1999-2000 Projects
- Handheld Computer Project
by Dr. Ruth Davis
Dr. Ruth Davis is running a project to investigate whether young women use handheld computers in the same way their male (early adopter) counterparts are expected to. What do they spend time with on these devices, what do they wish they could do? Most importantly, does the use of such devices help young women self-identify as techies and/or improve their retention in engineering majors? In this project, 55 handheld computers have been distributed to freshman and sophomore women in engineering. We have surveyed their attitudes about their major and their capabilities, and are following up with periodic usage surveys, email communities, and will eventually survey attitudes again. We will track the retention of these women in engineering and compare it with previous and following years.
- Dynamic Component Gluing
by Sonali Kochar, Dr. Linda Seiter
Dr. Linda Seiter is advising a female graduate student, Sonali Kochar, with support from the VDC for this research project. Frameworks elevate encapsulation and reuse to the level of large-grained components, namely groups of collaborating classes. The abstract collaboration defined in a framework is easily customized by an application through static subclassing. However, this implies non-independent development of the application and framework models and excludes the possibility of dynamically deploying the framework. This project proposes the dynamic composite adapter design pattern, which employs the use of Java inner classes to achieve dynamic, modular, non-invasive component adaptation. The project also implements a new scoping construct for succinctly defining dynamic adaptation of Java components.
- Design of Biomedical Products
by Ben Blaine, Elizabeth Drew, and Holli Ogle
Several of the workshop ideas involved medical technology and the huge impact it has had as well as its potential for the future. Drs. Tim Hight, Lee Hornberger, and Lilia Sanchez are guiding the students Ben Blaine, Elizabeth Drew, and Holli Ogle in a project to develop the framework for performing biomedical product design at Santa Clara. This is a new area of design for our students and we need to establish the protocols and tools by which students will attack projects in this area. In this project, the students will research the industry standards, regulatory agencies, and design practices used by the designers at Hewlett Packard in their design of the Viridia fetal monitor. They will also survey and interview the key customer's of this product and ask them to rate it relative to its competitors. Interviews will be conducted with experienced and novice users of the equipment, and with women who have been monitored during labor using the Viridia system and similar devices. Information from these interviews and other research will be fully documented utilizing the digital cameras, scanners and other computer equipment. From this information the students will produce a review of the design. The will also write the first version of our biomedical product design handbook with sections on Materials, Test Methods, Approval Agencies, Competitors, Industrial Design, and Human Factors Engineering. For more information, see the biomedical engineering group's website.
- Icoordinate
by Shianglin Mimi Chen, Sameer Shah, and Anu Maurya
This project addresses one of the most popular needs brought up in both workshops, a universally accessible family scheduler. Drs. Ron Danielson and Hans Peter Dommel are advising senior students Shianglin Mimi Chen, Sameer Shah, and Anu Maurya, using hardware and software support from the VDC. Icoordinate is a centralized "project management" system, which schedules and keeps track of various projects that are underway. This web-based scheduling system will handle multiple types of projects, which include scheduling student or family projects such as assignments, gatherings or visits made by multiple groups of relatives or friends. In addition, it will provide assistance to managers or leaders of the projects. It will have three settings (family, friends and work) for one centralized calendar, reducing the hassles of maintaining different calendars and schedules. It will help families as one can set up the reminders for various events and the system will be smart enough to outline a new schedule in event of an unanticipated delay, among other features. Download for more information.
- Remote Controlled Vacuum Cleaner Project
by Gretchen Hellman and Saribel Daza
Another popular wish among workshop participants was for a self-cleaning house. There were many aspects to this, but one that is being addressed by the students at Santa Clara is a semi-autonomous vacuum cleaner. Gretchen Hellman and Saribel Daza, under the direction of Dr. Garret Okamoto, plan to build a vacuum cleaner that can be operated via remote control. Time permitting, the vacuum cleaner will be equipped with a memory chip so that the vacuum cleaner may operate the way it did the previous time it was used - which would mean that the remote control would not need to be used provided that the furniture or room configuration was unchanged between cleanings.
- EMERALD Nanosatellite Project
by Melissa Gregory, Teresa Emmett, Sarah Teborek, and Carrie Thomas
Dr. Garret Okamoto is also advising Melissa Gregory, Teresa Emmett, Sarah Teborek, and Carrie Thomas in their project to build two satellites in two years. As a part of the NanoSat Program, EMERALD will demonstrate formation flying technologies in support of the Very Low Frequency (VLF) Lightning Science Mission, as well as numerous other experiments.For more information see the Emerald website.
