Active Project | Yao Zheng@UHM

Introduction to Computer Engineering with R-Pi Pico W

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 04:14:54 -0800

Executive Summary

This project course introduces students to hands-on Computer Engineering (CENG) projects through the Pico platform. Students learn fundamentals of embedded systems, sensors, and wireless communication while designing small-scale prototypes that integrate hardware and software. The course emphasizes practical experimentation, teamwork, and iterative design—preparing students for advanced VIP and capstone projects in automation, robotics, and intelligent sensing systems.

Logistics

CRN

Semester ECE 196 ECE 296

Spring 2026 86916 86945
Personnel

Advisor Office Hours

Yao Zheng

Email with ‘’[x96 R-Pi Pico W]’’ in the subject line.

Galen Sasaki N/A
Meeting:

Time Location

R 12:00pm - 13:00pm HH389

Semester	ECE 196	ECE 296
Spring 2026	86916	86945

Advisor	Office Hours
Yao Zheng Email with ‘’[x96 R-Pi Pico W]’’ in the subject line.
Galen Sasaki	N/A

Time	Location
R 12:00pm - 13:00pm	HH389

Learning Objectives

Enhance their Python programming skills through practical applications.
Explore computer hardware concepts, including microcontrollers, with a focus on the Raspberry Pi Pico (RP2040).
Understand the interaction between hardware and software.
Design and implement engaging and practical engineering projects.
Build technical expertise and confidence to:
- Learn new skills and technologies independently.
- Develop personal projects.
- Seek internships, on-campus jobs, and professional opportunities.
- Participate in hackathons and engineering competitions.
Cultivate creativity and innovation in engineering design.

Course Structure

Labs: Nine hands-on laboratories.
Homework: Assignments for the labs.
Final Project: Students will design, develop, and demonstrate a personal project applying the concepts learned throughout the course.

Lab Schedule

Lab	Time Range	Focus and Core Tasks
Lab 1: Embedded Computing Foundations	Week 1	Raspberry Pi Pico W architecture and I/O Toolchain setup and debugging First embedded program
Lab 2: Circuits and Prototyping Basics	Week 2	Breadboard prototyping Passive components (resistors, LEDs) Power and grounding basics
Lab 3: Digital I/O and Sensor Interfaces	Week 3	Digital inputs and outputs Button debouncing and state machines Temperature sensor interfacing
Lab 4: Human–Device Interfaces	Week 4 → Week 5 (first half)	I²C/SPI communication OLED display pipelines Joystick input and interactive application
Lab 5: Networked Embedded Systems	Week 5 (second half) → Week 6	Embedded web servers Socket-based client–server communication Remote control of LEDs and displays
Lab 6: Internet Services and Performance	Week 7 → Week 8 (first half)	REST APIs and cloud data ingestion Latency and throughput considerations Sensorless “weather station”
Lab 7: Concurrent and Multicore Systems	Week 8 (second half) → Week 9	Multicore programming on Pico W Concurrent sensing and display tasks Synchronization primitives
Lab 8: Collaborative Software Development	Week 10	Git and GitHub workflows Branching, pull requests, and code review Team-based development
Lab 9: AI-Assisted Development	Week 11	AI-assisted coding and refactoring Debugging with AI tools Validation and responsible use
Final Project: Integrated IoT System	Weeks 12–15	End-to-end embedded and networked system

Required Lab Components

Components will be provided.

Time Commitment: Average of 5-6 hours per week.

RASRE: Reflectarray and Applications in Smart Radio Environment

Tue, 10 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -1000

Executive Summary

Reflectarray present a paradigm shift in wireless communication and sensing in mmWave and sub-THz region by offering unprecedented control over the propagation environment. Traditional wireless systems are largely at the mercy of the channel, which can be severely impaired by obstacles, fading, and interference. Reflectarray, however, introduce a new degree of freedom by enabling programmable manipulation of the wireless channel. Through precise control of the reflection and refraction properties of an array of elements, reflectarray can be used to mitigate path loss, combat fading, null interference, and shape radiation patterns, which can be used to enhancing spectral efficiency, energy efficiency, and expanding coverage. This project aims to investigate the fundamental principles of reflectarray operation, develop novel reflectarray architectures and control algorithms, and explore their applications in a wide range of wireless communication, sensing, energy transfer, and security scenarios.

Logistics

CRN

Semester ENGR196 ENGR296 ENGR396 ECE496

Spring 2025 TBD TBD TBD TBD
Personnel

Advisor Office Hours

Yao Zheng

Email with ‘’[VIP RASRE]’’ in the subject line.

See
Meeting:

Time Location

TBD HH488, Zoom
Workload

ENGR196 ENGR296 ENGR396 EE496¹ Deliverables²

$ \geq $ 3 H/W $ \geq $ 3 H/W $ \geq $ 6 H/W $ \geq $ 8 H/W

One per group

Indicate the authors of the appropriate sections.

Semester	ENGR196	ENGR296	ENGR396	ECE496
Spring 2025	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD

Advisor	Office Hours
Yao Zheng Email with ‘’[VIP RASRE]’’ in the subject line.	See

Time	Location
TBD	HH488, Zoom

ENGR196	ENGR296	ENGR396	EE496¹	Deliverables²
$ \geq $ 3 H/W	$ \geq $ 3 H/W	$ \geq $ 6 H/W	$ \geq $ 8 H/W	One per group Indicate the authors of the appropriate sections.

Grading

General Breakdown

Category	Portion of Grade
1- Quality of project work Engagement, pursuit of knowledge necessary for project, contributions to technical progress of project, (396 and 496: contributions to management of project).	35%
2- Documentation and records Design notebook, wiki documentation, presentations, Reports.	35%
3- Teamwork and interaction Attendance to meetings, contributions to team, peer evaluations, team presentations and reports	30%

Breakdown by Deliverable

Deliverable	ENGR 196/296/396	EE496/499	Applicable Categories
Project proposal report	10%	10%	1,2,3
Preliminary design review presentation	15%	20%	1,2,3
Design notebook check	10%	5%	1,2
VIP poster session presentation	10%	15%	1,2,3
Final report draft (proofed by peers)	N/A	N/A	1,2,3
Final recorded video presentation	20%	25%	1,2,3
Final report	25%	15%	1,2,3
Design notebook final check	10%	10%	1,2

Cutoffs

A- B- C-

70% 50% 30%

A-	B-	C-
70%	50%	30%

Iterations

SEMESTER	TOPICS	DOCUMENTS
Spring, 2025	Designing 3.5GHz reflectarray with transistors

This course adheres to UH Manoa W focus requirements and ECE Department requirements. So you are required to write 4,000 words or more throughout the semester, split between the proposal and the final report. ↩︎
Reports should be uploaded to the Google Drive before the deadline. Late reports are subject to a minimum 15% reduction in grade. Presentation files (PowerPoint or PDF) should be uploaded to the Google Drive before or immediately after your presentation. ↩︎

MONET: Millimeter-wave Communication and Sensing Integration

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -1000

Executive Summary

Imagine a future where our wireless devices do more than just talk to each other. They can also “see” and “feel” their surroundings, gathering valuable information about the environment. This is the promise of Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC), and millimeter-wave (mmWave) frequencies are the key to unlocking its full potential. Leveraging the abundant bandwidth at mmWave band (30GHz ~ 300GHz), which are currently being explored for future generation of wireless communication systems (cellular and Wi-Fi), radar-like precise and multi-target detection can be implemented, with applications in drone detection, physiological monitoring, smart RAN etc. This VIP project, therefore, see to develop new techniques and technologies to make ISAC a reality at mmWave frequencies.

Logistics

CRN

Semester ENGR196 ENGR296 ENGR396 ECE496

Spring 2022 90034 90035 90036 85708

Fall 2022 80343 80344 80345 75344

Spring 2025 89726 86653 86654 88158
Personnel

Advisor Office Hours

Yao Zheng

Email with ‘’[VIP MONET]’’ in the subject line.

See
Meeting:

Time Location

TBD HH488, Zoom
Workload

ENGR196 ENGR296 ENGR396 EE496¹ Deliverables²

$ \geq $ 3 H/W $ \geq $ 3 H/W $ \geq $ 6 H/W $ \geq $ 8 H/W

One per group

Indicate the authors of the appropriate sections.

Semester	ENGR196	ENGR296	ENGR396	ECE496
Spring 2022	90034	90035	90036	85708
Fall 2022	80343	80344	80345	75344
Spring 2025	89726	86653	86654	88158

Advisor	Office Hours
Yao Zheng Email with ‘’[VIP MONET]’’ in the subject line.	See

Time	Location
TBD	HH488, Zoom

ENGR196	ENGR296	ENGR396	EE496¹	Deliverables²
$ \geq $ 3 H/W	$ \geq $ 3 H/W	$ \geq $ 6 H/W	$ \geq $ 8 H/W	One per group Indicate the authors of the appropriate sections.

Grading

General Breakdown

Category	Portion of Grade
1- Quality of project work Engagement, pursuit of knowledge necessary for project, contributions to technical progress of project, (396 and 496: contributions to management of project).	35%
2- Documentation and records Design notebook, wiki documentation, presentations, Reports.	35%
3- Teamwork and interaction Attendance to meetings, contributions to team, peer evaluations, team presentations and reports	30%

Breakdown by Deliverable

Deliverable	ENGR 196/296/396	EE496/499	Applicable Categories
Project proposal report	10%	10%	1,2,3
Preliminary design review presentation	15%	20%	1,2,3
Design notebook check	10%	5%	1,2
VIP poster session presentation	10%	15%	1,2,3
Final report draft (proofed by peers)	N/A	N/A	1,2,3
Final recorded video presentation	20%	25%	1,2,3
Final report	25%	15%	1,2,3
Design notebook final check	10%	10%	1,2

Cutoffs

A- B- C-

70% 50% 30%

A-	B-	C-
70%	50%	30%

Iterations

SEMESTER	TOPICS	DOCUMENTS
Spring, 2025	Setup an O-RAN based ISAC System at FR2 band

This course adheres to UH Manoa W focus requirements and ECE Department requirements. So you are required to write 4,000 words or more throughout the semester, split between the proposal and the final report. ↩︎
Reports should be uploaded to the Google Drive before the deadline. Late reports are subject to a minimum 15% reduction in grade. Presentation files (PowerPoint or PDF) should be uploaded to the Google Drive before or immediately after your presentation. ↩︎