The Factors that Influenced the Selection of Embedded Microcontroller for Teaching Embedded System Design and Interfacing Course

Abstract

This article reports the factors that influenced the selection of embedded microcontrollers for teaching the embedded system and interfacing course at the School of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia. The article analyses the data for 10 years from the beginning of the course offered in 2010 until 2019 for capturing the important criteria and pattern in the selection microcontroller for teaching embedded system courses. The data was captured from all documents related to the courses, including the course outline, course information, student report, Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) report, Industrial Advisory Panel (IAP) report, and accreditation report. These documents were thoroughly examined and analysed to identify the reason for selecting the type of embedded system microcontrollers used for teaching and learning in the course from the early day offering until 2019. The finding shows that the cost is the main factor followed by robust and facilities that influence the selection of the embedded microcontroller in the course. In conclusion, the selection criteria are extremely important in selecting and justifying the suitable embedded microcontroller for the embedded system design and interfacing course, evidenced by the trend finding in this study.