Paper ID #35009

Laboratory Instruction and Delivery of a Pilot IoT Course

Mr. Steven T Rowland
Mr. Michael William Eckels
Dr. Ramakrishnan Sundaram, Gannon University

Dr. Sundaram is a Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Gannon Univer-
sity. His areas of research include computational architectures for signal and image processing as well as
novel methods to improve/enhance engineering education pedagogy.

American
c Society for Engineering Education, 2021
 Work-in-Progress: Laboratory Instruction and Delivery of a Pilot
IoT Course

Abstract
This work-in-progress paper discusses the laboratory setup and delivery of a pilot course on the
fundamentals of Internet of Things (IoT). Hands-on laboratory experiments and project-based
experiences are adopted to introduce and reinforce IoT-related concepts. The laboratory
experiments introduce the students to (a) the collection of data using temperature and motion
sensors (b) program the microcontroller, and (c) to communicate between WiFi-enabled
modules. Rather than using the hardware and software tools from an established vendor in the
areas of IoT, we chose to design and assemble our laboratory experiments and projects with
simple, cost-effective, off-the-shelf components. The project activities focused on system design
and integration based on the laboratory experiments to configure IoT devices.

The students are expected to have basic knowledge of electrical circuits and electronics, as well
as programming skills in higher-level languages such as C/C++. The introductory laboratory
experiment engages the student with the Arduino microcontroller and IDE. Students program the
microcontroller to communicate with two temperature sensors, one digital, the other analog. This
introduces the idea behind configuring the laboratory setup to read data from sensors locally and
record the outcomes based on simple programming steps. Later laboratory experiments involve
(a) wireless modules for node-client communication, (b) node to node serial Bluetooth streaming
over Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), (c) integration of sensors and other
devices into one "Base station", and (d) using the "Base station" with an ESP8266 WiFi module
to send data to the cloud. One of the term projects required the students to use the collective
knowledge of the laboratory experiments outlined above to create an IoT-based detection
system.. Despite the health pandemic, remote instruction and delivery of course materials, as
well as the evaluation and assessment of the submission of each student was successfully
accomplished.

Introduction
Emergent technologies in wireless data communication and computing are rapidly altering the
engineering landscape. The engineering programs at universities across the world must adapt
their courses and curricula to incorporate modern technologies in their courses, classrooms, and
engineering laboratories. The engineering students who enroll at these universities expect to be
educated and trained with the latest industry-approved tools and technologies to function
effectively in the engineering industry. In recent years, the internet-of-things (IoT) [1]-[5] has
burgeoned at astounding rates. The IoT describes the network of physical devices and machines,
loosely labeled "Things" to the internet. These devices are embedded with sensors, software, and
microcontrollers to connect and exchange data with the other devices and/or systems of devices
over the internet. The devices can span the gamut of basic household appliances to complex
industrial tools and machines.

IoT is enabling the following industries to function efficiently and productively at the highest
possible levels.
• Manufacturing – production-line monitoring, detect equipment malfunction
 • Automotive – early notification of potential sensor/actuator failures
• Retail – manage the inventory, optimize the supply chain, reduce operational costs, and
improve the experiences of the customer
• Healthcare – patient monitoring, access to medical records

The authors of this paper realized the need for IoT-related laboratory experiments and project
activities in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) curriculum. Figure 1 illustrates the
intent of the course. The first two authors had been managing and coordinating the ECE
laboratories for the past three to four years and had considerable familiarity, knowledge, and
skills with the components and equipment needed to assemble and test IoT devices. Each device
in the Figure can be assembled and tested without recourse to expensive laboratory-based
equipment. The pilot IoT course was first offered by the ECE department at our University in the
Spring 2020 semester even as the health pandemic was rapidly becoming a global crisis. The first
two authors showed the foresight to prepare the laboratory experiments and project activities not
requiring desktop equipment. This proved extremely useful when the spread of the pandemic led
to the shutdown of the buildings and facilities campus-wide. Even though each student was
unable to access the ECE laboratories and had to work remotely and in isolation, he/she could
still perform the laboratory experiments and project activities of the pilot IoT course. This can be
attributed to the fact that the list of components needed for each laboratory activity was packaged
in portable units and issued to each student. Details of some of the laboratory activities and
project activities are presented later in this manuscript.

Figure 1: IoT devices and the backbone network

This paper is organized in six sections. Section 1 outlines the setup of the course and includes the
course description and the course outcomes (CO), the schedule of the laboratory experiments and
project activities, the use of performance indicators (PI) for each student outcome (SO) as
mandated by ABET [6] and used to measure the CO, and the mapping of each CO to the proper
SO (student outcome). Section 2 provides a summary of each laboratory experiment and the
equipment used. Section 3 summarizes the project activities. Section 4 outlines the remote
instruction during the health pandemic. Section 5 discusses the learning outcomes assessment,
and Section 6 includes conclusions and plans for future work.

Section 1: IoT Course Setup

The course is an introduction to IoT at the system, subsystem, and component level. Students
will gain hands-on experience assembling and testing IoT devices to achieve node to client
communication, node to node communication, and peer to cloud communication. The student
enrolled in the course are expected to have knowledge of electric circuits and electronics, as well
as have programming skills in higher-level languages such as C/C++. The laboratory
experiments and project activities are designed to make the student assemble the hardware
components on a breadboard or use wires to interface the components directly to the pins of the
microcontroller or IoT device. The microcontroller IDE [7] provides the ability to create, edit,
and save a program (called a sketch) on the local workstation. The IDE also includes example
software written in C/C++ available for upload to the board. A Web Editor is also available,
enabling programs to be modified and added on/to the Cloud.

The four COs are identified as follows:

CO_1: Describe what IoT is and how it works today
CO_2: Design and program IoT devices
CO_3: Examine the security and privacy challenges of IoT
CO_4: Find proper security/privacy solutions for IoT

The course meets twice each week for fourteen weeks. The duration of each meeting is eighty
minutes (one hour and twenty minutes). Table 1 identifies the topical theme, the laboratory
experiment(s), and project(s) associated with each theme and the session number(s).

Table 1: IoT course outline

Theme Laboratory Experiment/Project Session #(s)
Course overview: IoT technology and impact Arduino microcontroller 1-3
XBee modules 4-6
LoRa Packet Radio 7,8
Sensors & data communication in IoT
Bluetooth audio 9,10
UDP transmitter and receiver 11,12
Case study: IoT application and design issues 13,14
Arduino-based detection system
Term project 1 14,16
Cybersecurity overview in IoT 17,18
Encrypted LoRa
Security threats and data privacy in IoT 19,20
Cloud and IoT integration Access point and Webserver 21,22
Cloud-enabled IoT application ESP and sensor data to Google Sheet 23,24
Term project 2 ESP-based detection system 25-28
Unfortunately, due to the health pandemic, some sessions were missed to allow the students to
transition from working in teams of two in the laboratory to working individually and remotely.
The ESP-based experiment named with the theme Cloud-enabled IoT application (Session #23,
Session #24) was not assigned. Also, the laboratory experiment titled UDP transmitter and
receiver was not assigned but will be on the list for the IoT course in Spring 2021.

The PIs (Performance Indicators) are associated with each SO. PIs are used to gauge the
competency of the student to meet or exceed course expectations in each CO. The key
assignment is used to measure the PI. The typical relationship between the key assignment and
the justification for the mapping to the chosen PI, the mapping of the PI to the CO, and the
corresponding SO is shown below for CO_2 and CO_3.

SO_6: An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze, and interpret data,
and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions

CO_2: Design and program IoT devices

PI_6_2: Conduct experiments and perform measurements

Key Assignment: Lab Experiment 2

Justification: Lab Experiment 2 requires the student to (a) set up node-client
communication and (b) send the state of a sensor from the node to the
client. Lab experiment 2 measures the ability to conduct experiments and
perform measurements (PI_6_2), and the ability to develop and conduct
appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use
engineering judgment to draw conclusions (SO_6).

SO_4: An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations

and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in
global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts

CO_3: Examine the security and privacy challenges of IoT

PI_4_2: Understand technology, its application, and potential consequences

Key Assignment: Lab Experiment 4

Justification: Lab Experiment 4 requires the student to implement secure peer to cloud
data communication (PI_4_2). Lab experiment 6 measures the ability to
recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations
and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of
engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal
contexts (SO_4).

Section 2: Laboratory Experiments

The following primary devices are used in laboratory experiments.

• Arduino Mega 2560 [Figure 2(a)]

• ESP8266 WiFi module [Figure 2(b)]
 • XBee wireless module [Figure 3(a)]
• LoRa packet radio module [Figure 3(b)]
• Bluefruit Low Energy (BLE) module [Figure 4]

(a) (b)

Figure 2: (a) Arduino Mega 2560 (b) ESP8266 WiFi

(a) (b)
Figure 3: (a) XBee wireless module (b) LoRa packet radio module

Figure 4: Bluefruit Low Energy (BLE) module

For instance, Figure 5 shows the wiring diagram for the connection between the digital
temperature sensor (MCP9808) and the Arduino Mega board.

Figure 5: Arduino Mega to the digital sensor interface

Table 2 summarizes the activities and the equipment [8] needed in each laboratory experiment.

Table 2: Laboratory experiment and activities summary

Lab Number Laboratory Experiment and Activities Summary

Arduino Microcontroller:
Students will experiment with the Arduino microcontroller and IDE. Students will
Introduction communicate with two temperature sensors, one digital, the other analog. This will
introduce the idea behind reading from sensors locally.

Server-Client Communication with XBee Modules:

Students will experiment with an IR reflective sensor and 915MHz XBee wireless
1 modules. Students will set up a node and client (Router and Access Point). The node will
broadcast the state of the sensor, and the client will request the state.

Server-Client Communication with LoRa Radio Modules:

Students will experiment with a PIR motion sensor and RFM915 LoRa modules. Students
2 will set up a node and client communication. The node will broadcast raw motion data.
The client will request recent data packets.

Bluetooth Audio Transmission:

Students will experiment with an electret microphone and a BLE module. Students will set
3 up a Bluetooth stream over UART from one node to the other. Raw microphone data will
be sent to be analyzed later.

Base Station Configuration & Encrypted Communication with LoRa:

Students will use the knowledge learned thus far to implement all sensors and
4 communication devices into one "Base station". The base station will be able to receive
interrupt-driven data from all wireless sensor stations.

Access Point and Webserver

Students will use the "Base station" with an ESP8266 to send data to the cloud. Students
5 will use Circussofthings.com and the Arduino API to link the sensors to the cloud.

IoT-Based Detection System

Students will use the collective knowledge of experiments 1-5 to create two models of a
6 "Wildlife detection system". Students will use the sensors and wireless methods discussed
in the earlier lab experiments.

For instance, the laboratory experiment on Bluetooth audio transmission includes the circuit shown
in Figure 6. The BLE module (Figure 4) is configured for serial communication using UART and
together with an electret microphone connected to the Arduino microcontroller board.
 Figure 6: BLE module and electret microphone with Arduino

The Arduino microcontroller is programmed to transmit the audio data stream from the
microphone to the mobile device (e.g., phone) using Bluetooth. The student sets up the Bluefruit
App on the mobile device [Figure 7(a)] and selects the BLE based on the signal strength [Figure
7(b)]. The BLE connection to the mobile device reveals the available modules [Figure 8].

(a) (b)

Figure 7: (a) Bluefruit App (b) Device selection

 Figure 8: Available modules

Thereafter, the student confirms data transmission by speaking into the microphone and
observing (UART option) and plotting the data stream on the mobile device (Plotter option), as
shown in Figure 9(a) and Figure 9(b) respectively.

(a) (b)

Figure 9: (a) Data transmission (b) Plot of the data transmitted & received
Section 3: Project Activities
The project activities comprise the design of the integrated system to respond to the motion of
small and large moving objects e.g., wildlife. The subsystems needed for the integration are
identified from the laboratory experiments. Specifically, the goal is to assemble and test the IoT-
based detection system to track the activity of wildlife based on the ambient temperature. The
student will recognize the need for portability and sensitivity of the system in the context of the
size of the species of wildlife. The ESP8266-based IoT-detection system is better suited for
wildlife of smaller size e.g., birds, and the Arduino-based IoT-detection system is intended for
wildlife of larger size e.g., deer or rhinos as shown in Figure 10.

Figure 10: Wildlife and IoT-based detection system

ESP-based IoT-detection system for small wildlife

First, the student is required to assemble and test the subsystems designed in the previously
completed laboratory experiments. Figure 11 shows the subsystems.

Figure 11: Subsystems of the ESP-based IoT-detection

The wiring diagram for the assembled system is shown in Figure 12.

Figure 12: Wiring diagram of the ESP-based IoT system

Figure 13 shows the system assembled from the subsystems in Figure 11.

IR switch USB-mini
to USB-B

TMP36

FTDI

ESP8266

Figure 13: ESP8266-based integrated system

The program code (sketch) was compiled and loaded on to the ESP8266. The display (two
snapshots) of the ambient temperature due to the activation of the motion sensor (IR switch) on
the mobile device is shown in Figure 14.
 Figure 14: Two snapshots of temperature recorded when the motion sensor is activated

Arduino-based IoT-detection system for large wildlife

Figure 15 displays the subsystems for the Arduino-based IoT system.

Figure 15: Subsystems of the ESP-based IoT-detection

The integrated system is shown in Figure 16.

Figure 16: Arduino-based integrated system

The evidence of the operation of the system is shown in Figure 17.

(a) (b)
Figure 17: (a) Temperature data (b) Temperature plots

Section 4: Remote Instruction and Delivery of the Course

One of the major advantages of the pilot IoT course is that it can adapt to the switch from in-
person team-based laboratory-confined instruction and delivery to individual-based and remote
instruction and delivery. This became necessary during the second half of our Spring 2020
semester when the classrooms and laboratories in our building were inaccessible due to the
health pandemic. The first two authors assembled portable kits with all the components and issue
one kit to each student enrolled in the class. The laboratory experiments, written as step-by-step
guides, are posted to our learning management tools (EvalTools and Blackboard) for the student
to remotely access from a computer or mobile device. As noted above, the laboratory
experiments are stand-alone i.e., do not require typical function generators and oscilloscopes
which are only accessible in the traditional in-person laboratories and unavailable for use during
the health pandemic. The mobile device such as the phone or laptop suffices for the collection of
evidence in each experiment and project. Zoom-based meetings during the class periods enabled
each student to share their progress with the instructor.

Section 5: Learning Outcomes Assessment

The pilot IoT course was offered as a cross-listed class (undergraduate and graduate engineering
students) in the Spring 2020 semester. The class comprised the following engineering students.

• Undergraduate (electrical and computer, mechanical, biomedical)

• Graduate (electrical, embedded software)

The survey completed by each student at the end of the semester comprised the quantitative
section and the qualitative section. The quantitative section consisted of specific questions in
categories related to the COs (Course Outcomes), course items, and the overall evaluation of the
course. The qualitative section asked the students to comment on the course content and delivery.

Course Outcomes
The undergraduate students enrolled in the pilot course comprised students from the Mechanical
Engineering (ME) and Biomedical Engineering (BME) programs at Gannon University. There
were no Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) students enrolled in the course. Table 3
displays the responses of the five undergraduate students to the COs. The ME and BME
undergraduate students had some or no programming experience in C/C++. The students used
the internet search engines to understand and apply the steps of each program. The average
response of the students ranged from 40% to 60% between agreement and strong agreement that
the COs were achieved.

Table 3: Course Outcomes - Undergraduates

The graduate students comprised two groups of electrical and embedded software students. The
first group of seven students took the course as a technical elective. Table 4 shows the responses
of the first group in the CO category. Unlike the undergraduate students, the ECE graduate
students had the skills necessary to complete the hardware assembly and programming steps in
C/C++. The students are strongly in agreement (85.7%) for three of the four COs. The outlier,
one student for this sample size of seven, did not see evidence of security and privacy solutions
in the laboratory experiments.

Table 4: Course Outcomes - Graduates (seven students)

The second group of three graduate students chose this course to complete the course project
report. This is necessary to fulfill the requirements of the MSEE graduate degree. The course
project reports are titled (a) Intelligent Traffic Management System (b) Temperature and
Humidity Monitoring System, and (c) Smart Home Design. Table 5 displays the responses of the
three graduate students with the course project option. Two students out of the three in this group
(66.7%) are strongly in agreement that three of the four COs were achieved. The outlier, one
student for this sample size of three, did not see evidence of security and privacy challenges and
solutions in the laboratory experiments.
 Table 5: Course Outcomes - Graduates (three students)

Course Items
Table 6 displays the survey responses in the category of Course Items for the five undergraduate
students. Four students out of the five undergraduate students (80%) were (a) very interested in
the course, (b) found the extent of work required in the course to be comparable to other courses,
and (c) satisfied that the course was effective in achieving the instructional objectives and
student learning outcomes.
Table 6: Course Items - Undergraduates

Table 7 displays the survey responses for the first group of seven graduate students. Six students
out of the seven students in this group (85.7%) were (a) very interested in the course, (b) satisfied
that the course was effective in achieving the instructional objectives and student learning
outcomes. However, only four students out of the seven students (57.1%) found the extent of work
required in the course to be comparable to other courses.

Table 7: Course Items – Graduates (seven students)

Table 8 displays the survey responses for the second group of the three graduate students with
the course project option. All the students in this group were (a) very interested in the course,
(b) found the extent of work required in the course to be comparable to other courses, and (c)
satisfied that the course was effective in achieving the instructional objectives and student
learning outcomes.
Table 8: Course Items - Graduates (three students)

Overall Evaluation
Table 9 shows the survey responses in the category of Overall Evaluation by the five
undergraduate students. Four students out of the five undergraduate students rated the overall
quality of the course and the performance of the faculty as excellent. The entire class of five
students rated their overall learning experience as excellent.

Table 9: Overall Evaluation – Undergraduates

Table 10 shows the survey responses by the group of seven graduate students. Six students out of
the seven students in this group rated (a) the overall quality of the course, (b) the performance of
the faculty, and (c) their overall learning experience as excellent.

Table 10: Overall Evaluation - Graduates (seven students)

Table 11 displays the survey responses by the group of three graduate students. All the students in
this group rated (a) the overall quality of the course, and (b) their overall learning experience as
excellent. Two students out of the three students in this group rated the performance of the faculty
as excellent.
Table 11: Overall Evaluation - Graduates (three students)

Section 6: Conclusions and Plans for the Future

The pilot IoT course can be linked to the three domains of Bloom’s Taxonomy [9],[10]. The
cognitive domain, characterized as What should I know?, relates to recall and recognition of
specific facts, patterns of procedure, and concepts that aid in the development of intellectual
abilities and skills. The course incorporates the knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis,
and synthesis of electrical and computer engineering principles to the design of IoT devices. The
affective domain, characterized by How should I know? relates to the mental state and is the
motivation and attitude of the student to the experiments and projects in the course. The
psychomotor domain, characterized by What should I be able to do with what I know?, relates to
the skill level of the student to perform and complete the tasks assigned in each laboratory
experiment and project activity.

The course will be integrated with the course on applied artificial intelligence (A2I). IoT
connects the devices to enable data collection while AI makes the decisions and takes the actions
based on the data collected. Thus, data-driven IoT applications can link to machine learning and
deep learning concepts covered in A2I.
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