Capstone Design Projects

Faculty Advisors: CDR Rachel Florea, Prof. Rob Ives

Background: Hand geometry recognition systems have been utilized for decades as a reliable method for verifying a user's identity based on the physical characteristics of their hand. These systems analyze unique features such as finger length, palm size, and hand shape, comparing them to stored data to grant secure access. Known for their robustness and ease of use, hand geometry recognition has been implemented in various security settings, providing an additional layer of protection.

Objectives: The objective of this project is to design and develop a portable hand geometry recognition system that allows users to verify their identity based on the unique characteristics of their hands. The system aims to be user-friendly, reliable, and capable of being deployed in a variety of settings. In addition to security and identification purposes, the system will be a valuable asset for recruitment initiatives, giving potential students a tangible, cutting-edge example of the type of innovative technology they can engage with as part of the Electrical & Computer Engineering program.

Results: For an equal error rate of 10% false rejection rate and 10% false acceptance rate, the system will operate at a minimum distance threshold of 36.65. This means that if the similarity score between two hand templates is greater than 36.65, the hands will not be a match. If the similarity score is less than 36.65, the hands are a match.

Poster

Faculty Advisors: Assoc. Prof. Christian DeLozier

Background: The National Security Agency (NSA) developed a computer program analyzer called Ghidra which is primarily used for cybersecurity applications. One function of Ghidra is a “Version Tracking Tool” which analyzes two programs to find the similarities and differences between them. This tool can find matching functions between an old and updated version of a program, or it can find the differences between the same program after it undergoes different analyses in Ghidra. However, what the “Version Tracking Tool” cannot do is present a user-friendly visual depicting how many differences exist and in what way are the two programs different. This problem can be solved by adding additional functionality to the “Version Tracking Tool” via an external plug-in.

Objectives: the goal is for the team to deliver a Ghidra plug-in that highlights the differences found by the “Version Tracking Tool” so that the user has a more intuitive and deeper understanding of the differences between the analyzed programs. Specifically, the team intends to provide the user a better spatial, at-a-glance perspective that incorporates both the relative position of code segments as well as the degree to which they match according to the already-existing version tracking tools.

Results: The team successfully produced a visualizer plugin that positively contributes to the Ghidra Version Tracking Tool in a novel fashion. With this plugin, the user is able to switch between two views. View 1, depicted in Figure A1, below, is a simple visualization of the spatial relationship between the source and destination addresses of individual matches that the user highlights from the truncated version tracking table in the middle panel. This view is activated with the refresh button in the top right corner of the screen, located next to the scissor icon, which activates View 2, as seen in Figure A2. Plugin View 2 provides an information-dense, yet also very intuitive, perspective of the code via a color-based visual abstraction that conveys relative position, intensity of correlation, and type of correlation, all at once.

Poster

Faculty Advisors: Assoc. Prof. Kevin Galloway

Background: Autonomous vehicles are becoming more and more prevalent in both the commercial and military world. Their use overall makes human quality of life better. As technology continues to advance, there exists limited research in how autonomous vehicles interact with and respond to each other. Our research explores the solution to a low scale autonomous vehicle system where we hope to create a method by which Turtlebot3 burger models can identify each other, using their equipped, intensity-sensitive, LiDAR units to read a mounted rotating barcode.

Objectives: The goal of this project is to design and mount a barcode on a LiDAR-equipped turtlebot so that it is readable by other LiDAR-equipped turtlebots.

Results: The Barcode Buccaneers conducted many interviews with their advisor and customer, Dr. Galloway to inform and explore the solution to our problem. We developed a comprehensive list of Customer Requirements and Constraints, and used this list to inform the development of potential design concepts. Each concept was compared with respect to its satisfaction of the constraints and required budget. After taking these characteristics into consideration, we settled on the most reasonable design concept and obtained approval from our advisor/customer. The chosen design concept, called “DC Motor at Lower Position,” is shown below:

Poster

Faculty Advisors: Prof. Hau Ngo & CDR John Gamble

Background:  Arcade cabinets are full of custom and unique computer components. As these cabinets age, their components break and must be replaced. Replacement parts are rare and expensive. Additionally, repair requires a wealth of knowledge for each individual system. Repair costs are high and technicians are not always able to successfully fix issues. These costs only rise as time goes on, making it less worthwhile to own and maintain these arcade machines.

Objectives: Develop an easy-to-install system that can replace the main computing printed circuit boards in a California Speed arcade machine. This system must also be able to interface with the game’s original control peripherals and monitor.

Results: We were able to get California Speed working using the original cabinet’s peripherals by running it on a Windows computer instead of the Raspberry Pi we initially planned to use. The game runs smoothly, and we successfully integrated force feedback as well.

Poster

• PAC++: Programmable Arcade Consoles
• GTAV: Give Them A Voice
• SWAT-C: Autonomous Weapon System
• RF Source Localization
• Compact Robotic Ordnance (CRO)
• Autonomous Modular Unmanned Ground Vehicle