several exercises and then
write a lab report with a video demonstration.
The lab report should list all the major procedures required to complete each of the exercises including a
cover sheet, objective, procedure, discussion/conclusion, and Arduino sketches.
The video demonstration should provide a visual record of the results obtained in each exercise. You are
also required to use a video editor to combine all the clips into one video file for each lab assignment
before you submit the video to the course website. For guidelines to record and merge video clips,
check Record, Merge, and Upload Your Videos.
More details and guidelines for the lab assignments are explained in each module.

Midterm Examination

For a list of key concepts that may appear on your exam, refer to the study guide available in the
Examinations section of the course Web site.
You are required to take a proctored online midterm examination. The midterm exam requires that you
use the University's Online Proctor Service (OPS). Please refer to the Examinations and Proctors section
of the Online Student Handbook (see General Information area of the course website) for further
information about scheduling and taking online exams and for all exam policies and procedures. You are
strongly advised to schedule your exam within the first week of the semester.
Online exams are administered through the course website. Consult the Course Calendar for the official
date of your midterm exam week.

Midterm Examination

The midterm exam is 90 minutes long and covers Modules 1 through 3 of the course. It consists of
multiple-choice questions that are based on module readings and activities.
The exam is a closed book exam and no calculator is allowed.

Final Project

You are required to complete a final project for this course. The project will consist of two phases, design
and build. The output of the first phase will be a design document which will be submitted by the end of
Module 4. Upon completion of the build phase, a final report and demonstration video will be due.
See the Final Project area of the course website for further details.

Statement about Cheating

You are on your honor not to cheat during the exam. Cheating means:
  Looking up any answer or part of an answer in an unauthorized textbook or on the Internet, or
using any other source to find the answer.
 Copying and pasting or in any way copying responses or parts of responses from any other
source into your online test. This includes but is not limited to copying and pasting from other
documents or spreadsheets, whether written by yourself or anyone else.
 Plagiarizing answers.
 Asking anyone else to assist you by whatever means available while you take the exam.
 Copying any part of the exam to share with other students.
 Telling your mentor that you need another attempt at the exam because your connection to the
Internet was interrupted when that is not true.

If there is evidence that you have cheated or plagiarized in your exam, the exam will be declared invalid,
and you will fail the course.

GRADING AND EVALUATION

Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:

 Online discussion (6)—18 percent

 Written assignments (6)—18 percent
 Lab Assignments (6)—24 percent
 Midterm exam (proctored; Modules 1–3)—20 percent
 Final project—20 percent

 Final project design phase—5 percent

 Final project build phase—15 percent

All activities will receive a numerical grade of 0–100. You will receive a score of 0 for any work not
submitted. Your final grade in the course will be a letter grade. Letter grade equivalents for numerical
grades are as follows:
A = 93–100 C+ = 78–79
A– = 90–92 C = 73–77
B+ = 88–89 C– = 70–72
B = 83–87 D = 60–69
B– = 80–82 F = Below 60
To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of C or better (for an area of study course)
or D or better (for a course not in your area of study), based on the weighted average of all assigned
course work (e.g., exams, assignments, discussion postings).

STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

First Steps to Success

To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:

 Read carefully the entire Syllabus, making sure that all aspects of the course are clear to you and
that you have all the materials required for the course.

 Take the time to read the entire Online Student Handbook. The Handbook answers many
questions about how to proceed through the course, how to schedule exams, and how to get the
most from your educational experience at Thomas Edison State University.
  Arrange to take your examinations by following the instructions in this Syllabus and the Online
Student Handbook.

 Familiarize yourself with the learning management systems environment—how to navigate it and
what the various course areas contain. If you know what to expect as you navigate the course,
you can better pace yourself and complete the work on time.

 If you are not familiar with web-based learning be sure to review the processes for posting
responses online and submitting assignments before class begins.

Study Tips

Consider the following study tips for success:

 To stay on track throughout the course, begin each week by consulting the Course Calendar. The
Calendar provides an overview of the course and indicates due dates for submitting assignments,
posting discussions, and scheduling and taking examinations.

 Check Announcements regularly for new course information.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Thomas Edison State University is committed to maintaining academic quality, excellence, and honesty.
The University expects all members of its community to share the commitment to academic integrity, an
essential component of a quality academic experience.
Students at Thomas Edison State University are expected to exhibit the highest level of academic
citizenship. In particular, students are expected to read and follow all policies, procedures, and program
information guidelines contained in publications; pursue their learning goals with honesty and integrity;
demonstrate that they are progressing satisfactorily and in a timely fashion by meeting course deadlines
and following outlined procedures; observe a code of mutual respect in dealing with mentors, staff, and
other students; behave in a manner consistent with the standards and codes of the profession in which
they are practicing; keep official records updated regarding changes in name, address, telephone
number, or e-mail address; and meet financial obligations in a timely manner. Students not practicing
good academic citizenship may be subject to disciplinary action including suspension, dismissal, or
financial holds on records.
All members of the University community are responsible for reviewing the Academic Code of Conduct
Policy in the University Catalog and online at www.tesu.edu.

Academic Dishonesty

Thomas Edison State University expects all of its students to approach their education with academic
integrity—the pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception. All mentors and administrative
staff members at the University insist on strict standards of academic honesty in all courses. Academic
dishonesty undermines this objective. Academic dishonesty can take the following forms:

 Cheating
 Gaining or providing unauthorized access to examinations or using unauthorized materials during
exam administration
 Submitting credentials that are false or altered in any way
 Plagiarizing (including copying and pasting from the Internet without using quotation marks and
without acknowledging sources)
 Forgery, fabricating information or citations, or falsifying documents
  Submitting the work of another person in whole or in part as your own (including work obtained
through document sharing sites, tutoring schools, term paper companies, or other sources)
 Submitting your own previously used assignments without prior permission from the mentor
 Facilitating acts of dishonesty by others (including making tests, papers, and other course
assignments available to other students, either directly or through document sharing sites,
tutoring schools, term paper companies, or other sources)
 Tampering with the academic work of other students

Plagiarism

Thomas Edison State University is committed to helping students understand the seriousness of
plagiarism, which is defined as using the work and ideas of others without proper citation. The University
takes a strong stance against plagiarism, and students found to be plagiarizing are subject to discipline
under the academic code of conduct policy.
If you copy phrases, sentences, paragraphs, or whole documents word-for-word—or if you paraphrase by
changing a word here and there—without identifying the author, or without identifying it as a direct quote,
then you are plagiarizing. Please keep in mind that this type of identification applies to Internet sources as
well as to print-based sources. Copying and pasting from the Internet, without using quotation marks and
without acknowledging sources, constitutes plagiarism. (For information about how to cite Internet
sources, see Online Student Handbook > Academic Standards > Citing Sources.)
Accidentally copying the words and ideas of another writer does not excuse the charge of plagiarism. It is
easy to jot down notes and ideas from many sources and then write your own paper without knowing
which words are your own and which are someone else’s. It is more difficult to keep track of each and
every source. However, the conscientious writer who wishes to avoid plagiarizing never fails to keep
careful track of sources.
Always be aware that if you write without acknowledging the sources of your ideas, you run the risk of
being charged with plagiarism.
Clearly, plagiarism, no matter the degree of intent to deceive, defeats the purpose of education. If you
plagiarize deliberately, you are not educating yourself, and you are wasting your time on courses meant
to improve your skills. If you plagiarize through carelessness, you are deceiving yourself.
For examples of unintentional plagiarism, advice on when to quote and when to paraphrase, and
information about writing assistance and originality report checking, click the links provided below.
Examples of Unintentional Plagiarism
When to Quote and When to Paraphrase
Writing Assistance at Smarthinking
Originality Report Checking at Turnitin

Disciplinary Process for Plagiarism

Acts of both intentional and unintentional plagiarism violate the Academic Code of Conduct.
If an incident of plagiarism is an isolated minor oversight or an obvious result of ignorance of proper
citation requirements, the mentor may handle the matter as a learning exercise. Appropriate
consequences may include the completion of tutorials, assignment rewrites, or any other reasonable
learning tool in addition to a lower grade for the assignment or course. The mentor will notify the student
and appropriate dean of the consequence by e-mail.
If the plagiarism appears intentional and/or is more than an isolated incident, the mentor will refer the
matter to the appropriate dean, who will gather information about the violation(s) from the mentor and
student, as necessary. The dean will review the matter and notify the student in writing of the specifics of
the charge and the sanction to be imposed.
Possible sanctions include:

 Lower or failing grade for an assignment

 Lower or failing grade for the course
 Rescinding credits
 Rescinding certificates or degrees
 Recording academic sanctions on the transcript
 Suspension from the University
 Dismissal from the University