IEEE-CS: Projects

SunSPOT Project:

IEEE-CS has one of the newest, state-of-the-art SUN products with some of the most advanced features todate for developers. These devices can be used in a wide range of applications including robotics, environmental monitoring, asset tracking, proactive health care and many others. Sun SPOTs are powered by a specially designed small-footprint Java virtual machine, called Squawk, that can host multiple applications concurrently, and requires no underlying operating system. Stackable boards include application-specific sensors and actuators such as accelerometers, light detectors, temperature sensors, LEDs, push buttons and general I/O pins. The devices can be duty cycled to run for months on a single charge of their rechargeable battery.

What is Project Sun SPOT?

Sun has been very successful in spreading Java to over 6 billion devices throughout the world. Well over a billion cell phones run Java. We in Sun Labs are interested in what comes next. In order to help make sure that the next generation of gadgets is based Sun technology, we developed Sun Small Programable Object Technology (SPOT). We've created an experimental platform to inspire developers to build the next great toy, sensor, communication device-- who knows -- using Sun technology. Our Sun SPOT devices make include a flexible hardware platform as well as the software and tools to make it easy to innovate, experiment, and prototype whatever a developer can imagine.

What is a Sun SPOT Device?

The Sun SPOT Device is a small, wireless, battery powered experimental platform. It is programmed almost entirely in Java to allow regular programmers to create projects that used to require specialized embedded system development skills. The hardware platform includes a range of built-in sensors as well as the ability to easily interface to external devices.

Read on here!

Linux Install Seminar:

Once or twice a semester, we hold a Linux Install Seminar. We assist people in installing linux on their computer and teach them the basics of using it. In our recent seminars, we have been teaching people how to set up a dual-boot system with Windows and Linux both. In our next seminar, we will focus on learning how to use Linux, bypassing installation by using a "Live CD" distro. That way, we can go much more indepth.

Spring Picnic:

We host a Spring Picnic for the College of Engineering and Applied Science every year some time mid Spring. It is typically an afternoon of free food, drinks (non-alcoholic, of course), and entertainment. This allows the students and faculty to interact outside of the classroom on a more social level. Check our home page for more details!

Mailing Lists:

We currently are interested in migrating the mailing lists that the Engineering and Applied Science Organizations use from Mailman to a system that will allow us more customization and has a more user friendly interface.

Computer Upgrades:

Our top priority this semester and next semester is to fully document how our server works, which provides connectivity, mail, and other resources to all engineering organizations at UWM. This way, any member interested in learning about server configuration can work on our server and learn how to read and edit those files. Once the server is fully documented, we will be rebuilding it from the ground up. We are using Fedora 10 now, but will likely migrate to a new distro when it comes time to upgrade.