ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING By Joan Omoruyi, Engineering Librarian, Northeastern University

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1 ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING By Joan Omoruyi, Engineering Librarian, Northeastern University. Soon after physicists began to understand electricity, the electrical engineering profession was born and it is now the largest of all engineering branches. Electricity has served two main functions in society, the transmission of power and of information. Electrical engineers who specialize in power transmission design and build power electric generators, electric motors, and other high power equipment. Those who specialize in information transmission design and build radios, televisions, computers, antennae, instrumentation, and communications equipment. Electrical engineers work with equipment ranging from heavy power generators to tiny computer chips. Electrical engineering is the study of how the interactions of electrons with matter can be exploited for useful applications. The interaction of electrons with solids - their movement through wires or their storage in semiconductor devices are fundamental to electrical engineering. These interactions can be used for many useful purposes. Examples are: Produce the power for electricity Convert radio signals into audible sounds Allows physicians to diagnose problems in human bodies Convert energy into light in an incandescent lightbulb or in a television screen Interact with a gas to emit light, a fluorescent lightbulb is a device for converting the energy of an electron to a light through an interaction with a mixture of argon gas and mercury vapor Radiate energy, which forms the basis for the transmitting of television or cell phone signals over long distances. COMPUTER ENGINEERING: has emerged as a separate engineering discipline, sharing many similarities with electrical engineering. The focus is on designing and building computers and computer systems. This field is expanding and at times it is difficult to identify the difference between electrical engineers, computer engineers and computer scientists. However computer scientists are interested in designing the software used by 1

2 the computers with a focus primarily on constructing algorithms to implement calculations and the efficient design of software to run computers. Computer engineers need to understand the software but focus primarily on the design of the hardware that runs the software. Electrical engineers design and build hardware used in applications other than computers. Many modern electronic systems are computer controlled. Every modern automobile has a microcontroller which is essentially a mini-computer under the hood which monitors and controls all the functions of the engine. The computer design and software of this microcontroller will often be done by an electrical engineer. ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING SPECIALIZATIONS There are many specializations in this field including: Power: Electrical engineers work on the design and building of power distribution systems. They also are involved in the development of alternative power sources such as solar voltaics, wind turbines and fuel cells. However they are never involved in the wiring of buildings and houses, which is done by electricians, but electrical engineers establish the electrical codes and standards used in buildings and houses. Electronics: Electrical engineers designed the earliest versions of radio and television and continue to work on developments in this area. Electrical engineers also design special electronic circuits for airplanes, for the heating and air conditioning systems in homes and buildings and one-of-a-kind circuits for some manufactured products. Computers: Computer engineers are now distinct from electrical engineers and are employed in many computer companies. In addition since nearly all electronic systems have some kind of computer control computer engineers are employed in a variety of engineering settings. Wireless communication: Electrical engineers have made significant contributions in designing the communications system of the United States and of the world. The communication system has been expanded and improved so that computers can be networked without a phone line. Both electrical and computer engineers are needed. The electrical engineers are needed to design cell phones and the miniature systems they use as well as the switching networks required to run a cell phone system. 2

3 Microelectronics and integrated circuits: The backbone of the modern electronics, computer and communication industries are integrated circuits. The invention of the integrated circuit with millions of transistors in a single piece of silicon the size of a thumbnail revolutionized the way electronic circuits were designed and led to a new field microelectronics. Microelectronics focuses on the design of extremely small electronic devices and their interconnecting to form useful devices. The integrated circuit industry employs many electrical engineers. Microelectronic engineers work with chemical engineers, manufacturing engineers and production technicians to ensure that the processes for building integrated circuits are working properly. Control systems: Control systems are essential in many engineered devices. An example is the antilock braking systems which contain sensors to detect when the driver has applied the brake, while other sensors detect if one of the wheels has locked and started to skid and an electronic module to automatically direct the braking function to pump the brakes multiple times each second so that the driver can maintain control of the vehicle. Electrical engineers design the system but there is a computerized module that is the work of computer engineers. Electromagnetics: This refers to the propagation information by time-varying electric and magnetic fields, for example the design of antennas that send and receive cell phone signals. Signal processing: The signals produced in many applications are often corrupted by the presence of electrical noise. Noise is an unwanted transient voltage or current that is present in all electrical systems. Noise can come from phenomena internal to an electrical device or from external signals that are accidentally picked up. Noise is a problem because it severely limits the ability of a device to detect interesting signals. As an example, a radio signal from a distant source cannot be detected since its amplitude is smaller than that of the noise. One of the tasks of signal pulling is to try to find ways to pull meaningful signals out of the noise. It can also convert analog develop methods for converting analog information into its digital equivalent. An analog signal can be changed to digital by sampling the signal periodically and assigning a digital number to each level of the signal. Signal processing is used to make this conversion. Both electrical and computer engineers find employment in signal processing. 3

4 Image processing: Image processing is similar in many ways to signal processing, but instead focuses mainly on the processing of information in pictorial form Image processing also involves both computer and electrical engineers. Engineers with image processing skills are employed by companies making medical diagnostic equipment. Their skills help the company to make machines that generate high-quality and easily interpreted images that help physicians make accurate diagnoses. Astronomers use image processing to take electronic images of celestial objects and process them to yield useful information. By using specialized optical equipment, engineers can detect the chemical processes taking place within an automobile engine. This information can then be processed to form an image of what is taking place and help the automotive engineers tune their engine designs. Biomedical: the biomedical engineering field employs many different types of engineers including electrical and computer engineers. Biomedical engineering is concerned with the engineering of new diagnostic and treatment tools and new processes for delivering therapy to patients. Optoelectronics: This field straddles the line between electronics and optics. Optoelectronics experts have worked to develop optical sensors and optical emitters including lasers. Optoelectronic components are incorporated into CD and DVD players and laser printers which utilize miniature lasers. The development of optical fiber technology has allowed for telephone conversations and data communications such as the internet to be carried over optical cables. Plasmas: Plasmas are sometimes known as the fourth state of matter. It is a collection of electrons, ions and neutral atoms or molecules, generally in a gaseous form. However the presence of charged particles means that it behaves differently from a gas. Most of the matter in space is in the form of a plasma. Plasmas have many engineering uses. Fluorescent lightbulbs and neon signs contain plasmas as well. Plasmas are also important in the microelectronics and integrated circuit industry. Electrical engineers working in plasma are typically employed by lighting companies. Robotics: Robotics is a very important technology industry. Modern manufacturing processes are highly dependent on robots to perform repetitive tasks quickly and accurately. Electrical and computer engineers working in robotics work closely with 4

5 manufacturing engineers to help design robots for industrial production-line applications and mechanical engineers to design mechanical aspects of the robot. References Fleddermann, Charles B., Bradshaw, Martin D. Introduction to electrical and computer engineering. Upper Saddle River( NJ):Pearson Education, Wright, Paul H. Introduction to engineering. 3 rd ed. New York (NY): Wiley,