IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid

Experience Using Programmable Devices

Mihaela Radu, Ph.D.

Assist. Prof. Electrical & Computer Engineering Technology Department

Public Seminar Coordinator, Renewable Energy and Sustainability Center

Farmingdale State College

Chair of WIE Affinity Group IEEE Long Island

Marjaneh Issapour, P.E., CCNA Professor Electrical Engineering & Computer Engineering Technology

Director, Renewable Energy and Sustainability Center Farmingdale State College

Chair of the Educational Activities committee of IEEE Long Island Section

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable Devices

• Motivation (arguments) for this presentation: – Smart grid and programmable devices

– Ethical and social aspects of engineering

– The engineer of 2020

– ….

• Universities - Improving Design Experience for undergraduate students by creating new avenues – Project Based Learning

– Design Competitions: regional, national

– ….

• Current and future efforts in the EET department to attract students to develop Smart Grid related projects using programmable devices

• Conclusions/Discussions

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Smart grid and programmable devices

• Smart grid” generally refers to a class of technology people are using to bring utility electricity delivery systems into the 21st century, using computer-based remote control and automation. They offer many benefits to utilities and consumers -- mostly seen in big improvements in energy efficiency on the electricity grid and in the energy users’ homes and offices [www.energy.gov].

• Over the last decades ,the idea of a “smart grid” has taken center stage — an evolution of advanced technologies that make the availability of a smarter, more efficient electrical power grid possible. At the heart of these advanced devices for the smart grid lies the powerful technology of the Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) and SoC(System on Chip).

• Once seen as technologies only available to engineers with a deep understanding of digital system design, the dramatic advancements in the capabilities and levels of integration of these technologies are changing the rules of development for smart grid applications. As the capabilities and levels of integration of FPGAs have increased, several smart grid applications have incorporated an FPGA or an SoC to implement all of these blocks, affording better flexibility, reliability, maintainability, and cost.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Ethical and social aspects of engineering

• In one of her presentation at ASEE conference, Leah H. Jamieson,

Past President of IEEE, presented data about the public perceptions of engineering which showed that engineering is viewed as a profession that creates economic growth but is not sensitive to social, environmental, and quality of life issues.

• While the data did not show a negative public perception, Jamieson presented irrefutable data that the public did not view engineering as a profession that was going to make a difference.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Ethical and social aspects of engineering

• There is extensive literature on the perception of the engineering discipline

in general. Typically, elementary school children perceive engineers as

people who fix things like auto mechanics, drive trains or build or test or

work on equipment. Once again the students perceive engineering as an

impersonal, objective discipline with no real relationship to society. In order

to attract the next generation of high school graduates to engineering, it is

necessary to portray the excitement, satisfaction and reward of

engineering.

• Many of this generation want to make the world a better place but may

not perceive that they can do this with engineering. This means in order

to recruit them it is necessary to educate them on the social relevance of

engineering.

• To recruit and keep students to engineering you must reconnect it to the

community and state how technology enriches lives.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

The Engineer of 2020

With the publication of The Engineer of 2020: Visions of engineering in the New Century, The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Committee on Engineering Education (CEE) aimed to identify the opportunities and challenges for the 21th century, anticipating and shaping the future practice of engineering, the characteristics of the engineering workforce and their education.

To enhance the nation’s economic productivity and improve the quality of life worldwide, engineering education in the United States must anticipate and adapt to the dramatic changes of engineering practice. Engineering schools should attract the best and brightest students and be open to new teaching and training approaches.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

The Engineer of 2020

• Trends that are likely to redefine the boundaries of engineering and the composition of engineering forces:

– A global population approaching 10 billion with a steadily aging demographic and a growing demand for diversity for diversity in engineering force

– An imperative for “ sustainability” in the face of global population growth, industrialization, urbanization, and environmental growth

– …….

– The growing concerns about the social and political implications of rapid technological advances

– Increasing opportunities for incorporating technology into the education and work life of engineer

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Universities

• Improving the design component in the undergraduate

engineering education is a concern for educators, professional

societies, industrial employers and agencies concerned with

national productivity and competitiveness

• Design experience develops the students’ lifelong learning

skills, self-evaluations, self-discovery, and peer instruction in the

design’s creation, critique, and justification.

• Students’ design projects at all levels are increasingly focused

on the renewable energy sources and systems, smart grid due

to the increased emphasis in the U.S. on clean energy

innovation, generation, manufacturing, and commercialization.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Universities

• Incorporate projects (Project Based Learning) at different

levels in the undergraduate education, developing:

– Creativity and the spirit of innovation

– Critical skills

– Problem solving

-Entire curriculum based on PBL

-Project Design Competition (from the course level to

regional and national level),

-Senior Design Projects, Capstone projects

-small projects incorporated in various courses

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Current and future efforts in the Electrical and Computer

Engineering Technology Department to attract

undergraduate (and possible future graduate) students to

develop Smart Grid related projects using programmable

logic devices (FPGA, microcontrollers, ), as part of their

research experience, project based learning, senior design

projects, and/or participation in Design competition.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

• Steps (Tasks):

• Acquiring state-of-the art equipment and CAD tools to

develop these projects, seeking industry donations

(Digilent, Xilinx etc.) and funding opportunities from

NSF and other national agencies

• Developing a list of potential projects in the areas of

Smart Grid; Energy Smart House System, Monitor

Small Wind Turbines, … etc..

• Contacting local industry representatives for possible

Smart Grid projects

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

• Restructuring the digital design and

microcontrollers/microprocessors sequence of courses to offer

students the necessary knowledge, skills and tools to develop

these projects

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

• Attending and organizing Workshops dedicated to FPGA and

Microcontrollers (sponsored by NSF)

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

• Giving students more opportunities to develop practical

applications (“take at home” laboratory, based on platform-PC

based equipment); sponsored by a title III grant project: “Developing Hands-On Experiments to Improve Students

Learning via Activities outside the Classroom“

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

• Enrolling students in National and Global Competition (Diligent Design Competition)

• Encouraging students to select “Smart Grid “ projects for the Digilent Design

Competition and/or Senior Project

• Recruiting motivated students for these activities in their first or second year in college

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Plans for the future

• Use the projects to develop experimental modules for

K-12 STEM education and demonstration, summer

camps for students and instructors, exhibitions, public

awareness.. etc.

IESC 2014

Enriching Students’ Smart Grid Experience Using

Programmable

Conclusions

Discussions