The success of project FaultLine could not have been possible without the help and support of our capstone director Dr. Sunak, and our technical directors Brenden Smerbeck, Najib Ishaq, Mike Majdalani, and Bill Owens. Dr. Sunak was extremely generous in providing any and all means required to pursue the directions we wanted to go with the project. Our technical directors, particularly Brenden and Najib who we met with twice weekly, were instrumental in guiding the team through any problem areas that arose. With their help, the team gained valuable experience working with professionals in their field, as well as experience working as a team long-term to see a project through to the end, which includes improving skills in writing regular detailed reports, and developing and adhering to project schedules.

The computer engineers have had the chance to see how software engineering will work in the real world. In terms of gaining experience how it is like to be assigned a task and to be responsible as a team to deliver deliverables in a period of time has been invaluable. It has opened the eyes of what it will take to be a good software engineer in the real world. The Capstone Design program and this project has taught us that to be a good software engineer you need to have strong fundamentals so that you can switch to any language to do work on. Our TD’s Brenden and Najib have been irreplaceable; they have paved the way for how one should prepare for the real world as software engineers. We would like to shout out and thank our TD Najib for his invaluable help with the machine learning aspects that took place in this project.

With this project, electrical engineers had the opportunity to delve into the fundamentals of AC and three-phase power, concepts not typically encountered in the standard curriculum. Additionally, for those less familiar with the responsibilities of an electrical engineer in a more hands-on/lab-centric role, substantial improvement was had in skills like soldering and wiring. The more mundane tasks of real-world work, like navigating shipping sites and creating and approving BOMS, were also various and helpful in preparing for work after graduation.

Harish Sunak’s ELECOMP Capstone Program has provided us with a wonderful working experience that tested our knowledge of electrical/computer engineering. By working with real life companies, Dr. Sunak allows his students to be able to apply and develop their skills they have learned during their electrical engineering and/or computer engineering classes at the University of Rhode Island. Our capstone company, Acumentrics, helped us with guiding our knowledge of electrical engineering and putting it into use in our capstone project. Technical directors Brenden Smerbeck and Mike Majdalani helped guide us through their typical product development procedures and gave us recommendations of improvement. Through this, we were able to improve and better develop as passionate engineers. This experience has greatly prepared us for the future jobs that we will hold as engineers.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program at URI is an excellent opportunity for senior engineering students to gain hands-on experience in the engineering field. There is great insight to be gained when working alongside a company to solve a real-world problem. Our team learned that knowledge gained in the classroom does not compare to real world experience. As engineers, we learn best when we are able to actually implement what we learn. Capstone Design facilitates creativity, passion, and hard work through a sophisticated design project. Working in a multidisciplinary team also has its various benefits. Our team consists of three electrical engineers and two computer engineers. Each of us worked in a cross disciplinary manner and supported each other throughout the duration of the project. Our technical director, Dan Wertz, mentored us this year by assisting with technical design aspects and by facilitating conversations about the implications of the project itself. Each of us learned a lot by researching batteries and battery management systems, designing electronic circuits, developing data collection algorithms, and coding in python to develop a user interface. There was a learning curve to each aspect of this project and the team did a great job overcoming our challenges. Through the course of this Capstone Design project, the team has not only gained valuable technical skills, but life skills as well which will help us professionally and personally. In our future endeavors, the team will see the value in having a passion for our work, be able to work alongside multiple disciplines, and know the importance of having an open outlook when solving problems. The COVID-19 Pandemic proved to be a challenging obstacle for our team as we had several COVID-related setbacks which we had to overcome. Overall, team AM-BATS is grateful for the opportunity to have been able to work alongside Dan Wertz and EaglePicher. This experience has provided us the opportunity to overcome many challenges while also honing our technical skills as we step into the real world as young professionals.

Nicholas Clavette:

This year was full of many challenges. Capstone proved to be one of them. In retrospect, I am extremely grateful for that. Capstone is meant to be challenging – it puts students who have very little experience designing real-world systems into a situation where they have to pool all of their technical knowledge together to build real usable technical connections. It can be irritating at the beginning, as you apply snippets of knowledge from your coursework to your project. However, as time goes on and you are mentored by your technical directors, you begin to see how all your engineering skills are connected, and how every little detail in a technical design matters. You become driven to think outside of your comfort zone to find solutions that excite you. You realize that engineering will always pose complex challenges, and that you will never stop learning. You must be open-minded and adaptable. I am extremely thankful for this experience to see what it is like to work towards a real-world engineering problem after years of regular coursework and labs. I greatly enjoyed working with Dan Wertz from EaglePicher. He portrayed how knowledgeable you can become with a career in engineering, and I aspire to be as successful as him in my future career.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program is truly the accumulation of all collective knowledge that the University of Rhode Island has instilled within its students. We all entered as aspiring engineers, equipped with the tools needed to succeed, but those tools were truly refined throughout this program. Through the helpful guidance and encouragement of our Technical Directors, we were able to leave this program with the necessary skill set to excel in the professional world. In the Fall, the mountain we all needed to climb seemed steep, immovable, and intimidating. Looking back at the summit of that mountain, all that we have accomplished throughout this year has proven that we have what it takes to succeed in the face of adversity. Doctor Sunak has meticulously laid out the groundwork for students to flourish under his leadership, and through the link between the program and the sponsoring companies, everyone involved is able to benefit.

Although the Capstone Design Program can be incredibly valuable to any student enrolled, you only get out of it what you put into it. The quality of work you complete, the time you invest, and the passion you show for your project will be reflected back at you ten-fold. Without passion, students will look back on their time in the Capstone Design Program as a shadow of what it could have been. To a student who desires to succeed, to do the best they possibly can, the Capstone Design Program will be the cornerstone they build their professional career upon. This is a unique opportunity and experience only for ELECOMP students at the University of Rhode Island, no other engineering student can claim the accomplishments that ELECOMP students can. This bridge between academic knowledge and professional experience, and the ability to cross it while still being considered a student, is invaluable.

For the BE-SAFE team, we found this entire experience to be the perfect test of our abilities after growing in skill throughout our time at the University. The passion that Doctor Sunak shows for the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program is unmatched, and it encourages students to try their hardest in return. We would like to sincerely thank Doctor Sunak for all he has done for us throughout this year. We would also like to thank everyone at EaglePicher, especially our Technical Director Dan Noreck. The immense knowledge he possesses, and his ability to lead us in the right direction, has proven invaluable in this project. Lastly, we would like to thank our Consulting Technical Director Brenden Smerbeck, for always being there to offer guidance when we were up against a wall. The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program is an unforgettable experience, one that will stick with all of us for years to come as we enter our professional careers.

We are incredibly grateful for our involvement in the ELECOMP Capstone program. Finally putting our engineering knowledge to the test by solving a meaningful engineering problem was an extremely valuable experience. Knowing that the work we did throughout the year will be used to improve the next generation of FarSounder’s sonar systems is intensely rewarding. Throughout the year, we learned the importance of communication, organization, perseverance, and teamwork in achieving the best possible outcome of any project. We faced some challenges that seemed impossible at first, but with hard work, we were able to overcome all of them. We would like to thank Dr. Sunak and the ELECOMP Capstone staff for their role in organizing this program, despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. We would also like to thank our Technical Directors for always being there to help us overcome obstacles by providing support and encouragement. Overall, we found this program to be a great way to challenge ourselves before embarking on a career in engineering.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program has proved to be an incredible opportunity in which we were able to apply the knowledge that we have gained throughout the ELECOMP program. This program has given us a learning experience that will be applicable to our careers. Our consulting director, Alex, was helpful when it came to answering any questions we had and kept us on track to achieve the ABO. Our Technical Directors, Adam, Art and Doug, gave us insight on what is expected of us when we become part of the engineering workforce. Dr. Sunak’s leadership and dedication for the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program has been an inspiration to our team as he has sacrificed his time to ensure that we have the resources to become successful in our field. We would like to thank everyone’s involvement in achieving our ABO as it motivates us to complete the project with passion and urgency.

The ELECOMP Capstone program provides real world engineering experience that goes far beyond the classroom. Similar to an internship, it allows the students to work with a company to get an insight into the work they can expect post graduation. However, unlike a standard internship, all work on the project from design to realization of the final product is done by the student. Jon O’Hare, our technical director from Hexagon gave us excellent guidance throughout the year to keep us on track, reach our ABO, and think about the implications of our project beyond the scope of capstone. Dr. Sodhi, our technical director from URI helped to be responsible for the deadlines we promised to meet and to organize our workflow more efficiently. Finally, Dr. Sunak who has spent many countless hours orchestrating the program has put us appropriately in this project to suit our own interests and talents. We are grateful for all of those who guided us through this capstone project so we may become better engineers and have a successful project.

While learning in the classroom is great, we feel our engineering skills have been truly put to the test with a hands-on project at an actual company. This is what the ELECOMP Capstone Program has provided to each of us over the course of our senior year. Our Technical Directors from In-Depth Engineering: Bill Matzusak, David Helms, and John Vernaglia, greatly aided us by providing great instruction/direction for our anticipated best outcome, as well as swift and in-depth responses to the questions we had along the way. All of us were able to communicate seamlessly and effectively to achieve the goals we set up for ourselves. In addition, while working on this project we were able to deal with many different concepts that we had not learned about in the classroom, such as Machine Learning. Overall we feel this program was a truly worthwhile experience, and a great way to end our college careers.

We would also like to give a special thanks to Dr. Sunak for putting in the time and effort required to match each of us to a rewarding and valuable project that fit all of us on team In-Depth.

The ELECOMP Capstone Program was supposed to be a culmination of all the skills we have learned up to this point, but we feel that this experience has been tarnished by the pandemic that has occurred over the past year. Despite passion and effort from team members and the technical directors, the team was unable to reach the ABO which was very disappointing. With the COVID-19 pandemic, we were unable to meet with our technical directors in an in person lab setting, detrimentally affecting our project. Because we could not meet in person everything was done through email and Webex meetings and it made it tough to communicate what was wrong and get things done.

Nonetheless, we were still able to learn from the Capstone Design experience, most notably how to troubleshoot and debug complex circuits using lab equipment in a timely and efficient manner. This was achieved through applying the knowledge from our previous electronics classes as well as the technical directors helping through webcam. Though the webcam was not ideal it did serve as a good learning opportunity. Additionally, we are very grateful for the patience and effort of our technical directors as well as our consulting technical director, Alex DePetrillo, and our excellent professor Dr. Sunak.

In order to successfully complete a project, we would recommend using a collaborative scheduling software such as Slack that can be easily updated and is a place where instructions can be sent weekly.

The ELECOMP capstone design program has proved to be a great opportunity for many reasons. We, as a team, have gained important knowledge and experience for our lines of work. We have been able to see and be a part of the process of improving an existing product. The whole process was very professional and truly eye-opening for us. Dr. Harish Sunak carefully selected the teams for each project based on a profile that each team member had created. As engineers, we were given amazing guidance but also the freedom to use our own creativity to create solutions for our project. Starting all the way from planning and creating flowcharts, the team has been able to work together and improve essential teamwork skills. Throughout the project, we maintained thorough documentation which helped us keep track of our progress and will help this project as it continues in the future. On our development journey we were able to work with and connect with industry professionals who aided us as we designed and planned out our software. This professional field experience will help us all as we move into our future careers.

John Travis Hunter:

The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program has provided me with the skills needed to succeed in the field of autonomous marine vehicle software engineering. The Capstone program’s documentation requirements at first seemed tedious, but as our development on the project progressed, having detailed documentation proved useful. Being able to see and track the work as the project evolved day by day was satisfying and allowed us to make sure we stayed on track during the development. I learned the importance of requirements traceability in a software development environment. I intended on using my Computer Engineering skills in a different field, however after completing this project I discovered a passion for marine robotics and software engineering, which I hope to continue working with after graduating.

The integration of a senior project is something all engineering students look forward to from the beginning of their time at the University of Rhode Island. The idea that a final culmination of all aspects of their education can be used to showcase the skills learned and test their perseverance to complete a given project excites all engineers. As a team we are exceedingly grateful for this experience and for our placement together especially regarding the trying times all teams endured this year. We believe Dr. Sunak placed us all together based on our interest in this specific project, but also because of our different skills and those we have in common. This dynamic setup allows for a variety of learning opportunities based in the differing viewpoints that come from each of our backgrounds. Together we worked through many disagreements and issues that arise from the project over the course of this past year that ultimately strengthened our relationships. Getting to work as part of a team to accomplish a goal was challenging but offered an opportunity to experience what working on a project engineering team entails.

Speaking in terms of the “real world,” we believe that this project prepared us to face all aspects of the careers we are about to pursue. We understand that there is a lot we still have to learn from where we decide to go with our degrees, but a lot can be said about what we have learned thus far. First and most importantly we must look at the aspect of working as a team. Working with a team of new people is always challenging as you must learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses and then learn to use all these together to create a final product that is not only acceptable to those receiving it, but also to the team presenting it. We learned a lot about each other and also a lot about what each of us was capable of and that proved most useful to giving a final product that we are all proud of. The next aspect to look at was our invaluable technical directors. We understand that in the future there may still be managers who function as a technical director, but not all will be nearly as helpful and understanding as ours were. Our directors gave us a lot of freedom in designing a solution based around the enclosure, the electrical setup, and the software used to develop our solution. With this freedom there were also a few materials that we were required to use including the i.MX6, the Radiolynx chip, and the Buildroot system. The Buildroot system was a major source of where our discussions focused as we were able to look elsewhere when solutions were not working in our favor, but ultimately we came to appreciate the decision and hope it will be useful in our future endeavors. It was amazing to have directors that valued our input and allowed open discussions for things we may or may not agree with and also for changes we think may have helped the final product. All in all, we believe these experiences will prove to be extremely valuable in our future careers and we are readily prepared to enter the real world.

Our passions as a team flourished with the deliverables expected of us. We all had a great deal of interest in embedded systems and linux development platforms which allowed for a project that never became boring. From these deliverables we learned that patience and input from anywhere can be the most important thing in working on a given project. Many times we encountered roadblocks that stopped us from working toward our ABO and these required taking a step back and working on different deliverables or just taking the night off. These moments away gave way into free thinking that often brought about new ideas or solutions to a problem we could not overcome. For example, in completing the boot process of the i.MX6, the process we completed was extremely specific and only worked that certain way, but finding this solution took many weeks of troubleshooting and it was not until one of our members was doing outside research that we saw the issue in the file-system composition. It was these moments that we think became most important to learning that not everything can be completed at once or even smoothly. In terms of technical skills, we all learned a lot about how touchy and difficult embedded systems can be to work with, but we now have a lot of knowledge that can be used in future applications to find a solution quicker than before.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were forced to find new ways of working together and also how to work with directors that were a thousand miles away. Most importantly we learned that working together does not always have to be in the same room or even at the same time. Although we had scheduled meeting times on Tuesdays and Fridays, we all worked on separate sections outside of these times both together and apart. It was also helpful to understand how much the outside world can influence the goals and time constraints set for a project. If we had more time, we certainly could have completed all ABO milestones, but that is also saying that if COVID-19 never happened, we also could have completed all ABO milestones.

For the incoming student’s class 2021-2022, we hope that you will not have to deal with the same regulations and restrictions we had to. Although we were grateful to still have the opportunity to work on these projects, we can see how much more beneficial it would have been to work without covid restrictions and constant quarantines. In more technical terms, take every step of the way as an opportunity to learn something new. Each of us learned a lot about embedded systems and Linux, but we also learned a lot about working as a team and contributing to the final product. The journey may not always look like the end goal, but every piece is just as important as the one before and the one after. We hope you take every step in stride and enjoy the experience as much as we did. Thank you to all of our Technical Directors, Dr. Sunak, and Jack Murphy for all of their guidance and help throughout the process and also for the reminders to keep focused and finish on time.

As senior engineering students, our time at the University of Rhode Island is coming to an end. Looking back on our four years at URI, the ELECOMP Capstone experience is one that is unforgettable. Over the course of the past 9 months, we faced many challenges within our project that tested our will and problem-solving skills. This project gave us a taste of how the real world works and allowed us to work for a company that has a need to fill. Being put on the Phoenix Electric Corp team is something that we are all grateful for, as the three of us work together great and stay motivated through the encouragement we give each other. The largest lesson we have taken away from the ELECOMP capstone project is how to recover from failure. There were many times that we had setbacks that we had to adapt and overcome.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design was an amazing program that left us with great research and development experience. As part of our curriculum it seemed a little daunting when we first started out; but with the help of our capstone director, Dr.Sunak, we were all able to find a project where we all fit in well. Our project provided us with great real-world experience of problem solving and finding creative solutions that will forever stick with us. It is very much a place where you get out what you put in, and tackling your work with passion and enthusiasm is the best path to success. ELECOMP Capstone gives URI graduates a strong head start into the professional world with early exposure to business meetings (both in-person and virtual), work distribution, working within a team, deadlines, and deliverables. Although the weekly assignments and updates did seem a little annoying, we know we are well prepared for our professional careers ahead. If we were to say one thing to next year’s capstone designers is to keep pushing hard and keep doing what motivates you. Always do things that you are most passionate about and fortune will follow.
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about my year as a part of a capstone team is ‘you get out what you put in’. Our project started out as an extension to a summer internship that I, Seth, was a part of but wasn’t able to complete by the end of summer before my senior year. After talking to Dr. Sunak and a couple of people at the NSF, I was able to secure my summer internship as a capstone project. I could not have been more proud of myself when Dr. Sunak accepted my proposal, again ‘You get what you give’. After months of toiling on code, many dead ends, many more hours wisely wasted on more dead ends, many trips to the beach with a drone to realize that we forgot a battery or it was too windy to fly, many days of no motivation followed by weeks of everything working in our favor, I can say that the best thing I learnt from capstone is that I know what motivates me and how I learn best. Although we did learn valuable lessons about working with technical directors, research, time management and hard work, the most important takeaway from capstone is to do something that interests you and inspires you, naturally hard work will follow.

The aspiration of every up-and-coming engineer is to make a meaningful impact and contribution in their field of study. Every engineer reflects and relies on the skills they have acquired throughout their studies to assist them in tackling whatever challenge is placed in their immediate direction. The ELECOMP Senior Capstone Design Project presented the opportunity for every engineer involved to tackle a present issue that local companies have been challenged with and to work towards a resolution that would be to the benefit of both the company and engineers alike. In its entirety, this experience has been truly eye opening as our team was able to expand upon the skill sets that we have built throughout our academic careers and transition them into a “real world” setting. Unlike any of our core courses, Capstone presented us with the chance to progress not just academically but professionally as well. Dr. Sunak took decisive consideration when pairing students with their intended projects, evaluating each candidate’s strengths, weaknesses, and personal preferences to determine which project each student seemed best fit to complete. This allowed each student to work within groups of their peers that they may not have had the chance to work with throughout their time at the university and would be able to bounce ideas to and from each other for the anticipated best outcome. Granted, as with each project, a grace period is necessary for each team member to adjust to their new responsibilities, knowing what will be asked for them to complete during this time.
For our team, there were many challenges we had to overcome. Being our project was primarily programming based, much of the challenges we faced dealt with common programming struggles. What helped us achieve our goals along the way was the guidance of our Technical Directors who have faced similar situations as us and the articles and reference guides found on the MathWorks website and in “the Rust Book” to steer us closer to the necessary steps to overcome these struggles.
Our Technical Directors presented us with considerable guidance, technically and professional, over the course of the last eight months. Through their experience, we were able to gain more knowledge in delivering results. Instead of being vague in our responsibilities and what we want to achieve, we were continuously reminded to break down our responsibilities into small, attainable goals. We would like to thank our Technical Directors for not only their guidance, but for giving us the freedom to explore all possibilities when it came to achieving our goals. Tom Santos and Al Gaines helped our team stay on the necessary and right path to reach our goals, advising us throughout what steps are normally taken in industry and how to apply that to our setting. Dana Brown was a key asset for the electrical engineering team, helping to understand certain MATLAB commands and functions. Dr. Noah Daniels and Najib Ishaq were great assets for the computer engineering team as it came to the configuration of a functioning Rust code.
This year has been truly unique as the COVID-19 Pandemic has been the main external force that every team has had to work around. Leading into this project, our team was already aware that communication would be the most important non-technical skill needed to succeed. This year, however, would be different as every meeting would be conducted through video conferencing. A bright spot in this scenario would be that it allowed our team to enhance our presentation skills when delivering valuable information between ourselves and our Technical Directors. Depending on the duration of the pandemic, our advice for the incoming Capstone class of 2021-2022 is to have patience and persevere. Many times the project will not be going in your favor, and in these times it is helpful to take a second to step back and access the situation. Only from there will your team be able to progress.
Thank you once again to our Technical Directors, Tom Santos, Noah Daniels, Al Gaines, Dana Brown, and Najib Ishaq for their aid and guidance throughout this year, as well as Dr. Sunak for this enriching experience.

The Senior Capstone design project has given us a great opportunity and insight of what we will be expected to do in the outside world after graduating. Transitioning us students into jobs and positions that will be expected of us. With using all the knowledge that was gained throughout the past three years of class and producing an outcome. Our team consists of a computer engineer along with an electrical engineer. Putting both of our minds together to complete what was asked of us. The past year was a combination of research, hardware, and software design. We would like to thank Dr. Sunak, Director of Programs, for the opportunity to work with him, along with the time he committed to ensure our success within our project. We would also like to thank our Technical Director, Thomas Santos, Chuck Angell, Akintoye Onikoyi, and Ken Hartlaub for hiding us throughout the year.

The ELECOMP Capstone Program was an invaluable experience during our time at the University of Rhode Island. We were pushed to apply our skills in practical, industry applications, acquire new skills, and keep up with firm deadlines. As a result of all this, we became more well-rounded engineers and discovered where our passions lie. This would not have been possible without the program director, Dr. Harish Sunak. He worked tirelessly to organize the ELECOMP program with a variety of company sponsors and carefully placed each senior into fitting teams. The interdisciplinary teams helped us collaborate and learn from each other and truly prepared us for our future endeavors.

We would like to sincerely thank our technical directors, Richard Arthur and Peter Jones, and our consulting technical director, Mike Smith. Without their guidance and mentorship, the project would not have been possible. We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute our own ideas to this project.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program is the heart of URI’s Engineering Program. It was clear that being able to partake in the program was going to be a challenge during the pandemic. Essentially the whole premise of Capstone is to teach us the meaning of cooperation and what it is like to work in an engineering environment. Being able to work in Supfina provided great insight on everything as we saw how much team effort required. It was exhilarating being able to work amongst each other and some of the employees at Supfina.

Over the course of the semester, the team worked hard on our project. We would always collaborate our ideas during and out of meetings. Whenever the group would get stuck on certain roadblocks, our technical directors were always willing to provide the assistance that we needed. What we mostly learned was that nearly all technology that was created was not from scratch. Engineers never start from the beginning and work on improving the machinery already made.

Overall, being able to take part in the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program during a pandemic was a captivating experience. We are more than grateful to be able to participate in the program.

The ELECOMP Capstone Design program provides an invaluable learning experience and is a cornerstone of the Electrical and Computer Engineering degree program at URI. The selection process employed by Dr. Sunak is very thorough and succeeds in bringing together the right combination of students to achieve the anticipated outcome of each individual project. Although we all take a variety of the same classes together, everyone has their own strengths, weaknesses, and perspectives that allow for a successful collaboration on an engineering problem.

Working together with technical directors and learning from their engineering experience was an introduction to the field of engineering that some of us had never been a part of before. Aside from the technical aspects of the project that involved independent research, we were also able to gain insight into the design process that none of us were familiar with. Having the motivation for a product, envisioning what that product would look like, and then bringing it to fruition was more valuable than any homework or lab problem from previous classes. Dealing with the economic impact of the project and taking into consideration the cost benefit of certain components over others was a new and valuable concept for us.

Weekly meetings and collaborating remotely was a new challenge specific to the circumstances of Covid-19 that was especially challenging and needed adjusting to. Being able to cope with the new environment and adjust accordingly was something the entire world has had to do, and we were able to show that it could be done at an academic level. Not ever having met in person with our technical directors yet still achieving all that we did to finish this project was an accomplishment in and of itself.

After learning the basic fundamentals of engineering and acquiring the necessary skill sets, the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program provides students with the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills that they have been working hard for in the past few years to real work applications. One can always read and absorb information, however without applying that knowledge to real life applications, one will never be able to truly understand the topic at hand. The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program prepares its students for their future careers by providing them with the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom to complex projects that are not available elsewhere. Through this program, students will understand the importance of working together as a team and the importance of teamwork in the workplace. Students will encounter problems that they have never seen before and learn to overcome them. After completing the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program, students should expect an increase in technical skills, teamwork, leadership skills, organization, time management, problem solving, and communication skills. With this year’s Capstone program being online due to the Covid-19 pandemic, students also learned how to adapt to different work environments whether it’s virtually or in-person. The ELECOMP Capstone Design Program is a program like no other as not many institutions can provide their engineering students with the opportunity to participate in a program such as this. We would like to thank Dr. Sunak, the director of the ELECOMP Capstone Design Program, for organizing this program and providing us with all of the projects and resources. We would also like to thank Taco Comfort Solutions and our Technical Directors, Philip Manning and Nick Costello, for providing us with the project in addition to all of the help, mentoring, and resources that were needed in order to complete our project.

We are grateful to be given this opportunity at the University of Rhode Island. This is an extremely beneficial program for the students and the companies involved. The knowledge and skills gained while working for the ICRL on the Mini-Drone project will translate incredibly in the real word while we are pursuing our dream careers. We believe that this is an essential program for all college students so they are pushed out of their comfort zones and grow as engineers. Thank you to Dr. Sunak for facilitating such a great program, and to our technical director Dr. Stegagno for the exceptional guidance throughout the process.

Heather Rojas:

Capstone isn’t simply a course you take senior year, it’s a technical bootcamp preparing you for entering the world as an engineer. You are assigned a project which at first feels impossibly complex and daunting and you will be amazed at how quickly you grow to understand and apply the knowledge you have gained the past 3 years. Capstone is a challenge, but it will be one of the most rewarding experiences you have at URI.

Nicholas DiLuiso:

Capstone is an extremely challenging course. It has helped me grow familiar with the field of robotics. I have fallen in love with this type of material. Overall this has exceeded my expectations in the way that it is supposed to prepare students for the real world as an engineer. I am extremely grateful to be matched up with two great teammates, and an incredibly intelligent technical director. Capstone is one of the memorable experiences I have had at URI.

Jacob St. Germain:

This course allowed me to grow as a person, and also an emerging engineer. Although we didn’t fully complete our ABO, we still were able to learn an immense amount of knowledge on how a professional project such as this one goes from start to finish. This entire experience working in the robotics lab has helped me realize that one cannot obtain all of the needed skills to be a master in this field in just one year. Without the help from my two amazing teammates and also our wonderful TD, I would’ve learned much less about what it is to be an engineering student at URI. Thank you for everything.

Senior Capstone has been an invaluable experience which has allowed us to apply our learning outside a classroom setting for the first time. This precious opportunity was only available to us due to the tireless work of Dr. Sunak. He did an admirable job of finding enough Capstone projects for our large class in spite of the disruption of the pandemic. We were sorted into projects which best captured our specific passions, and added to interdisciplinary teams. These teams allow us to cover for each other’s weaknesses and collaborate to create something impossible for the individual. Our technical director Professor Stegagno was a vital resource in the completion of our project, our project would not have been possible without his understanding and support. His passion for robotics motivated us to strive to do our best.The strict guidelines for deliverables helped give us a sense of the expectations required of us in the real world. Covid restrictions did not allow for much face to face communication, so we had to adapt to this, and gained the skills to work effectively without in person communication. The Capstone project has been one of the highlights of our academic careers.

A. Throughout this academic year this project has given us a wealth of knowledge and experience in the professional field of engineering of which we thank both the URI ELECOMP Capstone program and its director, Professor Sunak. We were able to be placed into a project which we had personal interest in and paired with team members that shared our passion and enthusiasm for Capstone as a whole. The Technical Directors assigned to our project were professional, knowledgeable and excellent teachers for the trials and problems encountered throughout the duration of the project. Questions were well received, and they fostered an environment for creative and intuitive thinking. During the project, important skills in communication and teamwork as well as workload allocation enabled us to grow as a team as well as individual professionals. Frequent updates and reports to our technical directors showed us the importance of staying on track with project road maps and deadlines, enabling us to better allocate our time towards the project. Overall, this project helped us develop not only as engineers ready to enter the professional world, but as individuals as well.

Our sincere thanks go to our Technical Directors Al Binder, and Nathan Shake, as well as Professor Sunak for this fantastic program, as well as encouraging us to apply ourselves and grow as engineers.

ELECOMP Capstone is a class truly befitting the name. At its spearhead is Doctor Sunack whose passion for the quality of work created by the students sets a high bar for the seniors of the Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering disciplines at URI. Professor Sunack worked tirelessly to round up the best companies in New England to provide the students with their toughest challenge yet. Our project, provided by XMOS allowed us our best experience to see and work with professionals in the field we would be going into. Working with their hardware allowed us the opportunity to get a sense of how a professional company which develops hardware components. Working with their software allowed us to learn about the complexities that enable modern day programs to operate. Both members of this team feel that we have learned a tremendous amount of practical knowledge that can be missing from a lot of single semester classes which are limited in the scope of their homework and project assignments. Prior to this the largest assignments that could be expected would be utilized in place of final projects and were limited to the knowledge that the students had learned within the class. Capstone breaks the mold by encouraging students to work hard at their project during each semester and even over winter break.

We extend our thanks to the ELECOMP CAPSTONE organization for making it possible to be part of this well put together program. In the beginning, it was a very unpredictable event with no trail or clue of which people you would partner up with. This makes it even more special because life is full of surprises. Next, you get to meet the people of your team and wonder if you all correctly match or question whether the team is right for you or not. The realness of life unravels itself before you. You meet them then realize that you are all humans and have been brought together to accomplish one goal, making the project work. Our team feels much more prepared to work in a real-life engineering environment after 8 months of experience. Our understanding of the project was clearer as we proceeded with it, and we are confident now to tackle any project. Some key technical skills we learned from this project were critical thinking, prototype design, design with embedded systems, and how to work as an engineering team to accomplish a goal. Through Covid-19, we gained skills on how to work as a team remotely, and how to communicate effectively while at home. Advice that we would give future classes would be to get a head start and do your research early, as there will be unexpected problems that can halt your success later on. Team Zebra cherishes the friendships that have been created with our group mates and the quality of work that we have achieved at the end of the program. A special thanks goes out to Matthew Corvese, Alex DePetrillo, Patrick Hegarty, Professor Mike Smith, Professor Harish Sunak, and Jack Murphy for making this possible and giving the best opportunity for Team Zebra to succeed.