This is a short (1-2 page) document which outlines what you plan to do for the semester.
The goal of the project concept document is to communicate to the senior project staff what you plan to do so that they can review it for technical depth and feasibility. Many students embark on projects which require proprietary information, critical parts with long lead times, and the like which render the project inappropriate for a senior project.
The project concept will serve as the basis for writing a real project proposal which contains technical specifications, details the tasks which need to be performed, and describes an appropriate management plan for achieving project success in one semester.
Project Title (required)
The title should concisely describe the goal of the project. For example, "A Narrow-Band FM Receiver for the 250 MHz Frequency Band" clearly lets the reader know that the project is designing a FM radio receiver.
Project Team (required)
Who will be the members of the project team? Each project team must include two or more members (CO-OP projects are the only exception). Each team shall indicate a team member who will initially function as the leader of the team. The team leader may remain the same throughout the project or (recommended) may be rotated during the project. The team leader will have the additional role of coordinating the work of the team (reports, presentations, and project plan) in addition to his/her technical project duties. This additional work will be reflected in the final grading.
Technical Advisor
Every project must have a technical advisor by the time the project proposal is submitted. Typically, this will be the project sponsor. However, even in the case of CO-OP projects or self-sponsored projects you must have a technical advisor. For CO-OP projects the technical advisor is typically your job supervisor; for self-sponsored projects you must have a faculty or staff member willing to serve as your technical monitor and advisor.
Project Objectives (required)
What are you planning to do? In a few paragraphs describe the goal of the project. For example, you might describe a radio receiver with performance characteristics specified to meet a particular application. We do not expect numerical specifications at this time, but try to be as specific as you can.
Describe to the best of your understanding what you will need to do to meet the project objectives. This can include research into prior work including designs and techniques, any testing of components or other devices, determination of the project specifications, computer simulation and evaluation of different designs, ordering of components, assembly of a prototype, software testing and verification, etc. Be careful about using any special components which must be ordered. You will use this information to construct a management plan for your project proposal so the more detail provided here will make writing the project proposal easier.
Other
Any other information which you can provide at this time would be welcomed. For example, if you have technical specifications, knowledge of specific engineering tasks which need to be performed, parts and/or equipment which needs to be ordered, an initial timetable of project tasks, or anything else which is germane to the project please include a brief description in the concept document.
This assignment is required and will be reviewed by the senior project staff. It will not receive a grade but,based upon the submitted document, you will receive written feedback on the suitability of this project for this class, its technical feasibility, warnings about potential problems, and any additional information which may be appropriate to help you write your project proposal. In exceptional cases, projects may be rejected as being suitable for the class and the team requested to select another project.