Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

• ENG ME 404: Dynamics and Control of Mechanical Systems
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME302) or consent of instructor. - Modeling of mechanical systems. Introduction to theory of feedback and control. Performance and stability of linear systems. Design of feedback control systems. Practical applications. Includes lab. Cannot be taken for credit in addition to ENG ME 403, ENG EC 402, or ENG BE 404.
• ENG ME 406: Dynamics of Space Vehicles
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME302) - Orbital mechanics of particles, earth satellite trajectories. Rocket propulsion and atmospheric reentry dynamics. Gravitational and electromagnetic fields of the earth. Effects of the space environment on vehicle performance. Rigid body dynamics and vehicle attitude control. Interplanetary trajectories and mission planning.
• ENG ME 408: Aircraft Performance and Design
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME302 & ENGME303 & ENGME305) - This course covers the fundamental elements of designing and analyzing fixed wing aircraft, including general aviation aircraft, commercial transports and selected military products. Student teams get to design an airplane from start to finish during the semester as well as compete with other teams for Best-in-Class design. Topics covered include Initial Sizing, Wing, Fuselage and Empennage Design, Propulsion Selection, Takeoff & Landing Performance, Structural Design, Stability & Control and Cost Assessment. Emphasis is put on modeling existing competitor aircraft in tandem with the students' design, which helps substantiate design choices. The use of spreadsheets is a key learning tool for this course.
• ENG ME 411: Operations Research
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME366 OR CASMA381) & (ENGEK102 OR CASMA142)) - No longer offered
• ENG ME 415: Product Design
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME345 & ENGME407 & ENGEK409) - No longer offered
• ENG ME 416: Introduction to Robotics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASMA225 & ENGEK125 & ENGEK301) - The term robot was first used by a Czech playwriter in 1920, but the fascination of humans with machines that can sense, process and act in their physical environment was there since ancient civilization. Today the convergence of relatively cheap but powerful hardware with many years of research makes possible to (almost) build robots in different shapes and for a variety of applications: industrial robots, vacuum cleaners, delivery drones, self-driving cars, etc. While this is an active field of research, the basic building blocks for a robot (modeling, control, perception, mapping and planning) are well understood. Through both theory and practice, in this class you will learn these basics, and build a simple but complete system that will compete with the creations of your peers.
• ENG ME 419: Heat Transfer
  Prerequisites:(ENGME303 & ENGME304) - This course covers the fundamentals of heat transfer from a macroscopic and engineering perspective, and aims to develop a physical and analytical understanding of the three modes of heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation), with an emphasis on simplifying approximations and empirical correlations to solve real-world engineering problems. The main topics that this course covers are: Steady-state conduction in one and two dimensions; Non-steady (transient) conduction in one-dimensional systems; Forced and natural convection (external and internal); Introduction to boiling, evaporation, and condensation; Application to heat exchangers; Radiation heat exchange; Mass Transfer Analogies (diffusion and convection).
• ENG ME 420: Supply Chain Engineering
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGEK381) - Emphasizes the integration of product design with the process of delivering products to customers. Review of manufacturing processes for process automation. Supply chain configuration and flow balancing. Seamless introduction of new products. Process reengineering and lean manufacturing techniques in established supply chains. Design of decision support systems.
• ENG ME 421: Aerodynamics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME303) - Flow kinematics. Aerodynamic forces. Potential flow theory. Streamfunction and velocity potential in two-dimensional flows. 2D and 3D wing theory: thin airfoil theory and lifting line theory. Computational methods for potential flow. Linearized compressible flow. Laminar and turbulent boundary layers. Includes labs and computer projects.
• ENG ME 425: Compressible Flow and Propulsion
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME303 & ENGME304) - Fluid mechanics and thermodynamics of compressible fluid flow with application to external and internal flows as found in propulsion systems. Fluid/thermal related topics include: normal and oblique shocks, Prandtl-Meyer expansion waves, variable area duct flow, and wave drag. Propulsion applications include rocket nozzles, supersonic inlets, and exhaust nozzles for airbreathing propulsion systems. Parametric cycle analysis for ramjet, turbojet, and turbofan engines.
• ENG ME 441: Mechanical Vibration
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME302) - One- and multi-degree-of-freedom systems. Natural frequencies and modes of vibrations, resonance, beat phenomenon. Stability analysis. Energy methods. Applications to rotating machinery. Methods for vibration reduction.
• ENG ME 452: Directed Study in Mechanical Engineering
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (By petition only.) - Under faculty supervision, students may study a subject that is relevant to mechanical engineering and is not covered in a regularly offered course. Term paper and/or written examination required at end of semester.
• ENG ME 457: Engineering Projects in Mechanical Engineering
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (By petition only.) - Project for seniors in mechanical engineering. Students select, develop, and complete a project and prepare a report.
• ENG ME 460: Senior Design 1
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME302 & ENGME305 & ENGME360) CAS WR 150/1/2/3 required. - The course develops skills that are crucial to the successful completion of the Mechanical Engineering Senior Capstone Design project. The core technical framework is electro-mechanical systems. Through lectures, workshops, and online materials, students gain practical experience in component and system design, project planning, and engineering communications. The course guides students through execution and documentation of the conceptual design stage of their Capstone projects. When taken with ENG ME 461, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Writing-Intensive Course, Research and Information Literacy. (1st sem.)
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  • Part of a Hub sequence
• ENG ME 461: Senior Design 2
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (ENGME460) Senior standing; First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120). - The main activity in this course is the planning, and execution of a capstone project that represents a culmination of the Mechanical Engineering program. Students work in teams on either a research or design problem in some area of Mechanical Engineering that builds upon previous coursework. Class time will be focused on weekly project meetings with faculty. The course includes lectures on ethics, entrepreneurship, project management and other professional topics. Oral and written communications will be emphasized. When taken with ENG ME 460, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Writing-Intensive Course, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Digital/Multimedia Expression
  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
  • Writing-Intensive Course
• ENG ME 500: Special Topics in Mechanical Engineering
  Seminar course on a topic of current interest in aerospace and mechanical engineering.
• ENG ME 501: Dynamic System Theory
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: Familiarity with differential equations and matrices at the level of E NG ME 404 or CAS MA 242, or consent of instructor. - Introduction to analytical concepts and examples of dynamic systems and control. Mathematical description and state space formation of dynamic systems; modeling, controllability, and observability. Eigenvector and transform analysis of linear systems including canonical forms. Performance specifications. State feedback: pole placement and the linear quadratic regulator. Introduction to MIMO design and system identification using computer tools and laboratory experiments. Meets with ENG EC 501 and ENG SE 501; students may not receive credit for both.
• ENG ME 502: Invention: Technology Creation, Protection, and Commercialization
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (Senior or graduate standing in an engineering or science discipline o r consent of instructor) - This course provides students with the knowledge and tools necessary to create, protect, and commercialize engineering and scientific intellectual assets. Students will first make use of creativity tools to attack posed engineering problems, then turn to means for protecting their solutions. Rapidly growing areas that are affecting nearly all businesses (e.g., software and the internet) as well as "high-tech" areas including microelectronics, communications, and bioengineering will be emphasized. Extensive patent searches and analysis will be carried out to develop skills for quickly ascertaining the protected technical content of patents, and for recognizing what intellectual property (IP) should be and can be protected. Legal aspects for protecting creative ideas will be studied at a level appropriate for engineers to interact easily and smoothly during their technical careers with IP lawyers. Various business models for the commercialization of intellectual assets will be analyzed. Extensive class exercises and projects will explore in depth all three of these important areas of IP, with emphasis on key contributions during engineering and scientific research and development activities.
• ENG ME 503: Kinetic Processes in Materials
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: Undergraduate course in materials science and engineering. - Kinetics of mass transport, continuum and atomistic approaches, chemical diffusion; kinetics of chemical reactions, kinetics of adsorption and evaporation; nucleation and growth; solidification; spinodal decomposition; coarsening; martensitic transformations; order-disorder reactions; point defects and their relation to transport kinetics. Meets with ENGMS503; students may not receive credit for both.
• ENG ME 504: Polymers and Soft Materials
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: Graduate standing or instructor consent after ENG EK 424 or CAS PY 410 - An introduction to soft matter for students with background in materials science, chemistry and physics. This graduate-level course covers general aspects of structure, interactions, and functions of polymers and soft materials (including colloidal suspensions). Specifically, students will learn key fundamentals behind the unique viscoelastic behavior of polymers and colloids, which an emphasis on understanding conceptual, structure/function, and mathematical roots. Topics include chain behavior and self-avoiding walks, Flory- Huggins theory, and development of DLVO theory for zetapotential measurements. On a practical level, students will leave the class with an understanding of why rubber bands are stretchy, why people can run on cornstarch in water, why mixing polymers is challenging, and why Kevlar is bendable yet bulletproof! This is a fast-paced graduate course that requires thermodynamics as a prereq and assumes a familiarity with basic organic chemistry, differentials equations, and basic linear algebra. Meets with ENG ME and MS 504; students may not receive credit for both.