Computer Engineering Commons^™

Fresh Bytes - Connected Hydroponics For Small-Scale Growing, Jack Bowen

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

Many users are now transitioning to small-scale hydroponics and aquaponics at home. There can be a barrier to entry with these systems as there is a delicate balance of chemicals, pH, etc. that must be maintained. There are sensors for these various components but they are either aimed at commercial production or are un-automated. Fresh Bytes is a microcomputer with sensors to detect all of these unseen components in a hydroponic system. A prototype of this microcomputer is produced along with CAD plans for more professional versions of it. The sensors are verified and future development is contemplated.

Foss Big Data Storage Solution, Gary L. Jaffe

STAR Program Research Presentations

Utilizing the AERO Institute as an IT test bed or “sandbox”, a small-agile development team will design, build, and test a data management storage system to support post processing of archived and in-flight data collected with the Piccolo flight control system and Compact Fiber Optic Sensing System (C-FOSS). Both systems are integrated on the APV3 aircraft, a small remote-operated vehicle. Due to the amount of data collected from C-FOSS, a system will be designed to sort and organize large data sets. An open-source database will be explored as a viable solution to manage large data loads and provide multi-cluster system …

Foss Big Data Storage Solution, Nurdeen Salami

STAR Program Research Presentations

NASA projects require a reliable approach to store large volumes of data. Accordingly, it is crucial to adopt a lightweight, reliable, and scalable database. Current NASA databases bear costly license fees with undesirable speed and flexibility. The purpose of utilizing the AERO Institute as an IT test bed, or “Sandbox,” is to design, build, test, and implement software solutions prior to transfer to NASA projects. Cassandra coupled with the Astyanax API is a viable solution for storing big data. Store a minimum of 2GB of C-FOSS data in multiple file formats (.csv, .log, .xml, and .jpg). Use benchmark tests to …

Hil Simulation For Smartphone-Guided Autonomous Systems, Matthew Gerdt

Computer Engineering

My bachelor thesis focuses on implementing a Hardware in the Loop (HIL) simulation for a quadcopter controlled by an Android smartphone. The HIL simulation will be able to test the software running on an Android smartphone by simulating a virtual quadcopter on the computer without the need to use an actual quadcopter. To accomplish this I will have to modify my team’s existing simulation to allow for the communication between the smartphone and simulation. At the completion of my work the HIL simulation will allow the testing of different aspects of the Android application, such as the tracking of an …

Stereo Vision System Module For Low-Cost Fpgas For Autonomous Mobile Robots, Connor Citron

Master's Theses

Stereo vision uses two adjacent cameras to create a 3D image of the world. A depth map can be created by comparing the offset of the corresponding pixels from the two cameras. However, for real-time stereo vision, the image data needs to be processed at a reasonable frame rate. Real-time stereo vision allows for mobile robots to more easily navigate terrain and interact with objects by providing both the images from the cameras and the depth of the objects. Fortunately, the image processing can be parallelized in order to increase the processing speed. Field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are highly parallelizable …

Beehive Monitor, Tyler William Lewis

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

Talk Vox, Javier Thiele-Ruiz

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

Multi-Team Strategic Game Development, Alvin Bokun Feng

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

Frameworks For A General-Purpose Smart Home Operating System, Donald Hoelle

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Smart home technologies are rapidly growing in prevalence. For my senior project, I designed and implemented the beginnings of a general-purpose framework for a unified Smart Home Operating System, capable of controlling all of the diverse aspects of automated homes. This paper outlines the design challenges involved in building generic smart home systems, as well as the project architecture I designed and implemented to attempt to solve this problem.

Implementing A Robust Data Storage Software System For Cp9, Stuart Andrew Weickgenant

Computer Engineering

This project focuses on the continuation of the CP9 CubeSat project, specifically the software which will be running on the satellite when it goes into space. This project mostly goes into designing a robust system which stores the data collected from the sensors on board CP9, whose purpose is to collect vibrations data from its launch vehicle during its ascent into space, into an easy to analyze system once the data is downlinked to PolySat’s ground station after launch. One other thing this system does is to prevent CP9 from collecting unnecessary data after launch. Testing was done on this …

Gesture Recognition Using Microsoft’S Kinect V2, Andrew Weinfield

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

“State Machines”: A High-Throughput Distributed Game Framework, Brandon Howell Ivy

Computer Engineering

Online multiplayer games allow competition with other opponents using the internet. Their development is difficult as it involves many complex areas of computer science - optimization, security, big data, and thread safety. Many multiplayer game frameworks have been published, but very few are generic.

In this project, we focus on the framework design of a web service which allows users to easily create multiplayer games, and artificial intelligence bots to compete in them. It handles turn-based multiplayer communication, and allows the games and bots to ignore the concepts of multiplayer systems. Multiple game instances can run simultaneously, where each game’s …

Geovisualization: Integration And Visualization Of Multiple Datasets Using Mapbox, Cecilia Cadenas

Computer Engineering

he use of geovisualizations to analyze multiple datasets can ease the research and investigation to find correlations between these datasets. However, making these visualizations with multiple datasets can be challenging due to the lack of standardization within file formats and the software needed to render the visualizations.

This project investigates the making of these visualizations, maps in this case, using an open source platforms like Mapbox. Using Python scripts for the data parsing, CartoCSS for the designing of the maps, JavaScript to make the maps interactive, and HTML to combine all the layers together a set of maps were created. …

Spirit: A Home Automation System, Andrew Choi

Computer Engineering

Spirit is a multi device home automation system. Designed and implemented for California Polytechnic State University’s Senior Project program, this project was worked on during the duration of two school quarters from January 7, 2014 to June 13, 2014. The system consists of monitor/controllers designed to carry out everyday tasks in the average American household and an accompanying mobile application designed to receive information and control the devices. The monitor/controllers, or “Spirits”, are primarily developed using Arduino development tools and Arduino microcontroller boards. The spirits include a thermostat, named Tempus, an electrical outlet, Electrus, and a wall light switch, Luxos.

Autotab - Automatic Guitar Tablature Generation, Shaun Boley, Anthony Cisneros, Eric Kauzlarich

Computer Engineering

Our project consists of two different parts:

The first part contains an analysis of various pitch estimation algorithms. A number of different open-source pitch estimation libraries were tested using guitar recordings in order to gauge how accurately and consistently they outputted the correct frequencies. The results showed that the algorithms did not perform up to expectations, especially when testing with guitars with wound strings and within certain frequency ranges.

The second part details the creation of a tablature generator. It reads in a note sequence as an input, then generates tablature in the form of ASCII text. A modified greedy …

Ultraviolet Led Biofouling Mitigation, Andrew Lam

Computer Engineering

The goal is to determine if low-cost UV LEDs can mitigate marine biofouling on small glass or acrylic camera lenses. A microprocessor-controlled experimental setup to control the illumination of low-cost UV LEDs of various wavelength and packaging was fashioned. The system consists of a programmed microcontroller, a manufactured LED breakout interface, and a submergible UV LED array enclosed in a borosilicate glass tube. A preliminary qualitative assessment of four different UV LEDs was conducted during a three-week deployment of the experimental setup in the raw seawater system at the Cal Poly Center for Costal and Marine Sciences in Avila Beach, …

Growing Grounds Inventory Senior Project Application, Javier Balandran

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

Tspoons: Tracking Salience Profiles Of Online News Stories, Kimberly Laurel Paterson

Master's Theses

News space is a relatively nebulous term that describes the general discourse concerning events that affect the populace. Past research has focused on qualitatively analyzing news space in an attempt to answer big questions about how the populace relates to the news and how they respond to it. We want to ask when do stories begin? What stories stand out among the noise? In order to answer the big questions about news space, we need to track the course of individual stories in the news. By analyzing the specific articles that comprise stories, we can synthesize the information gained from …

Future Of Payment Platforms, Salim Benjamin Youssefzadeh

Master's Theses

With the vast increase in smartphones, there have been an increasing number of opportunities growing in the app industry. One in particular is the way we deal with money. There are huge overheads in the current payment systems around the world particularly in the United States, many of which include large transaction fees. Many new businesses have grown to solve these inefficiencies and create a new platform that provides a new user experience, security, and convenience among many other things. However, many of these platforms are still centralized, making them more susceptible to attacks. This thesis goes over the various …

Robotic Book Scanner, Tobias Samuel Elder, Cynthia Marie Wong

Computer Engineering

Digitizing books has been an issue tackled by companies to allow people to read off Kindles and iPads rather than the traditional paperback. Companies like Google have spent more than $1000 on machines to convert books into electronic copies readable on devices. Yet, not much effort has been made into the invention of an automatic book scanner for consumers. This project seeks to determine a cost-effective approach to robotic book scanning to create PDFs from physical books. This project serves as a proof of concept for a reasonably priced automatic book scanner accessible to consumers. Potentially, the device may be …

Chromium Os On Freescale I.Mx6q, Pushpal Sidhu

Computer Engineering

This projects intention is to get Chromium OS running on a Freescale i.MX6q processor, a processor based on the ARM® Cortex™-A9 architecture. The development board I used is the Ventana GW5400 by Gateworks. This project inherently meant using Chromium OS's development system which meant I created a board specific package for the Ventana single board computer. This project is a proof of concept that can mean extending Chromium OS to various implementations of the ARM® Cortex™-A9 architecture.

Battery Management System, Michael Desando, Kyle Woody

Electrical Engineering

Problem Statement:

There have been recent reports of multi-million dollar companies having to recall entire projects due to their BMS’s malfunctioning or operating incorrectly. The purpose of this project is to analyze the future of batteries, the Lithium-Ion cell, and to exercise a BMS to better understand its capabilities and possible cases for errors. Lithium ion batteries are intolerant of overcharge and overdischarge. Abuse of this kind can result in high temperatures, venting of gases, fire, or explosion. Therefore battery management systems have been devised to prevent such abuse. Recent events such as fires on the Boeing Dreamliner and the …

Automated Foosball Table, Jim R. Stefani, Alex J. Herpy, Brett Gordon Jaeger, Kevin S. Haydon, Derek Alan Hamel

Mechanical Engineering

This project is the second iteration of an automated foosball table for Yaskawa America as a trade show display. The table is meant to provide an interactive experience which highlights the speed and precision of the Yaskawa hardware. The first iteration of the project was mainly focused on creating the physical hardware for the system and to begin the basic programming for the system. This phase of the project was focused on finalizing the physical hardware of the system, implementing the vision system and to continue the basic programing of the system AI. A third team will be assigned to …

All Purpose Mobile Gps, James C. Smith, Matt Weege, Kevin Peters

Electrical Engineering

The aim of the All Purpose Mobile GPS (The System) is to create a GPS tracking device that can accurately record location and calculate velocity, distance traveled and elevation change even when the satellite signal is lost. This data can later overlay on existing internet-based maps illustrating a trip to oneself or others. The portable tracker consumes very little power achieving several days’ worth of power in a single charge. A solar cell provides a quick battery boost in a pinch. SD Card storage increases compatibility with computers and other forms of data transfer. Data processing, such as viewing the …

Ad-Hoc Hid: Modular Wireless Human Interface Device, Joseph A. Mazzanti

Electrical Engineering

Ad-Hoc HID is a modular, reprogrammable Human Interface Device. This device is intended to function as a keyboard, gamepad, or mouse, according to the user's needs. The final project is intended to be switch agnostic, making the final product adaptable to the user’s needs.

Team Omnimouse, Derek J. Halman, Josh B. Porter, Steven A. Silver, Ian S. Stemper

Computer Engineering

INFORMATION, DATA, FIGURES AND DRAWINGS EMBODIED IN THIS DOCUMENT ARE STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL AND ARE SUPPLIED ON THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY WILL NOT BE DISCLOSED TO THIRD PARTIES WITHOUT THE PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE PLUS.

Laser Tag - An Application Of Infrared Communication, Michael J. Altschuler, Michael B. Peterson, Elmer Pres Ventura Urbano

Computer Engineering

The purpose of this project is to design, build, and test laser tag system from the ground up. Much of the laser tag equipment that is available on the market right now use infrared technology to track and register “hits” between players. Our goal is to take this system and redesign it to shoot farther, be more energy efficient, and make it cheaper to produce.

Ecs Game Engine Design, Daniel Masamune Hall

Computer Engineering

Game programming design and organization can be difficult and complicated. To simplify the development process, frameworks with an array of tools and utilities known as game engines are used. The main goal of this project is to explore game engine designs and develop a design for a modular and expandable game engine. The designs covered in this paper are Object Oriented Programing (OOP) and two Entity Component System (ECS). OOP designs, commonly used in computer science, use a hierarchy of objects to share functionality. ECS designs are based off of the concepts Composition over inheritance in which objects contain features …

Cnc Torch, Steven Chiu

Computer Engineering

This CNC Torch cuts steel plate. It can cut up to a maximum area of 3x3 feet. The user builds a cut list on the touchscreen from a selection of predefined shapes and enters the parameters need for each shape. When the user is ready, the cut list is sent to an Arduino that will move each motors accordingly to the shapes desired.

Web Based Tactical Role Playing Game In Javascript, David Cilva, Paul Doyle, Stephen Hill, Rachel Judish

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The goal of this senior project was to develop a web­based game that emphasized narrative through gameplay within the context of a tactical RPG gameplay style. As the project developed, emphasis shifted from narrative to refining gameplay and making decisions within gameplay meaningful and satisfying. The project elaborates on the standard tactical RPG combat system, incorporating mechanics and ideas from various other games. This was done in order to make the play feel challenging and rewarding as well as to avoid some of the pitfalls that bog down existing games in this genre. Since work was concentrated on building the …