Credit Hours: 1
Prerequisite for students seeking entry into the cooperative education program. Students develop a greater understanding of their skills and interests; learn how to market their skills during the search for a co-op assignment and learn about all required forms and assignments required for co-op credit. Students meet with the appropriate career advisor and determine a career action plan for their co-op assignment. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
Study of techniques for designing and analyzing experiments such that the results will yield the maximum useful information. Coverage includes: experimental design and analysis, testing of hypothesis, analysis of variance and covariance, graphical techniques, factorials, incomplete blocks, Latin squares, response surfaces, and case studies. A team project is required. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
An in-depth analysis of conduction heat transfer. Topics include: derivation of the heat conduction equation, application of boundary conditions, and analytical and approximate solutions to the governing partial differential equations. A dual emphasis is placed on understanding the fundamentals and modeling real-world problems.
Credit Hours: 3
This single semester design course has a lecture/studio-lab model. It will typically consist of graduate students from architecture, business administration, psychology, engineering, and health professions working in teams on socially beneficial projects. The course emphasizes social responsibility, teamwork and communication presentations. Topics include: techniques of product development; creative thinking and innovation methods in design; entrepreneurial practices and mindsets; and, fundamentals of business plan development.
Credit Hours: 3
An in-depth analysis of convection heat transfer. Topics include: derivation of the continuity, momentum, and energy equations, application of boundary conditions, and analytical and approximate solutions to the governing partial differential equations. Special attention is paid to the boundary layer equations, internal flows, and natural convection. Both laminar and turbulent flows are analyzed. A dual emphasis is placed on understanding the fundamentals and modeling real-world problems.
Credit Hours: 3
Design and manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (EV) and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV)need a confluence of many disciplines such as power generation and storage, mechanical systems, power electronics, embedded systems and controls, motor technology, and software development. Mathematical modeling and simulation play a crucial role in this process. In this course we take a step-by-step approach to introduce all these multi-disciplinary aspects of the electrified drivetrain. Software is used in this course to introduce the student to key aspects of EVs and HEVs. The course outcomes include mastery of modeling battery and power storage systems, power electronics, electric drives, various HEV and EV architectures, vehicle drive cycles, control algorithms and overall vehicle integrated system modeling. This course is meant for beginning graduate students. This course is normally offered every winter semester.
Credit Hours: 3
Advanced and practical topics in fluid mechanics. Topics include differential analysis of viscous fluid flow, basic equations of continuity and momentum, ideal fluids, inviscid flow theory, elementary potential flows, compressible flow of ideal gases and turbomachines (e.g., pumps, fans and turbines). This course will acquaint students with applied areas of fluid mechanics as well as with more advanced theories/models of fluid flow.
Credit Hours: 3
Applications of mathematical methods to engineering problems: ordinary and partial differential equations, Laplace transforms, analytic functions, and vector operations. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
This course will cover the science and practice of assessing environmental impacts of human activities. Understanding the feedbacks within coupled social-ecological systems has emerged as a critical concept in environmental and social science and has highlighted the need to consider the impacts of human activities on ecosystem components which affect both humans and the physical environment. This course will look at the feedbacks between engineering activities and the natural world, the benefits that society receives from ecosystems with an emphasis on engineering impacts such as water supply and purification, climate stabilization and carbon sequestration, erosion control, stormwater management and flood protection, and waste detoxification. The course will also cover requirements in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to prepare Environmental Impact Statements, including identifying the purpose and need of a proposed action covered by NEPA, defining alternative actions and the “do nothing” alternative, defining cumulative impacts, assessing greenhouse gas and climate change impacts, assessing unlikely but serious potential risks, and environmental justice issues. Other national environmental regulations which impact Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) will be reviewed, including the Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, National Historic Preservation Act, as well as climate change, environmental justice, and related concerns.
Credit Hours: 3
Matrix techniques: solution of large systems of algebraic equations. Basic equations from solid mechanics. Finite element methods, 1-dimensional and 2-dimensional formulation. Computer applications in structural mechanics. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
A study of the oscillation of mechanical systems. The course considers free and forced vibrations of one and two degree of freedom systems. The concepts of rotating and reciprocating unbalance, critical speeds, vibration isolation and transmissibility and frequency response are introduced. Matrix methods are applied.
Credit Hours: 3
More advanced topics in fluid mechanics, and solutions to more complex problems using viscous flow and potential flow theories. Ideal fluids. Basic principles and equations of motion and continuity. Viscous fluids and derivation of Navier-Strokes equations. Boundary layer theory. Flow in porous media. Introduction to turbulence.
Credit Hours: 3
Innovation is often touted as essential to competitive advantage, yet most engineers and technical professionals receive very little training in systematic innovation techniques. This class will present approximately twenty systematic innovation techniques that can be applied to help engineers and technical professionals routinely generate creative, innovative, high-value solutions to open-ended design problems or perceived market opportunities. These techniques cover all aspects of the innovation process, including opportunity recognition, problem definition, concept generation, concept selection, and implementation. The course will include several hands-on exercises and short inspirational videos. Individual and team assignments will be required. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
Study of fundamental and advanced transduction mechanisms of common sensors and actuators. Principles of data acquisitions. Use of software tools for data interaction with sensors and actuators along with advanced signal analysis (frequency domain, modeling etc.). Introduction to micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMs). A key component of this course will be laboratory exercises involving sensors and actuators. Advanced-level treatment of topics will be achieved by multiple means including a selection of the following: design and research projects, specialized homework assignments, separate examination questions, and research poster preparation and presentation at college/university symposium. This course is normally offered every fall semester.
Credit Hours: 3
This course is aimed at improving the student’s capacity for independent research. Students are introduced to the best practices of: conducting a literature review; formulating a research question; creating a research plan based on quantitative methods (theoretical modeling, numerical simulation, experimental testing) or qualitative methods (human factors, product testing, etc.; performing proper statistical analysis of data; and, documenting research in technical publications. Course deliverables include a series of presentations, a comprehensive literature review on the student’s research topic, and a thesis proposal on the student’s research topic. This course is required for all mechanical engineering graduate students engaged in research and planning to write a thesis or dissertation. It is recommended by other engineering graduate programs.
Credit Hours: 3
The biggest opportunities for innovation occur very early in the product creation process. This course will focus on the early steps in the product development process with an emphasis on tools and techniques that can lead to breakthrough innovations. Students will learn to be creative yet thorough and rigorous in the crucial activities of concept generation and selection. Project work will involve traversing through the concept development activity on several potential new products. Several short case studies will be presented.
Credit Hours: 3
Analysis, Synthesis and Design of Mechatronic Systems through the use of modeling and simulation tools. Use will be made of a unified energy flow approach to model mechatronic systems that comprise of multi-disciplinary components. Computer simulation exercises to enhance student learning will be a key component of this course. This course is normally offered every winter semester.
Credit Hours: 3
The course will cover the application of thermodynamic, fluid, and heat transfer principles to the design and analysis of HVAC systems and components. Coverage includes determination of building heating and cooling loads, indicators for indoor environmental quality, analysis and specification of heating and cooling equipment, performance of air distribution systems, and characterization of heat exchangers. Emphasis is placed on energy conservation and system efficiency through coverage of topics such as heat pumps, thermal energy storage, and heat recovery systems.
Credit Hours: 3
Develop new technologies that address societal needs and wants within the constraints imposed by limited natural resources; assess challenges in material use, energy use, and environmental impacts; risk and life cycle frameworks for sustainability; green engineering.
Credit Hours: 3
Directed study.