PROJECT PROPOSAL - GUIDELINES
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesPROJECT PROPOSAL GUIDELINESTable of ContentsOverview . 2Project Proposal Introduction . 2Expectations for the Project Proposal Document and the Design Review . 3Resources . 3Example Project Proposals . 3Proposal Parts and Document Evolution . 3Submission Dates, Times, Places. 5Document Format & Section Details . 5The Test Document . 5The Body. 6Background and Motivation . 6Project Goal . 6Project Requirements . 6Validation and Acceptance Tests . 6Possible Solutions and Design Alternatives . 6Assessment of Proposed Solution . 7Describing an Initial Technical Design. 7Work Plan . 7Appendix A: Student-supervisor agreement form . 8Appendix B: Draft B Evaluation Form (Completed by the EngineeringCommunication Centre) . 8Appendix C: Report Attribution Table . 8Details of Parts of the Proposal Body . 8Background and Motivation . 8Project Goal . 9Project Requirements . 9Validation and Acceptance Tests . 12Technical Design . 13Possible Solutions and Design Alternatives . 13Assessment of Proposed Solution . 13Describing an Initial Technical Design . 13System-level Overview . 14Module-level Descriptions . 14Work Plan . 14A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) . 14Financial Plan. 17Feasibility Assessment . 18Updated June , 20121
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesOverviewFor probably the first time in your undergraduate program, you are required to propose alarger project and to carry it out to completion. In teams of two to four students, you willbe working on the common project but individual team members will be required to takeon responsibilities for specific work for which each will be held accountable. Interaction,collaboration and assistance are allowed and expected, but each person will receive anindividual mark for his/her work performed in the project.The first step in this process is the project proposal.Project Proposal IntroductionThe Project Proposal is a team document that is much like the PR/PMP (ProjectRequirement/Project Management Plan), the CDS (Conceptual Design Specification) andsome of the FDS (Final Design Specification) you did in first year, all rolled together. Itprovides the following: background/motivation, goal, project requirements alternate design solutions, justification for your choice of solution (the “design”), a breakdown of the design into parts (modules) a set of system tests to prove the final outcome will meet the goal and a plan (budget and timeline) to execute the design and tests by the end ofMarch.Some of what you were asked for in first year (client analysis for example) are notexplicitly asked for here. You are expected, however, to provide enough reasonedinformation so that both your supervisor and administrator can understand what you aredoing, why you are doing it and the approach you will be taking. Using this informationyour supervisor and administrator should be able to understand the project well enoughthat we can help you to detect any serious issues and to address them during or prior tothe design review meeting.A good project proposal takes time to develop and involves the entire team, thesupervisor, and the administrator, and you will probably find that it is not easy togenerate this document. A popular misconception is that 'all this writing' takes one awayfrom the 'real' design. In truth, producing this document will force you to work on your‘real’ design all along, only at the most abstract, highly-efficient system level which isoften quite unfamiliar for most students and new engineers.Updated June , 20122
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesGet as much help as you can from your supervisor. Remember, however, that it isultimately your project and that you, not your supervisor, are accountable for it. It may behelpful to think of your team as a consulting firm with your supervisor as the ‘expertclient’ who has a good understanding of the problem and the background, and youradministrator as your manager who is monitoring your team’s progress and performance.Expectations for the Project Proposal Document and the DesignReviewo background research completeo a proposal for a system design which will be defended and discussed by yourteamo not a final detailed design, although the approach for detailed design shouldbe understoodo understanding of possibilities and alternativesIt is fully understood that the final design could differ from this proposal as thedetails are worked out and certain approaches prove problematic.Resources ECE298 Course Notes (ECE298 was a course in system design, replaced in partby ECE297), Chapter 3 Design for Computer and Electrical Engineers by J. Eric Salt and Robert Rothery(available on a short loan basis in the Engineering Library) Designing Engineers, McCahan, Anderson, Weiss, Kortshot, Woodhouse (draftversion is available through Wiley; to be published 2013) Other design books and materialsExample Project ProposalsClick here for some sample outlines of parts of project proposals. These examples aredrawn from past student reports and the format when they were generated is differentthan it is now. They do illustrate how the general guidelines can be applied to a varietyof design projects. Some details are omitted from the examples. You should NOT blindlycopy the examples, but use them to help your own thoughts as how to best describe yourproject.Proposal Parts and Document EvolutionNote the following dependencies diagram. The links and flow should be establishedby your document:Updated June , 20123
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesStakeholders, operatingenvironment, etc.Background&motivationGoalRequirementsPossible SolutionsSystem TestsSelected SolutionModules in SolutionWork PlanRisksLater you will use the work plan totrack your progress and changes, andyou will ultimately prove your designby showing it passes the system testsThe expectation is that you will develop all your deliverables iteratively. This will bedone explicitly for the Project Proposal Documents. You will submit two drafts (A andB) for evaluation before the final submission; only the final submission will be marked.The drafts give opportunity for you to submit work, get feedback and improve the finaldeliverable; while there is no mark for specific content being there or being complete, thedrafts must be submitted.Draft A is submitted early and will be evaluated by your administrator. Draft B issubmitted before Draft A is returned, and this second draft is evaluated by theEngineering Communication people (ECC). The final version is marked by youradministrator.The following table gives areas you might want to target for Drafts A and B, and whatsections are expected for the final draft. (Every submission should have a cover page.You can determine when you want to include executive summary, table of contents,conclusion, and references.) Notes on the sections follow.Updated June , 20124
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesSectionProject BackgroundBackground and MotivationTest Document (Embedded – separate cover page)Project GoalProject RequirementsValidation and Acceptance TestsTechnical DesignPossible Solutions and Design AlternativesAssessment of Proposed DesignSystem-level overviewModule-level descriptionsWork PlanGantt chart or similar (with work breakdownstructure)Financial planFeasibility Assessment (resources, risks)Draft A(Evaluated byAdministrator)Draft B(Evaluatedby ECC)Final Draft(Marked esAppendix A: Student-supervisor agreement formAppendix B: Draft B Evaluation Form(completed by ECC)Appendix C: Report Attribution TableAppendix D,E,etc.: Authors’ appendicesXXXXSubmission Dates, Times, PlacesFor submission dates/times/places for drafts and final documents, see the masterschedule. Note that not all submissions go to the same place!Document Format & Section DetailsSee the Document Guidelines for overall information on document format and content.The following provides brief details on each section of the document not covered in thegeneral guide.The Test DocumentThe Goal, the Requirements and the Validation and Acceptance Tests constitute aseparate subsection that will be maintained as the project evolves. You should have aseparate cover page for the test document but embed it in your proposal document, thenseparate it out afterwards. You will bring it to the Design Review and the Decembermeeting, and a copy will be submitted with the Progress Report and the Final Report.Updated June , 20125
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesThe BodyIn the body you will give the background for the project, the project goal, the projectrequirements, alternative and the selected design for the project and overview technicaldetails of that selected design.Background and Motivation Describe background for about for the level of an engineer entering 3rd year.Research is expected to support claims. Background should be enough to support the description of the goal and thediscussion on alternative solutions Motivation can be that it is an interesting exercise in technology, an alternate wayof implementing an existing technology or have some practical, novel place inwhat is available.Project GoalThe project goal is a solution-independent statement that summarizes what your designproject is to achieve. If you are doing a “proof of concept” or “scaled-down version” orsimilar, say so here!Project RequirementsProvide a list of solution-independent target project requirements which will be used toevaluate the success of your project. There are three divisions: Functional requirements [must-have to fill goal] Constraints [legislated or client-enforced] Objectives [nice to have. Traded off against cost, time, other objectives]Note: All must be testable. If you can’t write a test, further decomposition orspecification is needed. Set a project scope (functionality) that is doable in the time you have. Rememberabout integration, testing, deliverables and the effects of loading of other courses. See the detailed section on requirements for information about research projectsand software projects involving incremental development.Validation and Acceptance TestsEvery requirement must have at least one associated test to confirm it works. One testmay cover several requirements. There are usually additional tests specified to validatethat the goal has been satisfied.Possible Solutions and Design AlternativesDescribe design alternatives, comparing with the design you choose. Develop thesealternatives before you select one.Updated June , 20126
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesDO NOT ESTABLISH A DESIGN CHOICE, AND THEN THINK ABOUTALTERNATIVES JUST TO GET THIS DOCUMENT DONE.Assessment of Proposed SolutionComment about the strengths, weaknesses, and trade-offs made in the proposed solution.What reasons led you to choose this solution over some of the others you explored? Thissection does not need to be long, but ensures that you can provide some justification foryour design decisions to date.Describing an Initial Technical DesignThis should describe how the system works, break the system into modules and describethe modules including inputs and outputs. A system block diagram is almost alwaysincluded, with labels on the modules and the interconnections. Indicate which modulesyou are purchasing and which you are designing.Work PlanHere are the key elements of a work plan: A Gantt chart or other type of plan that indicates a schedule of delivery ofparts of your project. Typically this will include a work breakdown structurein the tasks.A financial planA Feasibility AssessmentNotes: One person and only one person must be assigned responsibility for each task The chart must be readable in all versions submitted. The tasks must not be open-ended. It must be clear when they are finished. So“Research Microprocessors” is not enough. “Select Microprocessor” would be acorrect alternative, since this is closed with the decision “We are usingmicroprocessor xxx”. The financial plan should include everything that would normally cost money,excepting your time, even if parts and facilities are provided for “free” but arenormally charged out. The financial plan should also include income, including student 100contributions and anticipated other income. The feasibility assessment should outline the available skill set of the teamappropriate to the project, resources available that you will use and a riskassessment and how the risk might be handled.Updated June , 20127
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesAppendix A: Student-supervisor agreement formThe agreement is available in Word or PDF format (click on either format to downloadfile). The agreement must be signed by your team and your supervisor, and must beincluded in the hard copy of the final Project Proposal draft. It is not required for theelectronic copy.Appendix B: Draft B Evaluation Form (Completed by the EngineeringCommunication Centre)Draft B of the Project Proposal will not be graded, but will be reviewed and discussed ina meeting between your team and a member of the Engineering Communication Centre(ECP) to provide you feedback for preparing the final draft. See schedules/deadlines forinformation.The evaluation form for Draft B is used to keep track of feedback given to students bytutors in the ECC. The tutor will fill out and return the evaluation form to you at the endof your workshop session. You will then append the completed form as Appendix B ofyour final Project Proposal draft, allowing the administrator and your supervisor(s) to geta sense of the issues that were – or were not – discussed.Appendix C: Report Attribution TableThe report attribution table summarizes the contribution of each team member to theproject proposal. It is available in Word or PDF format. Complete the table, showing theinitials of each team member in a separate column, and using the abbreviations shown.This sheet must be signed by all team members. Details of Parts of the Proposal BodyThis section is included to provide further detail and description for those looking foradditional guidance or example.Background and MotivationThis section is aimed at demonstrating your team’s understanding of the technicalproblem and ‘the big picture’. Provide a background (at about the level of an engineerentering 3rd year), context [Design Notes, chapter 4] and motivation for your project. Agood project is not following a recipe; what makes your project different than what isavailable? (Note that if the implementation of an existing product is not obvious and isnot available, or can be done in an alternate way, then implementing would still make areasonable project.)Updated June , 20128
ECE496YProject Proposal GuidelinesThe work may just be an interesting exercise in technology, or may have direct or indirectpractical application. It could improve reliability, cost, or ease of use over availabletechnology. It may deal with some interesting challenges.Understanding the problem in the context of the bigger picture requires that you do aliterature search, and you should be prepared to put in enough time to build your case.Provide relevant references to original sources of information. References to webpages(like Wikipedia) are generally inadequate, unless they can be justified (e.g. datasheet forcomponents). Wherever possible, reference original sources such as journals, books, andtechnical standards, and provide complete information in a standard format (Refer toexamples from IEEE on the course website.)Previous Background Work (if applicable)Many uncertainties about risks are answered in the course of working on a problem. Inthis respect, teams that have actively worked on their project over the summer have a keyadvantage, and so should briefly highlight some of the key challenges they have alreadyovercome. Evidence here provides strong support of the feasibility of the remainder ofthe project. These teams can include some of their previous work as an attachment in theappendix.Project GoalThe project goal is a statement that summarizes what your design project is to achieve. Itcan be general and non-technical but should give direction to the entire project. It is NOTjust the statement your supervisor used to describe the project. Refer to [Design, Section3.2] to find both good and bad examples of project goal statements. Two key points are tofocus on the desired result, not the solution or implementation, and to establish somecriteria for which the success of the project can be evaluated.Design projects can take many forms. There are those that have hard functional goals butthe details of the methodology are left undefined. An example of this type is the buildingof a microprocessor simulator. Another type, common to research-oriented projects
The first step in this process is the project proposal. Project Proposal Introduction The Project Proposal is a team document that is much like the PR/PMP (Project Requirement/Project Management Plan), the CDS (Conceptual Design Specification) and some of the FDS (Final Design S
Project Proposal Guide & Sample Disclaimer: The sample proposal below is to give an idea of how a project proposal should be prepared. Note that this proposal is not representative of the level of complexity/innovativeness of a winning project. Name of Project: Development of Add-On Active Vibration Control (
Added proposal e00163r2 Media serial number proposal. Added proposal e01108r0 WD ATA DCO concerns. Made changes requested during change bar review at the 2/20-22/01 plenary. Revision 1c - 4 June 2001 Added proposal d99128r10 Proposal for Audio Visual feature set except log. Added proposal e00157r1 Small format card adapter proposal.
Proposal Packet Cover Sheet All grant proposal packets must be accompanied by a completed Proposal Packet Cover Sheet Form. Visit the Forms section of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation website to download a Proposal Packet Cover Sheet Form. Proposal The grant proposal must be divid
Writing a Research Proposal 1 KhurshidAhmad Professor of Computer Science Department of Computer Science, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland. Presentation for Trinity CS post-grads, April 2011, Dublin Writing a Research Proposal A research proposal is similar in a number of ways to a project proposal; however, a research proposal addresses a .
This proposal describes the implementation of a complete set of services and related products. All assumptions inherent in this proposal are based upon the integrated nature of the project described, and Walk2digi. and/or "Client" must acknowledge any modifications to this proposal in writing All the Logo's presented in the proposal are
Project proposal 1. Project Name Ndoto Beekeeping 2. Timeframe The Timeframe of this project is 24 months 3. Project summary This project proposal is for the extension of a previously implemented project of which the funding has lapsed. The milgis trust started a bee-keeping project two and a half years ago that was aimed at
Security Services Proposal . Scroll down to read the first part of this sample. When purchased, the complete sample is 6 pages long and is written using these Proposal Pack chapters: Cover Letter, Title Page, Needs Assessment, Security Plan, Company History . This sample was created using Proposal Pack Security #1. In the retail Proposal Pack you
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