Lectures / Course Coordinator
Name: Assoc. Prof. Braden Phillips
Email: braden.phillips@adelaide.edu.au
Room: Ingkarni Wardli 3.38

Lectures
Name: Assoc. Prof. Wen Soong
Email: wen.soong@adelaide.edu.au
Room: Ingkarni Wardli 3.53

Practical Coordinator
Name: Dr Hong-Gunn Chew
Email: honggunn.chew@adelaide.edu.au
Room: Ingkarni Wardli 3.52

The course is presented as 6 topics. For each topic there are the following scheduled activities:

1. Lectures
Lectures set the scene at the start of the course and at the start of each new topic.

2. Pre-Recorded Presentations
Pre-recorded videos that present the theory for each topic are available for each week.

3. Workshops
Two-hour workshops occur weekly throughout the semester. There are 2 workshops for each topic. In workshops, students work in small groups on a variety of problems and exercises, including benchtop experiments and simulations.

4. Tests
Tests occur in scheduled times in weeks 6, 10 and 13 and are held online. Each test covers two topics.

5. Practicals
Students complete 4 practical modules, each typically conducted as 2 three-hour sessions.

On successful completion of this course students will be able to:

 

1	Apply circuit laws and theorems to predict the steady state behaviour of simple linear DC circuits.
2	Use piecewise linear models to predict the steady state behaviour of simple diode and transistor circuits, AC and DC motors.
3	Explain the transient behaviour of RLC circuits with reference to their differential equations.
4	Simulate simple analog circuits to verify their behaviour.
5	Explain the operation of circuits using transistors in switching mode to achieve a variable DC output.
6	Demonstrate practical skills in the simulation, construction and testing of simple electrical and electronic circuits.
7	Analyse and design simple digital systems based on combinational logic, state machine and programmed microcontroller approaches.

 
The above course learning outcomes are aligned with the Engineers Australia Entry to Practice Competency Standard for the Professional Engineer. The course develops the following EA Elements of Competency to levels of introductory (A), intermediate (B), advanced (C):  
 

1.1	1.2	1.3	1.4	1.5	1.6	2.1	2.2	2.3	2.4	3.1	3.2	3.3	3.4	3.5	3.6
B	B	A	—	—	A	B	B	A	A	A	B	B	A	A	A

1) The following resources are available on the course website:

• Notes: a set of notes is available that covers key concepts in the course.

• Presentations and slides: pre-recorded video presentations cover key concepts in the course. Students are expected to be familiar with this material in preparation for workshops.

• Online tests: weekly formative tests are administered via MyUni.

• Workshop questions

• Practical instructions

2) A toolkit containing prototyping boards and basic tools is required for the practical sessions. Purchase details will be provided via MyUni.

1) Practice Problems: are available on the course website.

2) Additional Presentations: these pre-recorded presentations provide supplementary coverage of important concepts in the course.

3) Reference Book: the course notes should provide sufficient information for many students, however you may find the following reference books useful if you are having difficulty with the material or are interested in learning more about any of the topics in this course. Copies are available in the Barr Smith library. 

Topics 1-4 A.R. Hambley: Electrical Engineering - Principles and Applications, 7th Edition, Pearson, 2018. 

Topics 5-6 D. Harris and S. Harris: Digital Design and Computer Architecture, 1st or 2nd Edition, Morgan Kaufmann

This course will use a variety of online resources to support the learning process. Recorded presentations cover key concepts, theory and methods in more detail. Notes, worked examples, and the textbook are all available online. It is expected that students use these online resources to prepare ahead of the face-to-face workshop.

Weekly formative tests are conducted online, as are the mid-semester tests in weeks 6, 10 and 13.

Video recordings of lectures will normally be made available on the course website after each lecture.

In addition, the following material will be provided on the course website:
• notes, presentations, and tutorial questions
• past assessment examples (tests and exams)
• additional practice questions

All course announcements will be made via the course website.

The use of the course discussion boards is strongly encouraged for questions relating to course material, but also for more general discussion on electrical and electronic engineering and technology. Anonymous posts will be permitted were possible, offensive posts will not. Lecturers will make a best effort to respond promptly to questions raised on the discussion boards.

The course gradebook will be used to return continuous assessment marks. Students should check the gradebook regularly and confirm their marks have been correctly entered.

This course uses online content, and in-person lectures, workshops, and practicals to achieve its learning objectives. Lectures set the scene and cover important foundations at the start of the course and for each new topic. The online pre-recorded presentations focus on key concepts and are supported by practice exercises to test and develop understanding. Workshops involve working in small groups on a variety of problems including theory problems, benchtop experiments and simulations. There is a small assessment component for active participation in tutorials. Practicals provide an opportunity to consolidate understanding and to develop hands-on skills with prototyping, testing and measurement.

Activity	Detail	Contact Hours	Workload Hours
Lecture	7 1-hr lectures	7	7
Pre-recorded presentations			40
Workshops	12 workshops	24	48
Practicals	8 3-hr sessions	24	32
On-line tests	11 tests	0	6
End of topic tests	3 tests	6	18
Total		85	151

Topic 1: Circuits, Sources and Loads
Electrical concepts: charge, current, voltage Sources and Loads: power, resistors, sources
DC circuit analysis: Kirchhoff’s laws, series and parallel resistors, voltage divider, current divider, Thevenin’s theorem, analysis strategies
Energy and power: batteries, efficiency, maximum power transfer AC concepts: DC and AC, sinusoidal functions, AC voltage and current, RMS

Topic 2: Power Supplies
Diodes: ideal diodes, diode construction and operation, IV characteristic, ideal and first order models
Half wave rectifiers: peak output voltage, capacitors, voltage ripple
Full wave rectifiers: voltage ripple, transformers
Voltage regulators: regulators, voltage doublers, inductors
DC-DC converters: transistors as switches, RL circuits, switched regulators

Topic 3: Machines and Power Electronics
Machine concepts: force on a conductor, motor and generator action, commutation, DC motors, Faraday’s law, DC generators, AC motors
DC machines: equivalent circuit model, torque/current and voltage/speed relationships, performance parameters, efficiency
AC machines: rotating magnetic fields, synchronous machines, inductor motors, comparison of electric machines
Power electronics: speed control of DC motors, pulse width modulation, H bridges, H-bridge drive of DC motors

Topic 4: Linear Amplifiers
Amplifier concepts: input resistance and output resistance, gain, offset, maximum output voltage and current, differential amplifiers
Op-amps: concept, equivalent circuit model, inverting, non-inverting and summing amplifiers, power op-amps
Transistors: principles of BJTs and MOSFETs, simple models, linear amplifier configurations
Frequency dependent gain: frequency response, RC transfer function, cross-over frequency, low pass and high pass filters

Topic 5: Combinational Logic
Analog and digital electronics: analog and digital representation, applications of digital electronics
Managing complexity: abstraction, modularity, abstraction, design communication
Logic gates: Boolean logic, logic gates
Digital logic technologies: discrete logic, FPGAs, microcontrollers, PLCs
Boolean logic and algebra: Boolean equations, truth tables, algebraic simplification, Karnaugh maps
Number systems: positional number systems, unsigned binary, signed number representation, hexadecimal, other binary codes
Adders: binary addition, binary subtraction, adders, busses and bus notation

Topic 6: Sequential Logic and Devices
FPGAs: multiplexers, logic with memories, benefits of FPGAs, applications of FPGAs, how FPGAs work
Sequential logic: combinational and sequential, synchronous and asynchronous, storage elements
Moore finite state machines: synthesising finite state machines
Microcontrollers: embedded computers, applications and benefits of microcontrollers, how microcontrollers work, program development Analog and digital signals: digital to analog converters, pulse width modulation, analog to digital converters, successive approximation conversion, sampled data systems

Laboratory clothing restrictions apply to the practical sessions: closed-toe shoes; covered shoulders; long hair must be tied back.

Assessment Task	Weighting (%)	Individual/ Group	Formative/ Summative	Due (week)*	Hurdle criteria	Learning outcomes
Tests (3)	0-24	Individual	Summative & Formative	Weeks 6, 10, 13		1. 2. 3. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Quizzes (11)	11	Individual	Formative	Weeks 2-12		1. 2. 3. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Practicals	20	Group	Summative & Formative	Weeks 2-12	Min 50%	1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Workshop participation	5	Individual	Formative	Weeks 1-12		1. 2. 3. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Exam	40-64	Individual	Summative		Min 40%	1. 2. 3. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Total	100

* The specific due date for each assessment task will be available on MyUni.

 The test marks are redeemable by the exam as shown in the table below.

Test Question	Initial Test Question Mark (%)	Exam Question	Exam Question Mark (%)	Final Test Question Mark (%)
Test 1 Part 1	t11	Question 1	e1	max(t11,e1)
Test 1 Part 2	t12	Question 2	e2	max(t12,e2)
Test 2 Part 1	t21	Question 3	e3	max(t21,e3)
Test 2 Part 2	t22	Question 4	e4	max(t22,e4)
Test 3 Part 1	t31	Question 5	e5	max(t31,e5)
Test 3 Part 2	t32	Question 6	e6	max(t32,e6)

* The specific due date for each assessment task will be available on MyUni.

This course has a hurdle requirement. Meeting the specified hurdle criteria is a requirement for passing the course.

In accordance with the Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy, Procedure 1b: An exemption from the stated hurdle requirements has been granted.

A hurdle requirement is defined by the University's Assessment for Coursework Programs policy as "...an assessment task mandating a minimum level of performance as a condition of passing the course.

In the Electronic Systems course the examination and practical components are hurdle requirements. It is necessary to achieve at least 40% in the exam, and at least 50% in the practical component. If the exam hurdle requirement is not achieved, the total course mark will be limited to a maximum of 49. If the practical requirement is not met, the total course mark will be limited to a maximum of 44. 

It is important to note there is NO replacement assessment offered for the practical component after the end of Week 12. By arrangement with the Practical Coordinator, it will be possible throughout the semester for students who are falling significantly behind to have replacement opportunities. However, if students persistently neglect the practical component throughout the semester they are likely to not meet the hurdle requirement and hence fail the course without further opportunity for redemption. Exceptions will be made in the case of verifiable medical or compassionate circumstances beyond the student’s control.

If a student fails to meet a hurdle requirement and is assigned a total mark for the course in the range of 45-49, then the student is entitled to an offer of additional assessment of some type. The type of assessment is to be decided by the School Assessment Review Committee when determining final results. The student’s final total mark will be entered at no more than 49% and the offer of an additional assessment will be specified e.g. US01. Once the additional assessment has been completed, this mark will be included in the calculation of the total mark for the course and the better of the two results will apply. Note however that the maximum final result for a course in which a student has sat an additional assessment will be a “50 Pass”.

If a student is unable to meet a hurdle requirement related to an assessment piece (maybe throughout semester or at semester’s end) due to medical or compassionate circumstances beyond their control, then the student is entitled to an offer of replacement assessment of some type. An interim result of RP will be entered for the student, and the student will be notified of the offer of a replacement assessment. Once the replacement assessment has been completed, the result of that assessment will be included in the calculation of the total mark for the course.

End of Topic Tests: Test 1 covers Topics 1 and 2; Test 2 covers Topics 3 and 4; and Test 3 covers Topics 5 & 6. The tests are held online in MyUni and are not invigilated. They are open-resource but students must complete the questions themselves.

Practicals: students undertake laboratory activities, writing up their results in a workbook.

Workshop Participation: Participation in each workshop is marked out of 1 with 1 awarded for active participation with your group, doing your share of questions, asking and answering questions, seeking help from your group members and helping the others. Alternative engagement with the workshops can be arranged under some circumstances. Please discuss this with the course coordinator.

Weekly Online Quizzes: Each quiz aligns with the previous week's workshop and contains questions similar to, or related to, the workshop questions. They are completed on MyUni using Mobius Assessment. Each can be attempted as many times as desired before the deadline.

Exam: a 2.5 hour exam covering all topics in the course is held during the exam period at the end of semester. : a 2.5 hour exam covering all topics in the course is held during the exam period at the end of semester.

End of Topic Tests: these occur in a scheduled 2-hour class in weeks 6, 10 and 13 and are conduced online in MyUni.

Practicals: the workbook for each module must be handed in for assessment at the end of the last practical session for the module.

Workshop Participation: participation is assessed during each workshop.

Weekly Online Quizzes: are due at 5 pm on Mondays starting in week 2 and are submitted online in MyUni.

Modified arrangements for tests, workshops and online quizzes can be arranged for eligible circumstances under the Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy by contacting the Course Coordinator. For modified arrangement for practicals, contact the Practical Coordinator.

The following changes have been made in response to student feedback from 2023:
* Marks for the tests are redeemable
* Slide presentations updated with key concept videos for foundation topics
* Updated MyUni page with interactive online lessons