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How to RFA (Request for approval)

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1 How to RFA (Request for approval)
Amr Martini

2 Overview RFA Process

3 Search and Approval for Projects
Review Objective of this course is to work on a project that you… Propose Design Build Report RFA proces s Search and Approval for Projects (Weeks 1-3) Detailed Design (Weeks 4-6) Build and Test (Weeks 7-14) Demonstrate (Week 15)

4 Project RFA (Review) All projects start on the Web Board
Each idea must first be presented on the web board Professors, TA’s, and other students critique and discuss each idea The first student to pitch an idea is the owner of that idea After sufficient discussion, an idea becomes recommended for an RFA by the staff

5 Project RFA (Review) RFAs will be evaluated by staff and either approved or rejected Projects must meet our criteria for complexity and uniqueness Deadline for RFA approval is September 12th, 4:45pm Deadline is not when you submit the RFA, but when it is accepted. 5 points extra credit: Early RFA approval by September 5th

6 Project Ideas Best Practices

7 Define the Problem Motivate your problem (i.e. why should we care?)
“A problem well-stated is a problem half-solved.” ~ Charles Kettering Motivate your problem (i.e. why should we care?) Scope and restrict focus Are you building tools or are you solving a scenario? When is the problem solved? Decision problem: You lay out sensible constraints that you satisfy Optimization problem: You show improvement over a previous iteration, and you cannot do better with your solution

8 Solve the Problem Be aware of alternatives, and re-evaluate your design regularly Is there a better or more efficient way to accomplish your project’s goals? Can your problem be solved without using ECE approaches? Are you using the best sensors for the job? The earlier you accelerate this, the better Strive for elegance Modularity of design -> testability Simplicity of design (without sacrificing your goals)

9 Design Complexity Complexity is a function of the problem definition
circuit implementation software implementation mathematical analysis (signal processing, control theory, EM, etc…) Evaluated on a case-by-case basis

10 Example RFA # Problem Theme parks, airports, hotels, libraries, corporations, etc., all have general ideas of how many people are on their premises throughout the day or year but they do not know the instantaneous count of people over that area. Better estimates can improve traffic and resource management. # Solution Overview Our solution for accurately counting individuals entering or exiting an area is a portable battery-powered device which can be mounted above a door frame. It uses ultrasonic and infrared sensors to count individuals crossing the door threshold.

11 Example RFA (cont.) # Solution Components ## Sensor Subsystem
- Passive infrared sensors for detecting a human being about to cross a doorway and trigger ultrasonic sensors - Ultrasonic sensors for detecting the heights of individuals, whether they are entering or exiting, and determining whether multiple people are crossing the threshold simultaneously We will use different frequency ultrasonic sensors focused at different angles to gain topology information at different locations simultaneously.

12 Example RFA (cont.) ## Processing Subsystem
- Internal microcontroller for A/D conversion and initial signal processing (Atmel atmega328) - Bluetooth or Zigbee to send data from microcontroller to external server ## Power Subsystem - Converts standard outlet power to required sensor, microcontroller, communications module demands

13 Example RFA (cont.) # Criterion for Success
Our solution can accurately count groups of people crossing a doorway simultaneously, report counts to a remote server, and last at least one day on batteries. SensorInsight currently provides a camera-based solution for watching crowds flows over a wide area. Our solution is different because we focus on precisely counting people entering or exiting an area. We seek to build a much cheaper solution than one of SensorInisght’s high definition cameras with our mixed sensor module.

14 Ideas vs RFAs (Expectations)
Similarities Idea RFA May work from a project pitch in collaboration May use previous ideas and proposals as inspiration for improvement Do not use previous semesters as guidance for best practices Differences Idea RFA Does not need strict formatting Follows guidelines for formatting Does not need listed partners Needs listed partners Intends to get feedback Intends to get approved No points besides initial post Graded by meeting approval deadline Discusses a potential problem and potential solution Problem is relevant, solution is well thought, design is clearly presented

15 In Five Visualized Steps
Submit an RFA In Five Visualized Steps

16 Step 1: Post an idea to the Web Board

17 Step 2: Respond to feedback

18 Step 3: Submit the RFA

19 Step 4: Submit the RFA

20 Step 5: Incorporate Feedback
Your proposal is automatically cloned to the Web Board That’s how you end up with “Project Proposal” posts The staff may give you feedback Update your RFA from the My Project page Project Rejected Try, try again… Project Approved Start working on your Proposal

21 Aug 29, 2019 4:45pm Sep 12, 2019 4:45pm Initial Post Deadline
Approval Deadline Sep 12, :45pm


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