Download What is ECE?

What is Electrical &
Computer Engineering?
by
Prof. Bitar
6 Blind Persons Describing an Elephant
http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m59kgnTbUJ1qfvq9bo2_r1_1280.jpg
So lets try to describe it....
What do you think of when
you think of ECE?
How many things did you use
today that require electricity
to operate?
My Broad Definition of ECE
The art of utilizing
electricity and
electromagnetic
phenomena to do
useful things...
In the past, it was about...
Electric POWER
• Lighting
• Motors
And Communication...
1837
1900
Early Radio Technology (circa 1920)
And... Early COMPUTING
ENIAC 1946
17,468 Vacuum Tubes
7,200 Crystal Diodes
1,500 Relays
70,000 Resistors
10,000 Capacitors
5,000,000 Hand Soldered Joints
30 Tons
1,800 sq ft
150 kilowatts
1947 Revolution!
The Transistor
John
Bardeen
William
Shockley
Walter
Brattain
1958 Jack Kilby Invents the
Integrated Circuit
Texas Instruments
What is so significant about
the Transistor and Integrated
Circuits?
Modern Integrated Circuit
Millions (billions) of Transistors
on a single die.
So, let’s pick a modern
electronic device and dissect
it...
ONE Modern Example...A Cellphone
Q: How many
technologies
are
represented
here?
http://r3.whistleout.com.au/public/
images/blog/2012/07/samsung_gal
axy_s3_review_10.jpg
How many different
technologies are utilized in a
cell phone?
Here’s a Partial List Related to ECE
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Display Technology
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LCD Displays
Touch Screens
LED Backlighting
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Battery & Charging Technologies
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Lithium Ion
Efficient AC-DC Power Supplies
Computer Technologies
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Microprocessor / Microcontroller
Memory (Cache / SIM Card)
USB Interface
Audio Technology
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Class-D Audio Amplifiers
A-to-D and D-to-A Converters
Filter Technology
Microphone Technology
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Camera Technology
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CCD Imaging
Sensor Technologies
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Touch Screen
Switches
Biosensors
Wireless Technologies
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RF Antennas / RF Transceivers
WiFi / Wireless Routers
Blue Tooth (local wireless)
Cellular Network Technology
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CDMA vs. GSM
Cell Towers
Base Stations
Packet Switching Networks
And each of these areas
represents a potentially
different career path within
ECE...
Why?
And that’s just ONE product –
a Cell Phone...
So how do you
choose?
One Approach...
“Pick a problem in the
world and dedicate
yourself to solving it...
The rest will work itself
out on it’s own.”
Problem
One of My Heros...
“I saw a person in
a wheelchair
unable to cross a
curbing and I was
disgusted at the
injustice of it.”
~ Dean Kamen ~
First Robotics
Segway / “Luke” Arm
Major Areas of Study at WPI
within ECE
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Analog Microelectronics
Biomedical Engineering
Communications & Signal Analysis
Computer Engineering
Power Systems Engineering
RF Circuits & Microwaves
Major ECE Topics/Industries
(provided by IEEE)
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Aerospace
Biomedical
Computing
Energy
Consumer
Electronics
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Geek Life
Green Tech
Robotics
Semiconductors
Telecom
Transportation