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ECE 477 Final Report Spring 2004
worked hard to ensure that all portions of the design would be successful. During this time I also
learned a lot about coding and I wrote several functions that were used to set up the LCD module
and to test the RF section. In order to accomplish this I spent many hours going through the data
sheets for nearly all the major components in order to determine startup sequences and work
through timing diagrams.
After each individual section appeared to work alone, I oversaw the integration of all the
components. This period saw many challenges since there were several issues that came up
during integration. When the system was first put together I worked with Dan and Mike to
troubleshoot the errors that we were receiving. When we determined that there was a problem I
went through the data sheets in order to determine what could be done to solve it. Once we
figured it out I continued to work with the software guys to ensure that the system functioned
correctly. Finally, I worked with Dan and Mike to package the hardware into the project boxes
to form the final project.
Through out the semester I put in many hours on the design and development of our
project. This utilized all of the skills that I had acquired here at Purdue and allowed me and my
partners to show our talents. In addition to completing the PCB Layout homework and the
Ethical and Environmental Impact homework, I acted as the group leader and I worked on the
hardware design, PCB layout, hardware troubleshooting, firmware development, system level
integration, and product packaging. Because of the effort I put forth in this project, I strongly
believe that I will receive an A in this course.
Contributions of Dan Sparks:
I was involved in the constraints and requirements specification, component selection and
project schematic, PCB layout, hardware troubleshooting and firmware programming and
integration.
As soon as the idea for the project was conceptualized, I helped list system requirements,
system constraints, interface requirements and packaging considerations. I was deeply involved
in the debate between using a character LCD display vs. a graphic LCD display. Eventually, I
settled the debate by procuring a graphic LCD sample for the group, allowing for the solution
with the most potential and saving the group a significant amount of money. I helped narrow
A-2