Course Information

Mechatronics
ME 530.421

Course Information

[General Information] [Course Description] [Course Requirements] [Grading Policy]

General Information

Lecture:	W 10:00-11:00 am, Latrobe 107
Laboratories:	Laboratories will be held every week in Wyman Park 140. Lab assignments will be performed in groups no larger than two people, and lab assignments will be solved and written up individually. You must register for one of the following sections, and you may only attend that section: Section 1: Thursday 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Section 2: Friday 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Professor:	Prof. Allison M. Okamura Department of Mechanical Engineering G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering The Johns Hopkins University office: 125 Latrobe Hall phone: 410-516-7266 email: aokamura@jhu.edu Office hours are by appointment (email/call me, or knock on my door). I will usually be in my office on Monday afternoons.
Teaching Assistants:	Brian Weibeler (Section 1) bweibeler@verizon.net Robert Webster (Section 2) robert.webster@jhu.edu TA office hours are held during the normally scheduled laboratory sessions, or you can email them for an appointment.
Professional Staff:	Mr. Mike Johnson Department of Mechanical Engineering G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering The Johns Hopkins University office: 113 Latrobe Hall phone: 410-516-6752 email: rjohns94@jhu.edu Mr. Bob Blakely Department of Mechanical Engineering G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering The Johns Hopkins University office: B-2 Krieger Hall phone: 410-516-8660 email: bob@poseidon.me.jhu.edu
Course Text:	1. Allison Okamura's occasional course notes (to be distributed in class and on the course website) 2. Data sheets for sensors and actuators (to be distributed in class and on the course website) There is no required textbook to purchase for this class. However, each student should reserve $80 for project expenses.
Reference Texts:	1. (A&H) David G. Alciatore and Michael B. Histrand. Introduction to Mechatronics and Measurement Systems, McGraw-Hill, Boston, Second Edition. 2. (H&H) Paul Horowitz and Winfield Hill. The Art of Electronics, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge/New York, Second Edition. 3. (Fraden) Jacob Fraden. AIP Handbook of Modern Sensors, American Institute of Physics, New York. These texts are on reserve at the library. 4. (J&F) Joseph L. Jones and Anita M. Flynn. Mobile robots: inspiration to implementation, A. K. Peters, Wellesley, Mass. 5. (Everett) H. R. Everett. Sensors for mobile robots: theory and application, A. K. Peters, Wellesley, Mass.
Software:	For some analysis and plots, you may want to use Matlab or Excel. These are available for student use in the HAC Lab (160 Krieger) or purchase the student version on your own. Note that "the HAC Lab was crowded/was closed/ate my files" is not an acceptable justification for late assignments.
Project:	After the first several weeks of class, students will conduct two projects. The first project will involve the design and construction of a manipulator robot and will emphasize design, aesthetics, and creativity. The second project will involve a mobile robot and will emphasize consistent performance and task completion. Both projects will be done in groups of two, and each individual may spend no more that $40 toward construction of each project. The projects will give students experience not only in practical design and application of mechatronic systems, but also in the process of specifying and ordering components. Project functionality will be graded during scheduled demonstration days. Complete project requirements will be distributed in Late September.
Course Web Site:	http://www.me.jhu.edu/~allisono/courses/530.421/

Course Description

Mechatronics is the synergistic integration of mechanism, electronics, and computer control to achieve a functional system. This interdisciplinary course includes lectures, lab assignments, and projects that teach the student to design and build mechatronic devices, building upon the themes of 530.420 Robot Sensors & Actuators. We expand on the topics of mechanism design, motors and sensors, interfacing and programming microprocessors, mechanical prototyping, and creativity in the design process. Course labs and projects are performed in small student groups. Each group develops a microprocessor-controlled electromechanical device, such as a mobile robot or art-making machine. Project topics vary from year to year. Prerequisite: 530.420 or consent of the instructor.

3 credits.

Course Requirements

10%	Lecture and Laboratory Participation	Attendance at all lectures and labs is required
30%	Laboratories	Written laboratory reports are due weekly in the first several weeks of the course
30%	Project 1	The course project will be graded based on implementation, functionality, and documentation.
30%	Project 2	The course project will be graded based on implementation, functionality, and documentation.

Grading Policy

Your course grade is determined from the total points you receive from participation, laboratory assignments, and projects.
Lab Assignments are due to my office on the due date. They can be slipped under the door to 125 Latrobe Hall, and are considered on time as long as they are in my office when I arrive the next morning. Campus security (6-4600) can let you into Latrobe Hall after hours if necessary. No late assignments are accepted. (Extensions may be granted for special circumstances and only when requested in advance.) Assignments can only be submitted in full (i.e., you cannot submit different parts of an assignment on different days).
You are responsible for all information given in class verbally and/or in writing. Any information about the course on the web may be replaced by the information given in class.
Cooperative efforts at understanding the content of the course are encouraged. However, for the labs, you may only submit work that you have completed individually. For example, you may conmmunicate verbally about methods for solving problems, but sharing of written assignment solutions is not permitted Submitting any work that is not the result of a student’s own effort is considered cheating. You should not "check" your results with other students, even your lab partner, once you leave the laboratory. (Don't worry, "typo" type mistakes do not remove much credit.) I will prosecute all suspected cases of cheating.

The following University ethics policy applies to this course:

Cheating is wrong. Cheating hurts our community by undermining academic integrity, creating mistrust, and fostering unfair competition. The university will punish cheaters with failure on an assignment, failure in a course, permanent transcript notation, suspension, and/or expulsion. Offenses may be reported to medical, law or other professional or graduate schools when a cheater applies.

Violations can include cheating on exams, plagiarism, reuse of assignments without permission, improper use of the Internet and electronic devices, unauthorized collaboration, alteration of graded assignments, forgery and falsification, lying, facilitating academic dishonesty, and unfair competition. Ignorance of these rules is not an excuse.

In this course, all laboratory assignments must be completed individually. You may collaborate with other students in this course, but only for understanding of general course content and during the projects. If you have questions about this policy, please ask the instructor.

For more information, see the guide on "Academic Ethics for Undergraduates" and the Ethics Board web site (http://ethics.jhu.edu).

aokamura@jhu.edu