Title :
A Video game for teaching Dynamic Systems & Control to mechanical engineering undergraduates
Author_Institution :
Mech. Eng., Northern Illinois Univ., DeKalb, IL, USA
fDate :
June 30 2010-July 2 2010
Abstract :
Dynamic Systems & Control is one of the most difficult courses to teach in the mechanical engineering curriculum. The subject is very mathematical and the mathematical framework is unfamiliar to novice students. Recently we began using a video game to demonstrate and teach content of the course. The game provides a natural way to align instruction with constructivist theories on how people learn. Herein, we describe the game and present preliminary results demonstrating its effectiveness.
Keywords :
control engineering education; educational aids; educational courses; mechanical engineering; teaching; constructivist theory; dynamic system; mathematical framework; mechanical engineering curriculum; mechanical engineering undergraduates; teaching; video game; Concrete; Control systems; Education; Feedback control; Games; Laplace equations; Mathematical model; Mathematics; Mechanical engineering; Tsunami;
Conference_Titel :
American Control Conference (ACC), 2010
Conference_Location :
Baltimore, MD
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-7426-4
DOI :
10.1109/ACC.2010.5530794