2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Developing Entrepreneurial Skills through an Innovative Senior Capstone Design Project - MouseHead

Presented at Project-Based Learning Enhanced through Instrumentation

Whilst the Senior Capstone Design Project course has traditionally been used to train students of engineering (E) and engineering technology (ET) with practical skills and to prepare them for real engineering life, there has been somewhat of a lack of training and encouragement of students to become entrepreneurs after graduating from their degree programs.

Through recent modifications and additions to the course content offered by the ECE and EET programs at __________ _____ University, the Capstone Design course experience now includes a component the seeks to encourage the development of entrepreneurial skills in the for our Capstone Design Students.
In this paper we will present the design of an innovative Hands-Free Computer Controller (MouseHead), that was designed for use by individuals with physical impairments and disabilities. The paper also discusses some of the entrepreneurial aspects that were incorporated in the course through design process, and preliminary results from the project will be presented.

The limitations experienced by individuals with impairments and disabilities create many difficulties for those individuals, especially their ability to use certain technology. With technology being such a driving force in society, more opportunities are created for those who are not able to leave their homes as easily. Individuals with impairments such as amputees, and paraplegics, need alternate ways of operating computers. Using mouse controls and typing may be difficult for those individuals those with limited to no arm control which eliminates an avenue they could use for work and improving their lifestyle. MouseHead is designed to address this problem. It provides users the ability to control their computer using a combination of head movement, blinking, voice control, and simple gestures. Users will be able to move their head position to control the cursor, use their voice to operate simple functions, and even blink to control the mouse clicks. MouseHead gives those with impairments and disabilities the ability to completely operate a computer hands-free.

Authors

Dr. Austin B. Asgill P.E. Kennesaw State University [biography]

Dr Austin B. Asgill received his B.Eng.(hons) (E.E.) degree from Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, his M.Sc. (E.E.) degree from the University of Aston in Birmingham, and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of South Florida. He is currently a Professor of Engineering Technology (Electrical) at Kennesaw State University (KSU). Prior to joining the faculty at KSU (formerly SPSU), he was an Associate Professor of Electronic Engineering Technology at Florida A&M University (FAMU), where he served as Program Area Coordinator and Interim Division Director. With over 30 years of teaching experience in Electrical/Electronic Engineering and Engineering Technology, he currently teaches in the areas of networking, communication systems, biomedical instrumentation, digital signal processing, and analog and digital electronics. He has worked in industry in the areas of telephony, networking, switching and transmission systems, and RF and MMIC circuits and system design. Dr. Asgill also has an MBA in Entrepreneurial Management from Florida State University. He has served on the board of the Tau Alpha Pi (TAP) National ET Honors Society since 2012 (Chair 2012-2014). He is a Life Senior Member of the IEEE, a Member of the ASEE, and is a licensed Professional Engineer (P.E.) in the state of Florida.
Dr. Cyril B Okhio P.E. http://orcid.org/https://0000-0001-8418-6110 Kennesaw State University [biography]

Cyril B. Okhio is a Faculty at the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering & Engineering Technology, Kennesaw State University and an Adjunct Professor at Clark Atlanta University’s Dual Degree Engineering Program. He earned his B.S. (Engineering) and Ph.D. (Mechanical Engineering) degrees from, and was an (Science and Engineering Research Council) SERC Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of London. He is registered as a Chartered Professional Engineer (CPE) with the Council of Registered Engineers, United Kingdom; a Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, UK and a Member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers, USA. Dr. Okhio has many years of administrative experience including Chairmanship of a Mechanical Engineering Department. Dr. Okhio understands that most engineering problems require multi-disciplinary solutions that embrace the new concepts of PLM approach so that the resulting solutions can be sustainable and all encompassing.
Dr. Okhio has carried out experimental and numerical investigations of, and developed statistical analysis tools and computer codes, for the calculation of complex fluid flows. Some of this work has been published in international journals. He is currently involved in multi-disciplinary research and development concerning Condition Monitoring of Engineered Systems; applications of Additive Manufacturing Tools to the study of Design for Manufacturability of Engineering Components and Systems; Vehicular Systems and Safety Engineering, associated with SPSU Visualization & Simulation Research Center for which he is a co-PI. Dr. Okhio is very familiar with the level of technology and development, world-wide. He has visited many countries including Taiwan, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Senegal, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, and he lived in the United Kingdom for more than 12 years. He is married with two children.

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