Course Number and Title

INFO5345/CS5424/ECE5413 Developing and Designing Interactive Devices

Instructor (Author of Syllabus)

Prof. Wendy Ju, wendyju@cornell.edu

Teaching team

• Ruixiang "Albert" Han, rh652@cornell.edu
  • Office Hours Wednesday, 10 am-12 pm, Tata 341 
• Hauke Sandhaus, hgs52@cornell.edu
  • Office Hours Thursdays, 10 am-12 pm, Tata 351 or Zoom

 

Credits and Credit Hour Options

3 hours, Letter Grade

Time and Location

Monday/Wednesday 4:20pm - 5:35 pm

Tata Innovation Center, 141/151

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the human-centered and technical workings behind interactive devices ranging from cell phones and video controllers to household appliances and smart cars. This is a hands-on, lab-based course. Topics include electronics prototyping, interface prototyping, sensors and actuators, microcontroller development, physical prototyping and user testing.

For the final project, students will build a functional interactive device of their own design, using single-board Linux computers, embedded microcontrollers, and other electronics components.

Prerequisites

Basic programming experience

Textbook(s) and/or Other Required Materials

• • No textbook is required for this course. 
  • Optional: Practical Electronics for Inventors, 4th edition, Scherz and Monk
    • Available to logged-in students for free: https://proxy.library.cornell.edu/login?url=https://www.accessengineeringlibrary.com/content/book/9781259587542
  • A kit of parts is included with the course fee. This kit should be returned if the class is dropped.

Class and Laboratory Schedule

Lectures: 1.5 hrs/wk

Labs: The course features five 2-week labs and one 1-week lab. In-class lab time is intended to help students get started on the labs, to share ideas and feedback with fellow students, and to enable the teaching team to answer questions. Attendance is mandatory.

Subsequent lab time is allocated for final project work. Most of the time out of class will be spent on lab or project work. 

Class GitHub Repo

The Class GitHub Repo is online at https://github.com/IRL-CT/Developing-and-Designing-Interactive-Devices

Assignments and Projects 

Activity	Overview	Grade Percentage
Online repository	Set up and continued documentation of coursework in online Github repository	20%
Lab 1	Two-part lab activity about iteratively staging interaction with users.	10%
Lab 2	Two-part lab activity developing prototype inputs and displays.	10%
Lab 3	Two-part lab activity using voice and speech prototypes with users.	10%
Lab 4	Two-part lab activity developing physical prototypes with users.	10%
Lab 5	Two-part lab activity using computer recognition in interaction with users.	10%
Lab 6	One-part lab activity on distributed interaction	10%
Lowest lab grade dropped		-10%
Final Project	Solo or group project designing, prototyping and testing an interactive device with users	20%
Class Participation	Attend in-person class and have meaningful participation in dialog and in class in-person and online community	10%
Total Points		100%

 

Method of assessing student achievement 

Lab Assignment Rubric

Component	Grade Percentage
Novelty of Concept/Exploration of Design space: Sketches, photos, videos showing conceptual development of ideas	30%
Technical Execution: System capable of interaction either through autonomous or wizarded mechanisms	40%
Test with Users: Plan, execution and documentation of iterative test of design and system with users	20%
Communication/Documentation of Ideas and Process: Text, video, and photo of project illustrating system capability and documenting plans and process	10%

Final Project Rubric

Component	Grade Percentage
Project planning: Allocation of needed resources (time, people, materials, facilities) anticipated well.	10%
Design of Project: Interaction, hardware and software aspects of projects planned well.	30%
Prototype Functionality: System capable of interaction, either through autonomous or wizarded mechanisms	30%
Testing of Project: Functional or wizarded system tested with people	20%
Project documentation: Text, video, and photo of project illustrating capability and documenting plans and process	10%

 

Class Participation Rubric

Component	Grade Percentage
Attend class	50%
Participates in-class	15%
Participates online	15%
Gives feedback and assistance to others	10%
Helps to maintain shared course resources (tools and materials)	10%

 

Basis of grade determination 

This course will follow the university grading scale.

Topics Covered

• • sensors and actuators
  • prototyping with component electronics
  • interface and interaction prototyping
  • single board Linux system development
  • open-source software and libraries
  • speech recognition
  • speech synthesis
  • computer vision recognition
  • physical prototyping
  • system integration
  • user testing

Course Outcomes

1. 1. Demonstrate understanding of key computation, sensing, actuation and communication components that make up modern interactive devices.
   2. Develop skill in designing and prototyping interactive systems
   3. Demonstrate ability to test interactive systems with users
   4. Demonstrate ability to integrate software, embedded hardware, sensing, display, actuation, and communication devices to make functioning systems.
   5. Apply open-source software libraries to control system operation, obtain user input and provide interactive response 

Academic Integrity

Each student in this course is expected to abide by the Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity.  Any work submitted by a student in this course for academic credit will be the student's own work. The policy can be found on the university’s website here: https://theuniversityfaculty.cornell.edu/academic-integrity/. 

In this class, we make substantial use of online materials and open-source software. We encourage you to make use of found code and online examples, and also for the class to act as a microcosm of the open-source community by assisting and collaborating with one another.

That said, proper attribution of all work, assistance, and collaboration is absolutely critical in this endeavor. We expect you to be meticulous in documenting and celebrating shared ideas and code.

We also expect you to document and provide advance notice to the teaching team if you plan to use:

• • work from other concurrent/prior courses
  • assistance from outside students or people
  • assistance from chatGPT or other online services

as part of deliverables for this course. This is permitted, but the net amount of work in this and the other course are expected to be the same as if you pursued different projects for each course, and hence our awareness of your outside resources is essential.

The faculty member may impose a grade penalty for unattributed copying, which will impact the student who copied work and any other student benefiting from that copied work. Penalty for willful and egregious violation of this Code can also be extended to include failure of the course and University disciplinary action. 

Academic Freedom and Building Trust in the Classroom

Each person in this class is expected to respect the principles of academic freedom for instructors and classmates and will maintain the privacy of the classroom environment, as outlined in Cornell’s S20 Commitment to Academic Integrity, Equitable Instruction, Trust, and Respect.

This commitment to building respect and trust in the classroom means members of this class will not: record, photograph, or share online any interactions that involve classmates or any member of the teaching team, without permission. Students will also respect the intellectual property rights of the instructor, and will not share or otherwise make accessible any course materials to anyone not enrolled in the course, without the instructor’s written permission.

This policy is not meant to restrict students’ ability to use classroom recordings in ways beneficial to their learning. Students who may benefit from recorded lectures and lecture playback, including students who use English as an additional language or who have accommodations from SDS, should speak to the course instructor to maintain transparency and trust in the classroom. Students approved to record lectures are expected to maintain the respect and privacy of the learning environment, as stated above. Students will also not enable anyone not enrolled in the course to participate in any activity that is associated with the course.
Exceptions to this require the instructor’s written permission.

Academic Misconduct

The teaching team member may impose a grade penalty for any misconduct in the classroom or examination room. Examples of academic misconduct include, but are not limited to, vandalism of your or other team’s projects, misrepresenting the work of others as your own, and disruptive behavior in the classroom.

Attendance and Absences

Attendance in the course is mandatory. Failure to attend class will impact your course participation grade. Furthermore, no provisions–including recordings, lecture slides or assignment reminders–will be offered by the teaching team to students who miss class.

Technology/Electronics Policy

Laptops/phones/tablets must be put away unless in use for course lecture or lab. This is a strict policy—you need to be an active participant in class.

You may use generative AI tools to help with assignments, with some conditions: You may not use these tools to answer reflection questions, peer assessments or course feedback - we want your thoughts. In addition, we expect you to explicitly note where generative AI (or other technological assistance) has been used, and for what purpose. (For example, you could say, “ChatGPT used for copyediting of response.” )

Students with Disabilities

Your access in this course is important. Please give the instructor your Student Disability Services (SDS) accommodation letter early in the semester so that we have adequate time to arrange your approved academic accommodations. If you need an immediate accommodation for equal access, please speak with me after class or send an email message to me and/or SDS at sds_cu@cornell.edu. If the need arises for additional accommodations during the semester, please contact SDS. You may also feel free to speak with Student & Academic Affairs at Cornell Tech who will connect you with the university SDS office.

If you have, or think you may have a disability, please contact Student Disability Services for a confidential discussion: sds_cu@cornell.edu, 607-254-4545, sds.cornell.edu. You must request your SDS accommodation letter no later than 3 weeks prior to needing it.

Students currently registered with SDS: Once you request your accommodation letter and it is approved by SDS, it will be emailed to both you and your instructors. Processing time can be up to 48-hours.

Students not registered with SDS: The registration process for new accommodations can take up to three weeks. Once you are approved by SDS for accommodations, you will be able to request your accommodation letter for this course.

If you are approved for accommodations later in the semester: you must request your accommodation letter as soon as possible.

Mental Health & Well-being

Your health and wellbeing are important to us, and you should always feel free to reach out to us for support. There are services and resources at Cornell designed specifically to bolster student mental health and well-being. Remember, your mental health and emotional well-being are just as important as your physical health. If you or a friend are struggling emotionally or feeling stressed, fatigued, or burned out, there are many campus resources available to you. A list of resources for Cornell Tech students is available: https://mentalhealth.cornell.edu/get-support/tech. You can additionally also contact studentwellness@tech.cornell.edu with concerns.

Religious Observances

Cornell University is committed to supporting students who wish to practice their religious beliefs. Students are advised to discuss religious absences with their instructors well in advance of the religious holiday so that arrangements for making up work can be resolved before the absence. Students are encouraged to anticipate their religious/spiritual needs early in the semester, and at least two weeks before the observance, leaving plenty of time for the professor and student to reach a reasonable accommodation.