Intro Short Course

Intro Short Course

Self Paced Tutorial

Introduction to the Core Concepts of Systems Engineering

This self-paced tutorial introduces key systems engineering and global engineering concepts relevant for instruction at the high school level. It serves as an introduction to the SAGE project and will prepare the teacher to implement the first instructional module of the project.

Overview of the Systems and Global Engineering Project

Stevens Institute of Technology and the New Jersey Technology Education Association (NJTEA) are working as partners on the Systems and Global Engineering (SAGE) Project. The Edison Venture Fund provided a $500,000 grant to support the development of the instructional modules for high school engineering and technology students. The SAGE project engages high school classes in relevant engineering design projects in which they use a systems engineering approach to design a product or system and then work with other classes across New Jersey and elsewhere to develop, test, and redesign it.

The SAGE Project includes four instructional modules. Each module is designed to engage students in developing innovative solutions to problems of global significance. The Introduction to Core Concepts of Systems Engineering module is the foundation of the SAGE project. It is designed to be used prior to the content specific modules described below. During this module students reverse-engineer a common device such as a single-use camera that contains both electrical and mechanical components. They create systems diagrams for the deconstructed product and reassembly instructions that partner schools worldwide will use in their attempt to reconstruct the device. This project provides the background needed to encourage teachers and students to participate in more advanced collaborative design activities.

In the Biodynamic Farming module students are challenged to design and operate a system that combines hydroponics (growing plants without soil) and aquaculture (fish farming) to produce food. The Home Lighting module is based upon the integration of LED and solar technologies to produce safe and cost effective lighting for use in homes that do not have access to the electric grid. More that 2 billion people do not have access to clean drinking water. Students participating in the Water Purification module develop an understanding of this problem and are challenged to develop model systems to meet the needs of people in specific communities.

PART 1: Introduction and Collaboration

ACTIVITY 1

Log on to the Introduction to Core Concepts of Systems Engineering module:

Note the following features: the module Home Page provides an overview of the project and links under two headings, Running the Project and Extra.

Running the Project

Instructions and Help: additional details about the project, registration information and contact information for the Project Leader

Schedule: to maintain effective collaboration among all participants, please try to adhere to the posted due dates

Lesson Plans: this section contains lesson plans designed for teacher use

Collaboration Tools: SAGE projects utilize Collaboration Central to facilitate communication and the exchange of information among participating schools. Registration is required.

Student Area: this section contains lesson plans modified for student use

Extra

Glossary: key terms are defined

Reference Materials: links to sources for additional information

Student Gallery and Archives: links to exemplary work from past runs of the project

Other Participating Schools: a listing of other schools participating in the current run of the project

Other CIESE Projects: CIESE offers a variety of projects and curriculum materials for K-12 educators

ACTIVITY 2

  • Read Essay 1.1: “A Call for Collaboration” article from District Administration Magazine.
  • Reflection: Think about a design and engineering project that encourages teamwork within your classroom and enables your students to collaborate with students from at least one other school.
  • Read Essay 1.2: An Introduction to Systems Engineering. Please note that key terms are defined in the online SE glossary.

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An Introduction to Systems Engineering (Glossary)
Systems engineering activities present an opportunity for students to do engineering the way engineers do it. Students can work together to identify problems or opportunities, explore alternatives, create models and test them. The Internet and computer-aided design software make it feasible for students in multiple locations to work together to develop solutions to complex engineering challenges.
What is a System?
We are surrounded by systems. Some of them are natural and others are engineered. The solar system and a beehive are examples of natural systems. Engineered systems are designed and built to satisfy human needs and wants. Wireless telephone networks, power generation plants and our highways are examples of engineered systems.
A system is collection of different elements that interact to produce results that are not obtainable by the elements alone. An automobile is made up of thousands of parts and each part must work with the others if the vehicle is to function as desired. From a functional viewpoint systems have inputs, processes and outputs. Inputs are the resources put into a system. Processes combine the resources to produce the output which can be a product, service or enterprise. From a physical viewpoint, the system consists of mechanical, electrical and software components (and even humans) that interact to realize these functions. Many engineered systems, particularly those that incorporate electronics, are built in a way to determine if the system is working properly. To do this the goal of the system and the output are compared. This is called feedback. Systems also have boundaries. Everything outside the boundary of a system is part of another system.
Systems Engineering
Engineers have been building systems from the time of the pyramids. It is no longer possible for a single engineer to plan and execute a complex project. Generally engineers work in teams. Most engineers are experts in one engineering discipline such as mechanical or electrical engineering. Systems engineering is interdisciplinary in that it seeks to improve the way engineers from different disciplines work together. In the past systems engineers were usually selected from among experienced engineers who demonstrated good communication and leadership skills. Today institutions such as Stevens Institute of Technology have designed courses and programs to formalize the preparation of systems engineers. Systems engineers are trained to look at the "big picture" as they coordinate communication among others and the development of products such as airliners and enterprises such as mass transit and homeland security systems.
Systems engineers work on complex projects. Not all engineering projects are complex. Although engineers design appliances such as washing machines these are not complex products. Systems engineering is widely used in the aviation and defense industries for activities such as designing and building airliners and submarines. Today's submarines resemble the fuselage of an airliner, have a nuclear power plant, serve as the hotel for 100 people, carry advanced weapon and communication systems and must operate silently underwater. They are truly complex. Designing airliners requires the expertise of structural engineers, materials engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, human factors engineers and others. Companies designing these and other complex products use systems engineers to provide leadership and coordinate the work of the many professionals that contribute to the project.
Industries outside the aerospace and defense domain, such as the automotive industry, telcom, and IT are also increasingly showing an interest in systems engineering. One explanation for this is the increased level of electronics and software in products that only a decade ago hardly had anything. Another factor is the increased interconnectedness between products that used to live isolation (e.g. on some cars your power steering now talks directly to your ABS brakes to help you swerve around obstacles more safely).
Core Principles of Systems Engineering
Engineers create systems for customers but others are also affected by the systems they design. All those affected are referred to as stakeholders. Systems engineering activities continue throughout the entire lifecycle of the system. During the early stages of design it's important to understand the needs of the various stakeholders and translate this into specific requirements for the system. Requirements detail what the system must do. After the requirements are established the focus is on using the engineering design process to develop, construct/build, test, use, maintain and retire the system. An important task for systems engineers throughout these phases is to be the "advocate" for the whole system. This means to ensure that all components of the system make their assigned contribution to the system, as well as make sure that the components interact in the way they are supposed to. Assessment should be ongoing and include a continuous feedback loop to insure that the system is working properly and provide an opportunity for continuous improvement.
Dr. Rashmi Jain, an Associate Professor of Systems Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology, has identified five core concepts of systems engineering: value, context, trade-offs, abstraction and interdisciplinarity. Systems provide value when they meet the needs of stakeholders. The context of a system is important. Engineers need to consider where the products and processes they design will be used. For example, the engineers who recently designed double-decker passenger train coaches for New Jersey Transit had to make sure that the new cars worked with existing systems including the power lines, platforms, signals and locomotives. Interdisciplinarity supports the systems approach which is based on the idea that systems design must consider the needs of all relevant stakeholders and that design teams are made up of members from many disciplines. This means that a systems engineer needs to obtain a good understanding of the environment (often referred to as the problem domain) where the system is used. Although not an expert, he/she will need a good working knowledge of the different engineering disciplines that are involved in creating the system.
Potential design concepts should be evaluated based on tradeoffs such as cost, time and performance. The goal is to select the optimal solution and recognize that there is no perfect solution for all stakeholders. A tank-like automobile designed to prevent injury during every crash would be inefficient to drive and probably too expensive to build. Instead engineers have focused on seat belts, air bags and designing the structure surrounding the driver and passengers to reduce the forces transferred to them during a crash.
Abstraction is another element of the systems engineering process. Engineers need the ability to abstract a design concept independent of the solution. It's important to consider a wide range of alternative and not select a specific solution too soon. For example, early in the space program NASA wanted astronauts to be able to take notes in a zero gravity environment. They spent millions to develop a ball point pen that would work. Russia solved the problem by having their astronauts use pencils.
Systems engineers are also concerned with risk management. Risk management involves identifying what may go wrong in a system and then planning to prevent it or solve the problem should it occur. For example, many companies manufacture components for their products in multiple locations so that a tornado or other natural disaster will not totally disrupt production of the final product.
Global Engineering
Our global economy creates opportunities and challenges. The US economy is growing very slowly compared to that of many other countries. This creates an opportunity to sell consumer products in countries that have rapidly growing economies. It has become increasingly common for a product to be designed in one location, tested at another site and manufactured at a plant thousands of miles away. Since labor costs make it expensive to manufacture in the United States many companies have their products manufactured in China, India and other developing countries. Advanced communication systems including the Internet, and Computer-Aided Design software have helped to make this a common practice. In addition, a combination of global and systems engineering makes it possible to take advantage of the expertise of engineers and companies located throughout the world. A good systems design will facilitate this type of collaboration, by creating modular subsystems that reduce the amount of micro-management needed to coordinate the development effort. The new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which will have a fuselage built of 50 percent carbon fiber, is being assembled from components produced by 43 companies at 135 sites around the world. This approach has presented challenges. Manufacturing problems are causing costly delays. Boeing hopes that its systems engineers will be able get the project back on track shortly.
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  • Discussion question: How can you introduce students to SE in your classroom?

Activity 3: Systems and Systems Engineering:

  • Think about your school community. Identify local examples of a natural system, an engineered system and a social system that you can use as examples to teach your students about the various kinds of systems.
  • Read Essay 2.1: K-12 Education and Systems Engineering: A new Perspective

http://raven.ipfw.edu/TeacherWS/pdfs/00352.pdf (ASEE Paper)

  • After reading the entire article refer to the section: “Starting a systems engineering project”. Think about a SE project that you could implement in your classroom.
  • Reflection: Think about global engineering. Why has global engineering become so widely used? Try to think of an activity that you could use to introduce your students to global engineering.

PART 2: Reverse Engineering:

  • A good way to help your students learn about systems and subsystems is to have them disassemble a product to learn how the product is made, the materials it is made from and how it works. Engineers call this process product dissection or reverse engineering. Many undergraduate engineering programs include a reverse engineering activity as part of a required course. When used at the high school level students can identify the systems and subsystems of the product and describe why each one is necessary for it to function properly.
  • Essay 3.1: Read “Some Disassembly Required” from Prism Magazine.

The article describes how reverse engineering is used in undergraduate engineering courses.

  • Reflection: Think about how you could use reverse engineering in your classroom to introduce students to engineering and engineering design.
  • Review the Penn State product dissection course materials:

http://www.me.psu.edu/lamancusa/html/ProdDiss.htm

  • Reflection: Are any of the products dissected suitable for use in your classes? Why or why not.
  • Try to identify three products suitable for reverse engineering in your classroom. Identify a good source for each of the products and think about why you think these particular products will work.
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