The ÂSPIRE Capstone Program was developed in partnership with the Army C5ISR Center Research & Integration Directorate (RTI). ÂSPIRE is a capstone series to foster university student development, critical thinking, team building, cross-disciplinary & cross-university projects, and Army application skills to develop future workforce for the Army C5ISR needs in research, technology and Innovation.

The proposed capstone program is designed for education & workforce, practical experience and collaboration with C5ISR Center RTI and ÂSPIRE community. Each of these two-semester projects consists of a team of undergraduate students supervised by the university faculty and guided by the Government, and work with the sponsor’s technical staff when possible. In general, the student team will develop an engineering design, write their results in interim reports and a final report (in the form of posters), and present their results at the RTI workshop. In the ÂSPIRE program, student teams will also present their work exclusively to the RTI management and staff. The students also have the opportunity to present their results in regional and national science & engineering student conferences and competitions. In some cases technical publications can result from these activities.

The objectives of the capstone projects are to introduce the students to important areas of science and technology that are of interest to C5ISR applications. It prepares students to enter the workforce in government labs and in industry, get recruited as well-trained students to graduate school, and learn about research & technology in areas of interest to C5ISR Center RTI. These projects enhance interaction between the university faculty, students, RTI staff and ÂSPIRE community researchers and help guide educational and research efforts at the university towards innovation.

STANDARD DESIGN COURSE

The standard design or capstone experience for undergraduates is a two-semester course. The first semester is mainly devoted to proposal development and design for a multidisciplinary group project. The capstone design projects aim at developing engineering design skills. Elements of developing a successful design proposal are emphasized along with written communication skills, engineering professional development, technical presentation skills, developing an understanding of the societal impact of the project, and developing realistic constraints on the design based on engineering standards. In the second semester, the students implement the design proposal developed in the first semester, build a working model or prototype, write their final report, and demonstrate/present their results in oral and poster formats. In most cases a practical working model and/or prototype demonstration is showcased to the sponsors.

COURSE LEARNING MAJOR OUTCOMES

• Practice of the engineering design process and develop scientific skills
• Implement the engineering design, understand design constraints, and explore alternative designs
• Test design, determine functionality and limitations.
• Write a professional engineering report
• Skills necessary to interact as productive members of an engineering team
• Appreciation of engineering ethics
• Develop awareness of societal, environmental, educational, and economic issues of the engineering profession. Learn Army challenges by working on projects provided and sponsored by the Army
• Present a professional oral presentation and/or demonstration

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

• An important outcome is student internship at C5ISR Center RTI
• Another important outcome is student opportunity for recruitment as junior scientists and engineers at the C5ISR Center RTI and RTI's affiliated organizations within the US Army
• Recruited students will also have the opportunity to enhance their carrier through RTI's advanced degree and broadening programs

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