Syllabus

Instructor

Prof. Timothy Bretl

  • Email: tbretl@illinois.edu
  • Phone: 217-244-3126
  • Website
  • Office Hours:
    • Tuesdays at 1:00pm-2:00pm in Talbot 319G
    • Thursdays at 11:00am-12:00pm in Talbot 319G

Teaching Assistants

Su Yeon Choi

  • Email: suyeonc3@illinois.edu
  • Office Hours:
    • Wednesdays at 5:00pm-6:00pm in Talbot 2nd floor lounge
    • Fridays at 12:00pm-1:00pm in Talbot 2nd floor lounge

Jongwon Lee

  • Email: jongwon5@illinois.edu
  • Office Hours:
    • Mondays at 4:00pm-6:00pm in Talbot 2nd floor lounge
    • Thursdays at 1:00pm-3:00pm in Talbot 319M

Course Assistants

  • William Schafer
  • Ethan Snodgrass
  • Shivani Atre
  • William Hunter
  • Ruben Hernandez
  • Adam Casselman
  • Arna Bhardwaj
  • Justin Abel
  • Damian Thomas

Time and Place

Lecture will be in-person:

  • Time: Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 11:00am-11:50pm CST
  • Place: 2310 Everitt

Discussion Forum

Canvas

Course Description

Modeling, analysis, and control of linear dynamic systems.

Prerequisite

Be an undergraduate student in Aerospace Engineering, with credit or concurrent registration in MATH 225, MATH 285, and TAM 212 (or equivalent). You cannot take this class if you have already taken GE 320 or ME 340.

Reference Text

The following book is available online for free, as a reference:

There is no required textbook.

Homework

You will complete many short homework assignments using PrairieLearn.

Exams

You will take four 50-minute exams during the semester in the Computer-Based Testing Facility (CBTF). Optionally, you may retake each exam exactly once. If you retake an exam, your score will be computed as follows:

\[\text{final score} = \frac{9}{10}\left(\text{higher score}\right) + \frac{1}{10}\left(\text{lower score}\right)\]

The policies of the CBTF are the policies of this course, and academic integrity infractions related to the CBTF are infractions in this course.

If you have accommodations identified by the Division of Rehabilitation-Education Services (DRES) for exams, please submit your Letter of Accommodations (LOA) through the DRES Accommodations tab on the CBTF website as soon as possible. It can take up to five days for your LOA to be processed and if you make a reservation before your LOA has been processed, your reservation will not include your testing accommodations and you will be required to reschedule. This must be done each semester you use the CBTF.

If you have any issue during an exam, inform the proctor immediately. Work with the proctor to resolve the issue at the time before logging off. If you do not inform a proctor of a problem during the test then you forfeit all rights to addressing the problem you experienced during your exam.

Take the CBTF orientation (10 minutes) and review all instructions on the CBTF website before your first exam.

Design Projects

You will complete four design projects in groups of two (or three, if we have an odd number of students) that require the submission of python code, a short video, and a written report. You may talk with other colleagues about these projects, so long as all materials submitted are those of your own group (see academic integrity).

Final Exam

There will be no final exam.

Grading

Grades will be posted to canvas.

Distribution

  • 20% homework
  • 20% exams
  • 60% design projects

Scale

  • 97-100 (A+), 93-97 (A), 90-93 (A-), 87-90 (B+), etc.
  • No curve will be applied to the grades.

Extra Credit

You may be given opportunities to earn extra credit on various assignments. This credit will apply only to the type of assignment for which it was given. For example, you may earn a maximum of 20% for homework, regardless of how much extra credit you receive on homework assignments.

Time Management

You will earn three credit hours for completing this course. The federal definition of a “credit hour” is an amount of work that reasonably approximates not less than one hour of instruction and two hours of out-of-class student work each week throughout the semester. Therefore, each of you should expect to spend about nine hours on this course each week, including the time you spend in lecture. If you find yourself spending much less or much more time and are struggling with time management, please ask one of us for help.

Absences and Late Work

We expect you to attend all lectures. We also expect you to submit all assignments and take all exams on time.

We also want you to stay home when you are ill or when you need time for yourself — to not participate in lecture, exams, or in-person group work under these circumstances. Similarly, we want you to take advantage of opportunities to interview for jobs and to participate in the sorts of events (academic conferences and competitions, intercollegiate athletics, etc.) that enrich your experience at university.

Therefore, we will assume that you are acting in good faith and that absences and late work will be rare. We will handle them on a case-by-case basis. Please ask one of us for help when this situation arises.

Academic Integrity

You are encouraged to talk with all of your colleagues about all of your work this semester, so long as you acknowledge and cite the people with whom you talked. Materials submitted must be your own — please refer to the student code for a definition of plagiarism, which is an academic integrity infraction. Academic integrity allegations like plagiarism will be reported using the Faculty Academic Integrity Reporting (FAIR) system. Confirmed infractions may result in a zero grade for the corresponding assignment and, in some cases, a failing grade for the course. If you are unsure of what constitutes plagiarism or any other breach of academic integrity, please ask one of us for help.

Belonging

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A feeling of belonging and inclusion is critical to the success and health of our community. The Aerospace Engineering department has a committee called Aero’s Space to Belong. They offer office hours, one-on-one discussion, and a reporting process. If you experience conflict that undermines your or someone else’s feelings of belonging, please consider using these resources.

Anti-Racism and Inclusivity

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The Grainger College of Engineering is committed to the creation of an anti-racist, inclusive community that welcomes diversity along a number of dimensions, including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity and national origins, gender and gender identity, sexuality, disability status, class, age, or religious beliefs. The College recognizes that we are learning together in the midst of the Black Lives Matter movement, that Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous voices and contributions have largely either been excluded from, or not recognized in, science and engineering, and that both overt racism and micro-aggressions threaten the well-being of our students and our university community.

The effectiveness of this course is dependent upon each of us to create a safe and encouraging learning environment that allows for the open exchange of ideas while also ensuring equitable opportunities and respect for all of us. Everyone is expected to help establish and maintain an environment where students, staff, and faculty can contribute without fear of personal ridicule, or intolerant or offensive language. If you witness or experience racism, discrimination, micro-aggressions, or other offensive behavior, you are encouraged to bring this to the attention of the course director if you feel comfortable. You can also report these behaviors to Campus Belonging in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (VCDEI). Based on your report, Campus Belonging staff will follow up and reach out to students to make sure they have the support they need to be healthy and safe. If the reported behavior also violates university policy, staff in the Office for Student Conflict Resolution may respond as well and will take appropriate action.

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To obtain disability-related academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids, students with disabilities must contact the course instructor and the Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES) as soon as possible. To contact DRES, you may visit 1207 S. Oak St., Champaign, call 333-4603, e-mail disability@illinois.edu or go to https://www.disability.illinois.edu. If you are concerned you have a disability-related condition that is impacting your academic progress, there are academic screening appointments available that can help diagnosis a previously undiagnosed disability. You may access these by visiting the DRES website and selecting “Request an Academic Screening” at the bottom of the page.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

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Any student who has suppressed their directory information pursuant to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) should self-identify to the instructor to ensure protection of the privacy of their attendance in this course. See https://registrar.illinois.edu/academic-records/ferpa/ for more information on FERPA.

Religious Observances

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Illinois law requires the University to reasonably accommodate its students’ religious beliefs, observances, and practices in regard to admissions, class attendance, and the scheduling of examinations and work requirements. You should examine this syllabus at the beginning of the semester for potential conflicts between course deadlines and any of your religious observances. If a conflict exists, you should notify your instructor of the conflict and follow the procedure at https://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/resources/students/religious-observances/ to request appropriate accommodations. This should be done in the first two weeks of classes.

Sexual Misconduct Reporting Obligation

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The University of Illinois is committed to combating sexual misconduct. Faculty and staff members are required to report any instances of sexual misconduct to the University’s Title IX Office. In turn, an individual with the Title IX Office will provide information about rights and options, including accommodations, support services, the campus disciplinary process, and law enforcement options.

A list of the designated University employees who, as counselors, confidential advisors, and medical professionals, do not have this reporting responsibility and can maintain confidentiality, can be found at http://wecare.illinois.edu/resources/students/#confidential.

Other information about resources and reporting is available at http://wecare.illinois.edu/.

Emergency Response

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Emergency response recommendations can be found at the following website: http://police.illinois.edu/emergency-preparedness/. I encourage you to review this website and the campus building floor plans website within the first 10 days of class: http://police.illinois.edu/emergency-preparedness/building-emergency-action-plans/.