Software Engineering with Electronics BEng Honours

This module provides the fundamental concepts and mathematical methods required in the Computer Games Development, Smart Computer Systems, Data Science and Analytics and Computer Network Security degrees. It aims to strengthen your mathematical skills and improve your fluency in algebraic manipulation, equation solving, matrix algebra, vectors, geometry, trigonometry, transformations, calculus and statistics. The lectures will be made interactive and interspersed with hands-on worked examples and demonstrations to consolidate your understanding of a variety of problems that relate to your courses.

This module will give you an understanding of and fluency in the combinational and sequential logic techniques used in the design of general digital systems. You'll gain familiarity with the building blocks and organisation of digital microcontrollers and gain experience in programming of microprocessors in an assembler language.

This module introduces the main components of an embedded real-time computer system making use of an existing microcontroller architecture through practical laboratory sessions and project based learning. It teaches electronic principles and develops the skills and the knowledge for prototyping, building and testing practical electronics and creating software to interface with the microcontroller.

The module will enable you to apply circuit theorems, engineering principles and computer based tools to the analysis of simple passive and active electric circuits. Practical skills developed will include; the use of lab bench equipment; circuit prototyping; identifying, describing the function of using electronic components and commonly used circuit configurations, understanding component ratings and tolerance. The module will also introduce and put into practice lab ethics.

This module provides practical introduction to computer programming using a high-level programming language. It covers the fundamentals of programming by introducing the basic methodology for problem-solving and program development. You will learn how to use appropriate libraries, syntax and semantics for creating and compiling source code using relevant development tools and environments. The module content includes developing skills for designing basic algorithms, datatypes, expressions, control structures, and input/output. You'll gain initial practical experience with the problem solving methodology and will be expected to implement it for writing simple computer programs.

The module focuses on trends in Computer Science which currently attract considerable industry and academic interest. It allows you to develop critical thinking skills by research and exploration of these topics. The module also develops employability skills in order to better support employability prospects and placements. It introduces key aspects of working as a professional in the world of computing, including consideration of ethics, privacy, data protection and confidentiality, and how these are incorporated into professional codes of practice such as the BCS Code of Conduct.

Algorithms are among the fundamentals of computer science and software engineering and at the heart of artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science and their applications to real-world problem-solving in digital humanities, economics, biosciences and social sciences. The module will introduce you to the theory and practice of algorithmic strategies, development and implementation. Hence, the module equips you with a road map of mappings between real-world problems and suitable algorithmic approaches for their solutions. The latter is crucial for your professional life as problem solvers and thinkers in IT industry, society and humanity.

You will gain valuable practical work-based experience through participation in a team where you'll carry out and document a design from initial brief to final validation and demonstration. The team will develop a prototype embedded system product, an electro-mechanical device, that will meet the design brief and requirements given by a customer. Using the industry informed brief the module will develop and put into practise both technical and transferable skills valued by employers including rapid prototyping of embedded system solutions, mechanical construction, integration and fault finding of mixed electronic circuits, selection and specification of materials and components, coding of firmware, timing and input/output tasks as well as individual and group-work skills related to project management and communication skills.

This module covers object-oriented principles using C++. This includes object-oriented analysis and design, from the initial problem description to the creation of UML class diagrams. The module introduces the necessary aspects of object-oriented programming, including features such as encapsulation, sub-classing, and templates/generics, as well as some C++-specific aspects. Design patterns and design principles such as SOLID will be introduced and used to show how to create a robust and versatile solution. More specialised topics such as socket-based network programming will also be touched on.

The module Introduces the objectives and functions of generic operating systems structure and through a gradual progression provides a framework for detailed knowledge of the structural components for multi-tasking operating systems, including that systems programming for Unix based architectures.

This module is designed to provide an understanding of sensing systems and signal processing, including the use of integrated smart sensing devices and the integration of sensors with computer systems. This introductory module addresses the: operational principles of standard sensors and transducers; principles of signal conditioning; methods used for the post processing (data analytics) of captured sensory data. Furthermore the module discusses the operational principles and selection of data conversion devices such as analog to digital and digital to analog converters.

This module provides a foundation in deep learning, starting with tensor operations and neural network fundamentals using TensorFlow. Students learn to implement, train and evaluate neural networks, progressing from basic operations to advanced architectures. The module covers the full deep learning development cycle from data preparation through to model deployment, with particular focus on sequence modelling tasks including time series and natural language processing. Practical implementation is emphasised throughout, using industry-standard frameworks and best practices.

This module provides an understanding and hands-on experience in the fields of machine learning and data mining, covering the full life-cycle from preparing data to validating and optimising the learned model. The module covers different algorithms and approaches to machine learning and data mining, and the issues of using them on data sets of different sizes and complexity.

The module is an introduction to software development on mobile devices such as mobile phones, tablets and wearables. It concentrates on the Android platform. The main contents include: The Android mobile programming architecture. Restrictions of using small devices such as mobile phones tablets and wearables. Programming user interfaces, networking, persistent storage and multi-threading. Device profiling, application deployment and installation.

This module introduces the fundamentals of robotics and focuses on selected topics pertaining to this discipline. Its introductory part overviews the nature of robotics and, related to it, challenges and issues. System modelling introduces techniques of deriving and computer implementation of models of dynamic systems with a special focus on kinematics of robots. Fundamentals of control cover the structure, basic analyses and real-time implementations of control systems.

This module covers the design and implementation of commercial dynamic web applications from a server-side programming and database perspective. It is suitable for you if you have a strong interest in SQL, web programming, HTML, CSS and browser scripting. A server-side language is covered to the depth required for implementing high-quality fully functional web-enabled database applications that fittingly support an organisation’s business processes.

This module examines various aspects of computer and network security giving a sound introduction to theoretical and practical areas such as network security, cryptography, attack vectors used by hackers, security architecture, methodologies for security hardening and defence and penetration testing strategies. A substantial amount of work will be laboratory based involving the deployment of security tools, the hardening of operating systems and the analysis of compromised systems.

The module furthers the design concepts of the main components of a modern Operating System. The various implementation techniques to address specific design issues are evaluated with respect to performance and hardware constraints. Mechanisms of how Operating Systems handle asynchronous events and interface with the operating environment are introduced within a Linux environment. The various techniques that enable Virtualisation technologies are critically analysed.

This module requires students to integrate previously acquired knowledge and techniques with new insights gained through investigation and research, culminating in an extended piece of work. It involves the conceptualisation, design, implementation, and evaluation of a substantial solution—such as a software application, process, model, or experimental study. The module fosters independent working and encourages students to apply their learning to real-world challenges, supported by research, design thinking, documentation, and critical evaluation. Throughout the project lifecycle, students are expected to engage with ethical considerations and embed sustainability principles in a professional and autonomous manner.

In this module, you'll learn the architectural principles and programming of commonly used deep-embedded microcontroller devices for low-power, low-cost solutions. You'll explore how a microcontroller’s core architecture and bus infrastructure influence performance, including key concepts such as cache and direct memory access (DMA).

You'll also apply and critically evaluate design techniques, tools, programming languages, methodologies, and algorithms used to meet real-time timing requirements. This includes an in-depth exploration of concurrency, scheduling, and real-time operating systems (RTOS), with an emphasis on practical implementation and performance evaluation.

The module will provide you with an understanding of the foundations of Artificial Intelligence and principal sub-fields of AI that have made significant impact, including but not limited to: Planning, Multi Agent Systems, Fuzzy Logic, Neural Networks, Evolutionary Computation, Computer Vision, Reinforcement Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Deep Learning. Each week an essential technique will be demonstrated via a complete implementation, followed by a presentation of the theory and conditions needed to enable you to set up and use the techniques yourself.

This module builds on the knowledge and skills developed in the Level 5 module Robotic Principles. You'll focus on robotic dynamics and the design of robotic control systems, preparing you to undertake complex tasks involving the analysis and synthesis of robotic systems. Ethical and societal issues related to robotics, introduced at Level 5, are explored in greater depth and breadth, encouraging critical reflection on the wider impacts of robotic technologies.

This module is designed to develop your understanding of the principles and fundamentals of low- and high-level electronic building blocks, alongside the theoretical and practical skills required to design digital systems using hardware description languages, primarily VHDL. You'll apply this knowledge to the design and rapid prototyping of custom integrated digital processing systems on Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) platforms. The module also provides you with insight into both custom and core-based design approaches.

This module introduces the principles of wireless IoT, focusing on short-range IoT standards with an overview of long-range IoT standards. It explores IoT system design, covering radio transceiver architectures and antennas, devices and gateways, multiple access and radio links. The module explores a number of typical network architectures and protocols which enable IoT networking technologies, associated application protocols and discusses issues related to security of IoT networks.

This module provides an introduction to the cloud computing principles and practices essential for secure and scalable AI deployment. It covers foundational topics such as cloud computing fundamentals, AI deployment workflows, and the differences between on-premise and cloud-based solutions. Students will also explore key considerations in security, compliance, and governance, along with practical aspects of real-time versus batch inference, CI/CD, and model orchestration. Additionally, the module addresses model performance tracking, experiment management, and A/B testing, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of best practices in maintaining data quality, handling data drift, and achieving model reproducibility and versioning.