An Example Report Written In The ANSI/NISO Z39.18-1995 .

An Example Report Written in theANSI/NISO Z39.18-1995 StandardFormatbyRobert A. Paz

An Example Report Written in the ANSI/NISOZ39.18-1995 Standard FormatRobert A. PazKlipsch School of Electrical and Computer EngineeringNew Mexico State UniversityLas Cruces, NMPrepared forEngineering Students8/8/2005Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer EngineeringNew Mexico State UniversityBox 30001, MSC 3-OLas Cruces, NM 88003-8001

ABSTRACTWriting a project report, like any technical report, requires more than just scribblingdown a few paragraphs and tacking on a graph and a program listing. The reportrequires that attention be given to the format as well as the content. Good structure andorganization is needed. Thorough discussion of difficult or important points is vital.Explanation of results is critical. Only when these things are included will the reportcommunicate effectively.I know of no person so perfectly disagreeable and even dangerous as an author.–William IV

CONTENTS12345678INTRODUCTION . 21.1 Statement of the Subject. 21.2 Purpose. 21.3 Scope. 21.4 Topic Development . 21.5 Intended Audience . 2METHODS, ASSUMPTIONS, AND PROCEDURES . 32.1 Investigation Procedure . 32.1.1 The Introduction. 32.1.2 The Body of the Paper. 32.2 System of Measurement . 42.2.1 Formatting Components . 42.3 Investigation Instruments or Apparatus. 62.3.1 Technical Paper Equivalents of Instruments. 62.4 Precision of Instruments. 6RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 73.1 Analysis of Plots, Charts and Figures . 7CONCLUSIONS . 8REFERENCES . 9APPENDICES . 10LIST OF SYMBOLS, ABBREVIATIONS, AND ACRONYMS. 11WRITTEN REPORT EVALUATION. 12ii

List of FiguresNo.1TitleThe Step Response of a Linear Systemiiipage8

List of TablesNo.1TitleReport Elementsivpage11

SUMMARYScientific and technical reports convey the results of basic or applied research andsupport decisions based on those results. A report includes all of the essentialinformation necessary for interpreting, applying, and reproducing the results ortechniques of an experiment or investigation. The primary purposes of such a report areto communicate and pass on the results of scientific and technical research and torecommend any appropriate actions.Thus, the task of writing a report is an important skill to learn. The following descriptionof a technical report contains all the essential components of an actual technical report.It is written in the basic format of a technical report. It is written in the style of atechnical report. It is thus intended to serve as an exemplar of a technical report–except that no actual, technical content is contained here.1

1 INTRODUCTION1.1 Statement of the SubjectThe purpose of reports in engineering courses is to enhance the technical writing skillsof the student. It is not intended to be a punishment for mortal sins, even if it feels like it.Good communication skills are essential in an engineer's career, and too many studentsexit without having really exercised them. The goal of good writing is communication.Since many engineering problems are of an abstract nature, clear communication isessential to convey the ideas.1.2 PurposeThe report criteria considered here reflects the importance of various parts of the report.They are not intended to be the outline of your report. All reports should have anintroduction, a body and a conclusion. These should be part of your outline, but thebody, for example, should not be called “Body”, “The Body” etc. The project itself willusually have various parts that furnish the sections needed in the body of the report.1.3 ScopeThis paper describes a typical report that may be written for a project at theundergraduate or graduate levels. The basics for both reports are the same. Thispaper does not cover all possible styles of technical reports, nor does it cover literaryaspects of reports. Grammar, style or composition are not specifically delved into.What is covered are the overall “bare-bones” essentials of the report.1.4 Topic DevelopmentIn this report, we discuss the various components of a paper. Section 2 describes all theimportant components for readable papers. It discusses the Introduction of a paper.Since a good introduction is so vital to a report, it is given high emphasis. Section 2 alsopresents formatting properties of a good report, as well as the various parts of the Bodyof a report (here referred to as Methods, Assumptions and Procedures). Since eachreport will be on a different topic, these criteria will be general in nature, applying to allsections of the body. In Section 3 the results of the investigation and a discussion oftheir relevance is made.In Section 4, the conclusion is discussed. The conclusion provides “closure.” Since itties all the loose ends together, a good conclusion is important. Sections 5-7 discussthe remaining items that are important to the overall completeness of the paper.1.5 Intended AudienceAll communication has an intended audience. In an engineering firm, the audience maybe your boss, the head design engineer, etc. It may be helpful in writing the report in an2

engineering course, to picture an engineering supervisor having handed the project toyou, and you must report your findings.2 METHODS, ASSUMPTIONS, AND PROCEDURES2.1 Investigation ProcedureIn a general report, each part of the project may require a different approach. It mayrequire the use of MATLAB, simulations, hand calculation, circuit design andimplementation, C language programming, or analytical derivation. Whatever the case,a careful explanation should be given. What new features are being applied in theprocess of fulfilling the requirements of the project? Discuss any problems encounteredand alternate approaches needed. This section should explain exactly what theexperiment should produce.In Appendix A, a Table of the Basic Elements of a report in the ANSI format areincluded for Completeness.Where does one begin to describe how the project came to be? This is the subject ofthis section. In this paper, it begins with a Discussion of the Introduction and the Body.2.1.1 The IntroductionThe introduction should be a one to two page summary of the entire paper. Theintroduction should include all the essential information of the paper. The first paragraphof the introduction should capture the reader's attention. The introduction shouldintroduce the problem or project to be solved, including motivation for the project'sgoals. The purpose of the introduction is to provide a brief, but fairly completedescription of the entire project. For the purposes of engineering reports, theintroduction should be no longer than two pages, and preferably be one page.The introduction should explain the structure of the paper, and thus should mentioneach part of the project. In discussing each part of the project, a brief explanationshould be given. For each part, a summary of the approach taken is needed. If somenew features of a C program, for example, are included in this project a descriptionshould be given. Some sections may have new results, some may not. For thosesections that have new results, a summary should be given of the results.2.1.2 The Body of the PaperThe body of the report contains the meat. The introduction is the top part of the bun, theconclusion is the bottom part, but the body is the burger. As such it should be thelongest. In general, each project will have several parts. These parts must fit together inthe body of the report. The text should flow in a logical form, with no unnecessary

breaks. Pictures, tables, flowcharts, program code and other inclusions in the report thattake up a lot of space and interrupt the flow of the report should be placed in anAppendix. If they are small enough, they may be included in the Body. Equations shouldbe word processed if possible.2.2 System of Measurement2.2.1 Formatting ComponentsFormatting is a necessary evil. Since good communication depends not only on what issaid, but how it is said, this cannot be overlooked. These format components are helpfulin finding things in the report. It is good to get into the habit of including all of these intoany written work.Title PageThe title page may have many purposes. The title page should obviously state the title.The writer may also wish to use it to grab the attention of the reader. The Title Pageshould not be numbered. The title page may contain the Abstract.AbstractThe abstract is a one-paragraph summary of the whole report. It is intended to capturethe basic message of the report, and is often written to be readable to someone not inthe field. It may be included on the Title Page, or a page of its own. It should beincluded before the Table of Contents, and not listed there.Table of ContentsThe table of contents should appear before the numbered pages and not be countedamong them. All the sections and any subsections should be listed along with the(correct) page numbers.Page NumbersPages should be numbered consecutively, with numbers located placed in the upperright, lower right, or lower middle of the page. They may be included in a header or afooter. The Introduction should begin on page 1. Any pages that appear before page 1may be numbered with lower case Roman numerals. (The Title Page would be page i ifit were numbered - which it is not) All additional pages or appendices should also benumbered consecutively following the main text.Graph, Figure and Flowchart NumbersMost reports will require some illustrations. Illustrations are helpful since "a picture isworth a thousand words." Including illustrations in a document, however, is tricky.Modern word processing has facilitated this somewhat. Pictures are only useful in theproper context. A copy of the Mona Lisa may not be needed, for example in any of thereports. Indeed, unnecessary pictures clutter a report. Too few pictures, on the otherhand, make the communication much more challenging. The figures must be reachable.