Computer Systems

5 ECTS credits
145 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 1001711BNR for all students in the 1st semester at a (B) Bachelor - advanced level.

Semester

1st semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Impossible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Taught in

Dutch

Faculty

Faculteit Ingenieurswetenschappen

Department

Electronics and Informatics

Educational team

Peter Schelkens (course titular)
David Blinder
Raees Kizhakkumkara Muhamad

Activities and contact hours

30 contact hours Lecture
48 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals

Course Content

• The binary representation of data in a computer
• The translation of assembly language and high-level programming languages to machine language, compilers and interpreters
• Machine instructions and addressing in a sequential computer
• The stack machine: principles, evaluation of the basic elements of high-level programming languages (expressions, conditions, loops, function calls,…)
• The register machine: principles, processing of the basic elements of high-level programming languages (expressions, conditions, loops, function calls,…)
• Construction and operation of the essential electronic building blocks of a computer and processing of machine instructions in hardware (micro-architecture)
• Memory hierarchy and caching, peripheral memory
• Input-output interfaces: polling, interrupts, DMA
• The operating system
  • Memory management
  • File management
  • Process management
• Pipelining
• Exercises and programming project (programming in assembly language)

Course material

Digital course material (Required) : Slides en nota’s, Canvas
Handbook (Recommended) : Structured Computer Organization, Andrew S Tanenbaum, Todd Austin, 6de, Pearson Prentice Hall, 9780273769248, 2012
Handbook (Recommended) : Modern Operating Systems, Andrew S Tanenbaum, 4de, Pearson Prentice Hall, 9781292061429, 2014
Handbook (Recommended) : The Intel Microprocessors, Barry B. Brey, 8de, Pearson Prentice Hall, 9781292027371, 2013
Handbook (Recommended) : The Art of Assembly Language, Randall Hyde, 2de, No starch press, 9781593272074, 2010
Handbook (Recommended) : Computer Systems Design and Architecture, Vincent P. Heuring, Harry F. Jordan, 2de, BIB, 9780130484406, 2004

Additional info

Slides and notes are made available via the electronic learning platform Pointcarré.

Learning Outcomes

General competencies

This course contributes to the following programme outcomes of the Bachelor in Engineering Sciences:

The Bachelor in Engineering Sciences has a broad fundamental knowledge and understanding of
2. engineering principles and the ability to apply them to analyse key engineering processes and to investigate new and emerging technologies;
3. integrated design methods according to customer and user needs with the ability to apply and integrate knowledge and understanding of other engineering disciplines to support the own specialisation engineering one;

The Bachelor in Engineering Sciences can
5. define, classify, formulate and solve engineering problems,  identify the constraints and is able to delimit and formulate the tasks in order to submit these to a critical examination and to check the solutions for their sustainability and social relevance;
7. apply quantitative methods and computer software relevant to the engineering discipline in order to solve engineering problems;
8. apply an horizontal broadening and vertical deepening of the discipline within a continuously changing society and industrial context, in a multi-disciplinary environment;
9. use and evaluate information of technical literature and other information sources;
10. correctly report on design results in the form of a technical report or in the form of a paper;
11. present and defend results in a scientifically sound way, using contemporary communication tools;
12. reason in a logical, abstract and critical way;

The Bachelor in Engineering Sciences has
18. acquired the tools for knowledge collection towards life-long learning.

19. The Bachelor in Engineering Sciences has more advanced fundamental knowledge and understanding and can apply this knowledge to solve basic engineering problems

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 60% of the final mark.
PRAC Practical Assignment determines 40% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

• mondeling examen with a relative weight of 60 which comprises 60% of the final mark.
  
  Note: Oral examination with written preparation.

Within the PRAC Practical Assignment category, the following assignments need to be completed:

• project with a relative weight of 40 which comprises 40% of the final mark.
  
  Note: Programming project in assembly language: quality and functioning of the software, reporting, presentation and defence

Additional info regarding evaluation

Oral examination with written preparation that includes 4-5 questions covering different parts of the course. An overview of the assembly language instruction sets will be provided and can be used during the examination.

Programming project in assembly language with scoring based on quality and functioning of the software, written report, the oral presentation and defense.

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context

This offer is part of the following study plans:
Bachelor of Engineering: Electronics and Information Technology (only offered in Dutch)
Bachelor of Engineering: Electronics and Information Technology Profile Profile Computer Science (only offered in Dutch)