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Work In Progress: Improving Mechanical Engineering Students’ Programming Skills Through Hands-On Learning Activities Designed in MATLAB Live Editor

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Conference

2024 South East Section Meeting

Location

Marietta, Georgia

Publication Date

March 10, 2024

Start Date

March 10, 2024

End Date

March 12, 2024

Page Count

8

DOI

10.18260/1-2--45586

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/45586

Download Count

20

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Paper Authors

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Ayse Tekes Kennesaw State University Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0002-9537-2098

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Ayse Tekes is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Kennesaw State University. She received her B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Istanbul Technical University, Turkey. She worked as a research engineer at Ro

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Razvan Cristian Voicu Kennesaw State University

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Coskun Tekes

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Abstract

With the advances and rapid improvements in technology, engineering students are expected to have programming skills to keep up with the evolving demands in their fields. However, among the various engineering programs including mechatronics and robotics, computer, and electrical, mechanical engineering students face the biggest challenge. While they are known to be good problem solvers, they often encounter struggles in programming. This challenge primarily stems from the limited programming courses offered in the curriculum and a lack of exposure to low-cost data acquisition systems like Arduino within their laboratory environments. To give an example, the educational laboratory equipment favorably utilized in mechanical vibrations and control theory courses is tailored with custom software and data acquisition systems to implement inputs and record output data. This inhibits students' understanding of signal flow and data recording. Consequently, students struggle to replicate similar tasks using low-cost alternatives to control basic machinery. To address this problem, we collected feedback from undergraduate mechanical engineering students enrolled in mechanical vibrations (junior level) and control theory courses (senior level) with an aim to assess their confidence levels and proficiency in programming, identifying areas where improvement is needed. We created a series of in-class and out-of-class learning activities designed in MATLAB Live editor for students taking mechanical vibrations course that incorporate programming elements. These activities are specifically designed to encourage and support students taking the mechanical vibrations course to serve as a candidate. Our continuous work involves iterative development and refinement of these activities based on ongoing feedback and assessment. Through these activities, we aim to bridge the programming gap and empower our students to excel in the increasingly technology-driven field of mechanical engineering.

Tekes, A., & Voicu, R. C., & Tekes, C. (2024, March), Work In Progress: Improving Mechanical Engineering Students’ Programming Skills Through Hands-On Learning Activities Designed in MATLAB Live Editor Paper presented at 2024 South East Section Meeting, Marietta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--45586

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