Date of Defense

4-12-1999

Department

Electrical and Computer Engineering

First Advisor

Dr. Lambert Vander Kooi

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to provide the sponsor with a device that could download messages that were already stored in a personal computer (PC), store them in an external storage device, and play them back on command without the use of the PC. In order to implement this idea, it was decided that four main components needed to be designed and integrated together. The first point that needed to be addressed was to devise a circuit configuration that would allow the hardware and software portions of the device to be easily compatible. Second, a power supply was designed and built to provide the necessary voltage and current to each component of the circuit. Next, software was written, compiled, and tested to control the circuit. Finally, an amplifier was designed and built to amplify the output signal. After the circuit was built and the software was tested, the process of integrating the hardware and software began. Several different sections of the software program were downloaded to a microcontroller and used to perform diagnostic checks on the individual components of the circuit. During the course of testing, it was determined that each component successfully performed its task individually, but when the complete program was downloaded and the entire circuit was tested, problems ensued. The problems appeared to occur when the software called for the initialization of the storage device. Due to time constraints, troubleshooting was incomplete and the problem was not resolved. Possible solutions are to use a storage device with a simpler architecture or to use a design that is more software oriented to communicate with the storage device. These changes would eliminate several of the hardware components and minimize hardware complications. The design would then become more dependent on the software aspect, which would simplify the hardware and software integration process.

Access Setting

Honors Thesis-Campus Only

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