Digital signal processing (DSP) is an important component of the GMI electrical engineering curriculum. An elective DSP course is selected by 40% of the EE students. However, the DSP curriculum does not currently have a laboratory component. A practical, hands-on laboratory is critical for teaching applied DSP and lends a physical credibility to classroom topics. We propose that a DSP laboratory be established at GMI. The laboratory includes hardware and software for digital signal processing. Students perform seven laboratory experiments using a Texas Instruments TMS320C30 general purpose digital signal processor and the Hewlett-Packard HP35665A dynamic signal analyzer. Each laboratory features an important application of DSP to physical systems. Hypersignal R DE software is used for filter design, simulation and implementation of real-time DSP algorithms. The experiments include fundamental investigations of the effects of sampling and quantization on the signal to noise ratio of a sampled signal. Students investigate practical issues such as the effect of filter structure on numerical stability. The experiments also incorporate biomedical, audio and video signals in investigations of filter design, system modeling and two-dimensional signal analysis. Equipment requested in this proposal primarily impacts undergraduate students at GMI enrolled in the DSP course. Also, the equipment will be used in the undergraduate capstone design project and community outreach programs including "Engineering and Science for the 21st Century Woman", the Boy Scouts of America "Explorers" program, "Discover GMI" days, and other activities that promote engineering and sciences.
